Apply for a residence permit as a child born in Denmark

If you are a child born in Denmark by foreign national parents, you can apply for a residence permit, if you have not had another residence permit before. The requirements for qualifying for a residence permit are more relaxed than for children born abroad.

You must be aware that if you already have had a residence permit in Denmark, you must apply for a residence permit on the grounds of family reunification instead. This application will normally require payment of a fee. Read more about how you apply for family reunification as a child 

You and your parent in Denmark need to meet certain requirements.

Special rules apply to the groups below:

• If you are a child to a foreign national that holds a residence permit in Denmark issued by the Danish Agency of International Recruitment and Integration (SIRI) on the grounds of work or study, you must apply for residence permit as accompanying family member. Read more about accompanying family member 
• If your are a child to a foreign national whose right to reside in Denmark stems from the EU law, you must apply for an EU residence document that confirms your right to reside in Denmark. You must apply for this at the Danish Agency for International Recruitment and Integration (SIRI). Read more about citizens of EU/EEA countries 

Once you have been granted a residence permit, your municipality of residence will register you in the Civil Registration System (CPR).

Possibility of Danish citizenship for stateless persons under 18 years

If you were born as a stateless person in Denmark you can, following the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, be listed in a naturalisation bill without fulfilling the general conditions for obtaining Danish citizenship, if you apply before you turn 18 and reside in Denmark. 

The Danish Immigration Service draws attention to the fact that certain countries do not recognize the transfer of citizenship from mother to child. If you are born to a woman from one of these countries, you can be stateless if your father is either stateless or unknown. If you are in that situation, you may be subject to the special rules for citizenship for stateless persons born in Denmark.

Read more about Danish citizenship for stateless persons under 18 years on uim.dk (in Danish only)

In order to qualify for a residence permit, you, the applicant, and your parent in Denmark both need to meet certain requirements.  

Temporary residence permit

If your application for family reunification is approved, you will initially be granted a temporary residence permit, typically valid until you turn 18. If your parent holds a temporary residence permit, your residence permit will expire when your parent’s residence permit expires. Your residence permit can be extended if you and your parent still meet the requirements for residency. Read more about extending residence permits

When you turn 18, it may be possible for you to obtain a permanent residence permit by meeting lenient requirements. Read more about permanent residence permit