How European Immigration Policies Interfere with Transnational Couples’ Citizenship

Abstract

Private affairs such as marriage and family life usually elicit little political concern in our societies. Not so with transnational marriage when a foreigner is involved. Until the 1990s, when it came to transnational marriage, immigration laws in Europe differed quite considerably: some countries were tolerant, others more restrictive. European harmonization brought about the adoption of Directives on family reunification for Third Country Nationals and citizens of the European Union, but Nationals borders and “citizenship exclusion or failure,” the article highlights typical situations in which transnational couples’ rights are limited. At the outset of their relationship, their respective legal positions are unequal and they must tackle the problems posed by social integration; at best, they encounter social insensitivity, but also official discrimination. Their project to found an international family is obstructed by administrative hurdles and challenged in its very private meaning. Couples may retrieve the full exercise of their citizenship through self-help groups, human rights associations or lawyers who defend their rights and advise them on how to contend with the situation.