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In 2024, the European Union issued a total of 540,445 first-time residence permits to non-EU minors under the age of 18, according to Eurostat data. The majority of these permits, around two-thirds (356,554), were granted for family reunification or family formation, while 160,618 permits (30%) were issued for other reasons, including international protection. Educational purposes accounted for a much smaller share, with only 21,179 permits (4%).
Among EU member states, Cyprus and Malta stand out for granting residence permits to minors at the highest rates relative to their populations. Malta tops the list, followed closely by Cyprus. Luxembourg also ranks high in per-capita terms, with 1,861 permits per 100,000 minors, compared with 3,379 per 100,000 in Malta. In terms of absolute numbers, Germany leads with 138,692 permits, followed by Spain (107,828) and Italy (60,125).
Looking at the origin of the minors, 37% of permits were granted to children from Asian countries, 27% to non-EU Europeans, and 21% to African nationals. Syria was the most common country of origin, representing 12% of all permits, followed by Morocco (7%) and Ukraine (6%).
