Consulate General of Belgium in Hong Kong

Visa D - Family Reunion

VISA D – FAMILY REUNION

This section of the website covers the visa for family reunion only.
For information about the visa for professionals or students click here.

For visa (C) for marriage and for cohabitation, please refer to the Visa C section of the website.

The Consulate General of Belgium in Hong Kong handles long stay visa applications to Belgium. For long stay applications to Luxembourg, an original letter from the authorities in Luxembourg is necessary; for more information you can click here. 

The visa D is a multiple-entry national visa. It requires registration at the municipality (gemeente/commune) of the place where you will be residing in Belgium.

Although the visa D is only valid for Belgium, it can also be used for transit (max. 5 days) through one or more Schengen countries. In some specific cases, a visa D + C can be issued. This visa entitles you to travel within the Schengen area during the first 3 months after entry into Belgium, while you wait to receive your official residence permit.

Who should apply

All nationals who wish to accompany their spouse or family member to stay for more than 90 days in Belgium per six month period, need to apply for a visa D – Family Reunion. The exceptions are citizens of the European Union or citizens of one of the following countries: Iceland, Liechtenstein, Monaco, Norway and Switzerland.

Parents can apply for a visa to join their child but only if the child is under 18 years old.

When to apply

You are encouraged to lodge your application early (the earliest is 6 months before your intended departure date) to allow sufficient time for the process, to avoid delays in issuing to visa, thus delaying your intended date of travel.

For some visa applications the Consulate is required to transfer the file to the Immigration Office in Belgium. Decisions can take longer and timings are unpredictable.

How to apply

To apply for a visa, please always first submit your application form electronically and then make an appointment via the FPS Foreign Affairs website: visaonweb.diplomatie.be

Please come to the Consulate General in person with the relevant checklist and all documents in the order of the checklist. Everyone needs to appear in person. Minors who wish to accompany their parents for a long stay will also need to appear in person, regardless of their age.

Your fingerprints (from 12 years old onward) and facial image (as from 6 years of age) will be captured and stored in a national database for 10 years.  

REQUIREMENTS

In this section you can find the requirements for applications for a Visa D – Long Stay. Scroll down to find the requirements that apply for the specific types of visa.

Visa D - Long Stay application form

Click here to download the long stay visa application form in Dutch.

Click here to download the long stay visa application form in French.

Click here to download the long stay visa application form in English.

Documents and legalisation

If documents are issued by a foreign authority, a legalisation or apostille may be required before they can be accepted for your visa application. 

  1. For documents issued by authorities in Hong Kong or Macau, (Birth certificate, marriage certificate,…) an apostille is needed. Click here for information about legalisation and apostille.
  2. For documents issued in Belgium or the EU, an extra legalisation is not necessary.
  3. For documents issued outside the EU, a legalization or an apostille is required. The type of legalization depends on which authorities issued the document.

To verify you can contact the relevant embassy of Belgium in the country where the document was issued. Or you can check the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Belgium by clicking here.

Documents need to be issued less than 6 months ago and documents that are not in French, Dutch, German or English need to be translated by a translation company recognised by the Consulate General. The list can be consulted here.

Medical certificate

Certain applications for a Visa D - Family Reunion require a medical certificate. This certificate has to be obtained from one of the doctors recognized by the Consulate General, and has to be dated less than six months before the date when you apply for your visa.

Download the certificate template here. 

Click here for the list of medical doctors approved by the consulate. 

CNCC (Certificate of No Criminal Conviction) / Certificate of Criminal Record

All applications for a Visa D require a Certificate of No Criminal Conviction (Hong Kong) or a Certificate of Criminal Record (Macau), covering the last two years. The certificate needs an apostille before it can be used for a visa application at the Consulate General on Belgium.

You can find more information about the CNCC / Certificate of Criminal Record here

Payment of contribution fee

A contribution is required for the processing of long stay (type D) visa applications. This contribution can be paid by either the applicant or a third person (family members, acquaintance, sponsor, guarantor, etc.) into the account of the Immigration Office in Belgium. This contribution is separate from the handling fee of the long stay visa, which you have to pay at the Consulate General at the time of your application. This requirement does not apply for applicants under 18 years of age.

You need to present proof of payment of this contribution when you apply for your visa at the Consulate General. Visa D applications without this proof of payment cannot be accepted.

All information regarding the amount, the payment methods and possible exemptions is available on the website of the Immigration Office.

Please note that:

Any bank charges or charges related to the transfer have to be borne by the applicant (or whomever performs the transfer.)

Proof of payment of the full administrative fee must be provided when the visa or residence application is submitted. Without this, the application cannot be taken into consideration.

If the visa application is rejected, the administrative fee will not be reimbursed.

Please refer to the list of consular fees for the visa fee. ALL PAYMENTS ARE NOW SETTLED IN CREDIT CARD ONLY (VISA, MASTERCARD). 

LIST OF REQUIRED DOCUMENTS

Select the type of visa and download the checklist. Applications for visa can only be accepted if accompanied by a completed checklist. 

IMPORTANT NOTICES

1. Register your arrival

When you are issued a visa D, you will have to register with the administration of the commune/municipality where you will be residing in Belgium. You are required to do this within 8 days of your arrival in Belgium, to apply for a residence permit. 

2. Willingness to integrate in Belgian society

The efforts towards integration in Belgian society by a foreigner who is admitted to or permitted to a stay of more than 3 months in Belgium will be verified by the Immigration Office (FPS Interior)

We strongly recommend that you consult the website of the Immigration Office for a detailed explanation regarding this new general condition of stay.