VisaForeign residents in Cabo Verde need a valid permit to sponsor family
Families joining foreign residents in Cabo Verde must distinguish the sponsor’s permission, the entry visa and the applicant’s residence file.
Official source date: 2026-11-02
Edited and checked by the VisaWand editorial team
Check the sponsor and the family relationship
Cabo Verde’s High Authority for Immigration says a foreign resident with a valid residence permit may seek family reunification. Its family FAQ identifies spouses, minor children and adopted minors among those who can be included, and requires accommodation and means of supporting the family. This guide concerns the current route, rather than a new family-visa announcement.
Make a household list before gathering evidence, so the proposed accommodation and financial arrangements address the accompanying family rather than only the sponsor living alone. The practical first step is to establish whose residence permission provides the basis for the application and whether it remains valid. A family intending to join a foreign worker should check that person’s status, rather than assume the worker’s job offer is equivalent to a residence permit. Use the authority’s family FAQ to identify the basic sponsor conditions and obtain case-specific advice where the proposed relationship is not described there.
Distinguish an entry visa from residence authorisation
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Consular Portal lists family reunification with a foreign resident as a purpose for a residence visa. It describes that visa as permitting six months in the country, extendable until a final residence-authorisation decision. This is a separate stage from obtaining the residence permit itself; the visa’s duration should not be mistaken for an automatic family-residence award.
The portal requires evidence supporting the reason for residence, adequate accommodation and sufficient means. Its checklist also includes a travel document valid beyond the authorised stay, transport allowing entry and departure, a health certificate or equivalent and an international vaccination certificate. Applicants should use the portal’s appointment link to identify the relevant consular service and ask which supporting records apply to their circumstances. Visa exemptions are addressed separately on the same resource: a person should check their own nationality and existing status rather than assume that a relative’s exemption extends to them.
Use the police portal’s family checklist and fee category
The National Police’s e-Residencia family page provides the residence application link and lists the documents required. These include a valid passport, means of support, accommodation evidence, a medical certificate, an international vaccination certificate and a municipal residence certificate. It also lists social-security registration, a Cabo Verde criminal-record certificate and National Police and Judicial Police records.
The page requests an appropriate foreign criminal-record document translated into Portuguese and endorsed by Cabo Verde’s consular services. Applicants should confirm the issuing jurisdiction and certification requirements before ordering it, particularly where nationality and habitual residence differ. The published temporary-residence fee categories are CVE6,400 for non-CPLP types, CVE1,400 for CPLP and CVE1,700 for Senegal. Identify the applicable category with the service rather than treating the general amount as universal. These listed permit charges do not establish an all-inclusive total for consular services, translations, medical evidence or other document preparation.
File before the visa expires and follow the child’s timetable
The High Authority’s general residence-application guidance says the approved application must be signed by the person concerned, or an appropriate representative where necessary, before the visa expires. It allows a residence applicant to request family reunification simultaneously. Families preparing the principal applicant’s file should therefore ask whether their applications can be coordinated, while still supplying the required individual evidence.
The same guidance states that the legal representative or guardian of a resident minor must request an individual residence authorisation within 45 days after the child turns 14. Record that date separately from an adult’s visa expiry. For accommodation, the authority identifies property-registration evidence or a valid rental agreement as examples. It also warns that merely handing in a residence application does not mean it has been automatically granted. Retain submission records, respond to further document requests and confirm the decision through the responsible service; neither a complete-looking checklist nor payment alone establishes approval.
