Family reunification from Morocco to Italy: 2026 guide

Guidance only, updated November 2026. Always check the requirements with the receiving authority.

To bring a spouse, children or parents from Morocco to Italy you need a nulla osta (clearance) in Italy and then a visa from the Italian consular network in Morocco, together with Moroccan civil-status records that are apostilled and translated. This information is updated to November 2026: always check the official sources listed below.

Who can apply

The sponsor must hold an EU long-term residence permit or a residence permit valid for at least one year for work, study, religious reasons, family reasons or international protection (art. 28 of Legislative Decree 286/1998).

Since December 2024 the sponsor also needs two years of lawful, uninterrupted residence in Italy to bring a spouse, a disabled adult child or parents. This does not apply to minor children, to holders of international protection or an EU Blue Card, or to intra-corporate transferees.

Which relatives qualify

Under art. 29 of the Consolidated Immigration Act:

• a spouse aged 18 or over who is not legally separated (civil partners included);
• unmarried minor children, including the spouse’s children and children born outside marriage, with the other parent’s consent;
• dependent adult children who are totally disabled;
• dependent parents with no other children in the home country, or parents over 65 whose other children cannot support them for documented serious health reasons.

A spouse cannot be brought in if the sponsor already has another spouse living in Italy. Brothers and sisters are not eligible.

Income and housing requirements

1. Suitable housing that meets the hygiene and habitability standards checked by the local council (the idoneità alloggiativa certificate). For a single child under 14, the consent of the person who holds the accommodation is enough.
2. Minimum income at least equal to the annual assegno sociale (social allowance), plus half of that amount for each relative; for two or more children under 14, at least double. Income of cohabiting family members counts. For 2026 INPS gives €7,101.12 a year (€546.24 over 13 instalments), so the threshold for one relative is about €10,652.
3. Parents over 65: health insurance or registration with the National Health Service.

Step 1: the nulla osta

1. The relative living in Italy files the application online on the Ministry of the Interior’s Portale Servizi, addressed to the Sportello Unico per l’Immigrazione (Single Desk for Immigration) at the Prefecture where they live.
2. The Single Desk checks the housing and income documents and obtains the opinion of the Questura (police headquarters).
3. A decision is due within 150 days; the nulla osta is sent electronically to the consulate and must be used within six months.

A refusal can be challenged before the ordinary court (Tribunale ordinario).

Step 2: the visa in Morocco

This is a national (type D) visa. The Italian Embassy in Rabat covers Rabat, Salé, Skhirat, Témara, Khémisset, Tiflet, Rommani and Aïn Aouda; the rest of the country falls under the Consulate General in Casablanca. Appointments are booked online only, through the external service provider VFS Global, without other intermediaries.

The Embassy’s checklists (version of 22 April 2026) require documents that are apostilled and translated into Italian by a sworn translator. The consulate checks that records are genuine and, where a family link cannot be reliably documented, may use DNA testing at the applicants’ expense. A visa decision is expected within 30 days; the Embassy’s fee table lists €116 for a national visa.

Checklist: documents to prepare

• Passport valid for at least 15 months, issued within the last 10 years, with two blank pages; copy of the Moroccan national ID card (CNIE).
• Signed application form and an ICAO-compliant photo.
• Nulla osta and a copy of the sponsor’s Italian residence permit.
• Spouse: marriage certificate, any divorce judgment, certificate of non-divorce, certificate of monogamy.
• Children: full copy of the birth certificate, birth certificate of the parent living in Italy, parental authorisation.
• Parents: birth certificates of the applicant and the sponsor, certificate of kinship, proof of regular payments for more than a year.
• Livret de famille (family booklet), original plus a legalised copy.

The Embassy publishes a separate checklist for minors placed under kafala.

Where sworn translation fits in

Since 14 August 2016 Morocco has applied the Hague Apostille Convention: Italian consulates no longer legalise Moroccan records, which must carry an apostille from the Moroccan authorities. According to the Embassy, sworn translations must also be apostilled. The order is:

1. obtain an up-to-date record from the competent office;
2. have the apostille affixed to the original;
3. have the sworn translation into Italian prepared;
4. have the translation apostilled as well.

Check that names match the passport spelling. The Embassy also publishes a list of sworn translators for Italian.

On arrival in Italy

1. Within 8 working days of entry, the family member goes to the Single Desk that issued the nulla osta, signs the paperwork and collects the residence-permit application form.
2. They send it with the postal kit from an authorised post office (Sportello Amico) and receive tracking codes and a fingerprinting appointment at the Questura.
3. Anyone over 16 signs the integration agreement; registration with the local population register and the health service follows.

The host must also file the accommodation declaration (cessione di fabbricato) with the authorities within 48 hours. The residence permit for family reasons lasts as long as the sponsor’s permit and allows the holder to work and study.

Family members of Italian citizens

If the person living in Italy is an Italian citizen (including by naturalisation) or a citizen of another EU country, no nulla osta is required: the visa is requested directly, with a letter of invitation, a copy of the sponsor’s ID and, for a spouse, the marriage extract issued by the Italian authorities. In Italy the family member then applies for the residence card for family members of EU citizens.

Frequently asked questions

Can I bring my wife as soon as I get my residence permit?

As a rule, no: for a spouse you need two years of lawful, uninterrupted residence, unless an exemption applies. The requirement does not apply to minor children.

How long does the whole process take?

Up to 150 days for the nulla osta and about 30 days for the visa, plus the time needed to prepare the records in Morocco.

Is any translation acceptable?

No. The Embassy requires an Italian translation by a sworn translator, bearing an apostille.

Sources

• Normattiva – art. 28, Legislative Decree 286/1998
• Normattiva – art. 29
• Normattiva – art. 30
• Integrazione Migranti – Family reunification
• Ministry of the Interior – Portale Servizi
• INPS – Assegno sociale
• Embassy in Rabat – Document checklists
• Embassy in Rabat – Where to apply
• Embassy in Rabat – Visa fees
• Embassy in Rabat – Translation and legalisation
• Consulate General in Casablanca – Visas
• Visa for Italy – Family reasons
• Visa for Italy – Family members of EU citizens

Tarjama24 can prepare the sworn Italian translations of the Moroccan records required for family reunification. Send us a legible scan of your documents and tell us which family member the application is for: we will explain the formalities involved before we start.