Dear Sir/Madam.
I'm writing to find out what will happen to my residence permit in Germany after divorce. I married a German citizen in Vienna Austria in July 2022 and i applied for family reunion Visa and it was approved. Now I'm in German with my Wife. I have applied for residence permit and it has been approved but i have not gotten the card but i have the certificate of residence permit approval which entitled me to start working in Germany, but my Wife said that if i start working that it will affect the money she's getting from the Jobcenter and so on. We have two new born babies (twins) my wife is threatening to stop me from getting the card if i don't listen to her.
My question is: can she stop me from receiving the residence permit card, or what can happen to my stay in Germany if she goes for divorce or separation?
I'm hoping to read your reply ?
Dear joe, thank you for your question. I hope that you can soon find a solution with your spouse. In case you get divorced your basis of residence no longer exists and you could lose your residency in Germany and will be asked to leave the country. If you have been married and lived together in Germany for 3 years, then you can receive a so-called independent right of residence for spouses (Eheunahängiges Aufenthaltsrecht). The Immigration Office calculates the number of years you have been in Germany as a married couple (or registered civil partners) from the day you received your residence permit. As a rule, you must have been married in Germany for 3 years to obtain the independent right of residence for spouses. When so called hardship cases apply there are exceptions to the 3-year rule. This would be the case for example, if you partner subjects you, or your children to violence, or if you can proof that you cannot return to your home country because your health and life would be at risk. It is always important to provide sufficient proof for these hardship cases and receive counselling. In case you cannot apply for this residency you can also consider other options, for example if you face persecution in your home country or are from a country at war, you may consider applying for asylum. It is important to discuss all these options with an advice centres.
.
You should receive your residency card 4-12 weeks from you application date. Depending on immigration office you will be send to your home or you will have to make an appointment to pick up your residency card.
We have listed all the important information you need to know about the independent right of residence for spouses on our Handbook Germany Information page, please take a look: https://handbookgermany.de/en/independent-residence-title-spouses
.
You can reach out to the association of bi-national partnerships and seek advice. https://www.verband-binationaler.de/beratung
You can also search this site for migration counselling centres in your area: https://bamf-navi.bamf.de/en/Themen/Migrationsberatung/
you can also use this search tool for advice centre for men in your area https://maennerberatungsnetz.de/beratung/#/cats_beratungstyp/all//cats_…
If you need help searching for a counselling centre, please let me know what city you are in.
Please let me know if you have any further questions.
Best wishes
Ok, thanks!