FAMILY JOINING

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It grants the right to family union. Family joining can be requested by:

a foreign family member of a non-EU citizen
a community family member of a non-EU citizen

Family joining
A foreign citizen can apply for family joining for the following family members:

a) spouse not legally separated and not under eighteen years of age;
b) children not of age, even of the spouse’s or born outside marriage, not married upon the condition that the other parent, if existent, gives his/her consent;
c) dependent children of age, should they not be able for objective reasons to provide for their indispensable needs due to their health condition which entails total invalidity;
d) dependent parents, should they not have other children in the country of origin or of provenance, that is parents above 65 years of age, should it be impossible for the other children to take care of them for proved serious health problems.

The foreign citizen applying for family joining must prove to have:

a) housing compliant with sanitary requisites, as well as accommodation qualifications, ascertained by the cognizant municipal offices;
b) a minimum annual income deriving from lawful sources not lower than the annual amount of the social allowance increased by half of the amount of the social allowance for each family member to join.

For the joining of two or more children under fourteen years of age, it is required to have an income not lower than the double of the annual amount of the social allowance.

In order to determine the income, it is necessary to take into consideration the total annual income of the family members cohabiting with the applicant.

Application for no impediment document to family joining, together with the necessary documentation, is to be submitted at the Sportello Unico for Immigration at the Prefettura-at the Government’s cognizant territorial office as regards the applicant’s place of residence.

The office, once acquired the Questura’s opinion on the inexistence of impedimental reasons for the entrance of the foreign citizen on the national territory, issues a no impediment document, that is a measure denying the same.

The issuing of the visa for the family member for whom the above mentioned no impediment document was issued is subject to the Italian consular authority’s ascertainment of authenticity as regards the documentation proving the condition of relationship, marriage, minor or health condition.

ACCOMODATION QUALIFICATIONS (IDONEITA’ ABITATIVA O ALLOGGIATIVA)
What are accommodation qualifications?

The accommodation qualifications certificate proves the housing habitability, that is it states the number of people that can occupy a real estate on the basis of its dimensions. “Dimensions” means the size in metres of the surface of a house. The accommodation qualifications certificate is one of the requisites for specific procedures or fulfilments as regards the residence of non-EU citizens in Italy.

Pursuant to law 94/2009, the accommodation qualifications certificate must also certify, in the cases provided for, that the house has proper sanitary requisites, that is proper toilets and a proper ventilation and temperature (hence, the general definition of accommodation qualifications).

When is this certificate necessary?
The accommodation qualifications certificate is mandatory in the following cases:

When applying for an CE residence permit for long-term residents (should the application also be in favour of cohabiting relatives) as mentioned under Art. 9, paragraph 1 of Lgs.D. 286/98
Entrance flows for subordinate job as mentioned under Art. 22, paragraph 2, letter B of Lgs.D. 286/98 and Art. 8 bis, paragraphs 1 and 2 of DPR 394/99 and Art. 30 bis, paragraph 2, letter D of DPR 394/99
Application for No-impediment document for family joining as mentioned under Art. 29, paragraph 3, letter A of Lgs.D. 286/98
Applications for so-called “family cohesion” as mentioned under Art. 30, paragraph 1, letter C of Lgs.D. 286/98

The non-possession of accommodation and sanitary requisites constitutes an impediment for the issuing of the residence permits mentioned above.

Where to apply?
The cognizant Office (in all of Italy) for the issuing of the accommodation qualifications certificate is the Technical Office [Ufficio Tecnico] of the Municipality of residence.

Pursuant to circular n. 15 of the Ministry of Interior of 28 May 2012, it is not possible to self-certify this document since it represents a certification of technical conformity provided by the Municipal Technical Offices.

Necessary documents
In most cases, application for the issuing of the certificate is to be carried out by filling in a form specially provided by the municipal offices, enclosing the following documents:

copy of the applicant’s valid identity card, residence permit or registered receipt, sale, lease (rent) or bailment contract, duly registered and valid, cadastral planimetry of the apartment proving the total square metres, the accessory rooms, the portions of rooms and the use of each room, a revenue stamp

It is suggested to ask the administrator of the condominium or the owner of the apartment for the planimetry. In alternative, it is possible to ask for a “cadastral search” at the Cadastral Office of the Territorial Agency.

Parametres for accomodation qualifications
Circular n. 7170 of the Ministry of Interior of 18 November 2009 clarifies the amendments introduced by law n. 94 of 15 July 2009 (safety package – pacchetto sicurezza), concerning the necessary requisites in order to obtain the accommodation qualifications certificate.

In fact, the circular specifies that “certification concerning the accommodation qualifications certificate can refer to the regulation contained in the Ministerial Decree of 5 July 1975 which establishes the main sanitary requisites of the rooms and it also clarifies the minimum requisites as regards the surface of the housing, with regard to the envisaged number of occupants.”