Family unit

[TurningAroundAndSaying]

Family unit. Family unit.
It is family.
You do not need the word unit.

[Seeline]

I suppose it depends on what you mean by family?

To me, family unit would imply those living together as a independent group. A family would imply other relations/generations not necessarily living together. I wouldn't refer to my DH and DC as my family unit in general conversation though.

[TurningAroundAndSaying]

The word you need in that case is family. That's the word.
The word family covers it.
Saying 'family unit' is as bad as phrases like: 'I saw with my own eyes' or 'due to the fact'.

[SenecaFallsRedux]

Family unit is a term of art in many social services and demographic contexts. It usually means a group of immediate family members living in the same dwelling. In those contexts, "family" can encompass a broader group that includes extended family members.

[Geamhradh]

Seeline and Seneca are, as ever, correct.
The family unit is the members of a family who live together. Family has a much broader meaning.

[PostingForTheFirstTime]

My daughter is family.

She, her husband and her children are a "family unit".

My FIL is family.

He and his wife are a "family unit".

The terms "family" and "family unit" are not synonymous.