This Independent Expert Report (hereinafter “the report”) is concerned with challenges experienced by Eritrean refugees in Europe in the context of family reunification processes, in particular those relating to strict documentary requirements demanded by some EU Member States, in particular Germany. The report shows that these requirements often hinder the effectiveness of the right to family reunification. Further, those requirements pose unnecessary risks, often placing Eritrean refugees, and their relatives in Eritrea, at serious risk. In presenting its main findings and conclusions, this report uses a methodological approach that combines analysis of primary and secondary data. The data gathering method involved desk research and thirty-nine semi-structured interviews conducted between October and December 2020 with a range of carefully selected sources.
