Many of us still do not know that one can work in Germany as a freelancer. This developed country does offer a special visa even for this purpose.
Getting a freelancer visa may help you being a part of that modern world that will be used to working from home even the current pandemic situations has made it worth more to exercise online skills from home.
Working as a freelancer, you are your own boss. There is a great deal of flexibility, such as working days and hours. Plus, you’re free to choose the clients and projects you want to work for. You have almost none of the working protocols to follow. You may not need an office to do your job.
Who is a Freelance Worker?
Freelancer or Independent worker, usually used for someone who is self-employed and does not need a particular employer for the long term. Freelance workers are sometimes represented by a company or a temporary agency that resells freelance labor to clients. Others work independently or use professional associations or websites to get work. Digitals nomads could also be called freelancers.
How a Freelancer can work in Germany?
The German freelance visa is called Aufenthaltserlaubnis für selbständige Tätigkeit that allows you to be self-employed in Germany. In reality, it’s a freelance residence permit, but everyone calls it a freelance visa. If you are thinking about working independently in Germany, you need to understand the legal environment of self-employment here. This is because the profession you want to pursue here explains your qualification to become a freelancer. One very important factor that helps you being accepted as a freelancer here in Germany is that you are looking to pursuing a career here that has been recognized as a freelance profession. You will need a visa to freelance in Germany If You are not a citizen or permanent resident of the European Union and you want to be self-employed in Germany (freelancing or running your own business in Germany).
Who does not need a visa to freelance in Germany?
You will not need a visa to freelance in Germany if you are a German citizen or permanent resident. You are a citizen or permanent resident of the European Union or you are a citizen of Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, or Switzerland. Your current visa allows you to travel freely (find this line on your residence permit). However, the occupation for which you have received your visa will remain your primary occupation. If you have a work visa, freelancing cannot be your primary occupation or your main source of income. If you want to work regularly and independently, you must get permission from your employer.
Visa Fee
The rate for applying for a freelance visa is 60 Euros. The most for a residence permit is a hundred and forty euros, while the settlement fee is up to 260 Euros.
Basic legal requirements for a freelancer in Germany
Your independent activity must be registered with the tax office (called “Finanzamt”) instead of the commercial office. The tax office will have the power to issue tax numbers and collect taxes from you based on your independent activity. For some new and modern professions, you must be a member of the relevant chambers, and for others, you must recognize foreign eligibility before embarking on your own independent activity.
Basic legal requirements for a freelancer who is already in Germany
- Your career should match the qualifications you have acquired here.
- You are a foreigner with a German artist visa.
- You must meet the criteria independently as a foreigner.
- You are a foreigner working as a researcher or scientist in Germany. As a researcher or scientist,
- You are a foreigner with a temporary German visa for other purposes.
- You are a foreigner graduating from a recognized educational institution in Germany. This includes state-recognized or equally recognized training institutions in Germany.
Application process and basic visa requirements
You can apply for a freelance visa at the German embassy or consulate in the country where you currently reside. You must complete the application 3 months before your scheduled travel date. You should also send original application documents along with photocopies of each. Here are the documents to apply for a German freelance visa:
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- Valid passport
- 1 current biometric photo
35mm x 45mm, frontal shot with neutral facial expression and closed mouth, looking straight into the camera, light background - Form “Antrag auf Erteilung eines Aufenthaltstitels” (Application for Issuance of a Residence Permit). Only required for first-time application
- Revenue forecast
- Adequate pension plan (only if you have already completed the 45th year of life). You can provide evidence of adequate retirement benefits by:
- an offer from a private pension or life insurer,
- own assets,
- acquired pension rights or
- operating assets
- Proof of the main residence
- Certificate of registration at the main residence (Meldebestätigung) or
- lease and written confirmation of occupancy from the landlord
- Fee contracts
- Regarding artists and language teachers: Proof of other regular income E.g. own assets, regular transfers from dependent parents, submission of a declaration of obligation by a solvent third party
- If you want to work on a fee basis: Letter of intent for the collaboration
- Submission of at least two declarations of intent (with information on the type, scope, and description of the occupation)
- Details of professional career, qualification certificates, diploma, references/sponsors
- Professional permit: If a permit is required for the freelance occupation, e.g. a license to practice law (original)
- Health insurance: Proof of a secure livelihood must also include sufficient health insurance. Those with statutory health insurance are sufficiently insured. Those with private health insurance must consider the type and extent of their health insurance.
- Lease or proof of homeownership (Original)
- Rental cost/expenses for property: Proof of the monthly rental costs (e.g. current account statement) or costs of the inhabited property; in each case in the original form
Freelancer Visa Length
Under normal circumstances, a freelance visa is issued for three months initially from your country of origin. Once your visa is valid and you reach Germany, it can be converted into a residence permit. The place you apply for a residence permit is the local foreign authority (generally known as Ausländerbehörde or Rathaus). A residence permit for an independent residence can also be converted into a residence permit for self-employment, but this is only possible if you are allowed to get the required self-employment activity.
Freelance Visa extension
The residence permit for freelancing can be extended for up to three years. To achieve this kind of expansion, you must first succeed in your independent business. This means you have enough evidence to make a profit to cover the living expenses of yourself and your dependents. After spending 3 years with a residence permit for freelancing, you can get a settlement permit. But this is only possible if you decide to set up a retail or handicraft business.
Advance professions in Germany
The German Income Tax Act (ESTG) has a public list of liberal and commercial professions. Still, the final decision on whether a profession qualifies as a liberal or as a commercial profession is in the hands of the local tax office
According to ESTG-18, the liberal ‘freelance’ professions in Germany have self-employment in the following fields.
- Scientific and technical,
- Linguistic and information delivery
- Health care
- Law
- Tax and Business Consultation
Important to know before you apply for a visa
It must be a self-employed academic, artistic, literary, teaching, educational, or other self-employed professional occupation in accordance with s. 18 (1) Income Tax Act (see section “Further Information”). You will also have to provide an adequate pension plan (only if you have already completed the 45th year of life). Perspectively, at the age of 67, you must have the following:
- a monthly pension of 1,280.06 euros (for at least 12 years) or
- an asset amount of 187,682.00 euros.
You do not need to provide proof of a pension plan if you are a national of the Dominican Republic, Indonesia, Japan, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Turkey, and the United States of America. But please do not forget that an adequate pension is always necessary for the issuance of a permanent settlement permit – regardless of age or nationality.
What you can do after arriving in Germany as a Freelancer?
- The first thing after your rest is to legalize yourself as a freelancer in Germany.
- Enter your residential address. As soon as you get your permanent residence, you have to register in Germany. This is done through the local resident registration office, Bürgeramt. Once this process is complete, you will receive a ‘Meldebescheinigung’ confirmation of residential address registration.
- After registration, you must open an account in a German bank.
- The most important thing in current circumstances gets yourself covered by proper health insurance.
- Start implementing your independent plan. You want to contact waiting for customers and inform them of your own availability to work.
- Apply for a residence permit for freelancing. Within the first three months of your arrival, you must submit a valid application for a residence permit. Applications are made to the Foreign Registration Office, Ausländerbehörde. To apply, you need to provide a complete application form for a residence permit and the required proof supporting such an application. In addition to supporting documents, you will need to provide a letter of confirmation of residence from the landlord living here. This needs to be completed through a rental agreement.
What is remote working?
Remote work is a way of working that allows professionals to work outside the traditional office environment. It is based on the idea that successful work does not have to be done in a specific place. Instead of going to the office daily from a designated desk, remote employees can carry out their plans and achieve their goals wherever they want. People have the flexibility to design their day so that their professional and personal life can be experienced to the best of their ability and they can live in peace. These visas are usually aimed at home-based professionals, they hope the new visa will attract long-term travelers who want to keep themselves from the island’s destination. With social distance and wearing a mask, nomads can enjoy and work without the constant mercury of the virus.
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