Questão jurídica principal
Whether the appellants had a legal right to family reunification under ANAG, the Free Movement Agreement, Article 13 BV, or Article 8 ECHR.
Decisão extraída
No legal entitlement existed under ANAG or the Free Movement Agreement; the constitutional and Convention guarantees did not require reunification on the facts, because the children’s existing care situation in Turkey remained sufficient and no compelling need for a change was shown.
Fundamentação extraída
The father had only a residence permit, not a settlement permit, so Art. 17(2) ANAG did not apply. Swiss-citizen discrimination arguments did not create an analogous reunification right. Although Art. 13 BV and Art. 8 ECHR can protect family life where a settled parent in Switzerland seeks to live with minor children, reunification may be refused when the separation was initially voluntary, other caregiving arrangements in the home country remain available, and the existing family relationship is not being unlawfully hindered.