How to get a visa to Germany on the basis of studies, job, freelancing, or highly qualified profession? It is all and easy now as the government of Germany has been easing requirements for all these visa categories. Especially the newly announced work visa category really makes it possible now for all to be a part of Germany’s labor market.
Going to Germany is a fascinating adventure. It is a place full of numerous human beings and the possibilities are endless. There are lovely cities and lovely nature. You won’t be apologetic about shifting there for a second. Everyone who desires to live, study, or work in Germany is always welcome however an official status or residence permit is required.
Germany is a part of the Schengen area, so many travelers choose to go to this country for enjoying the 27 EU countries’ experience. Citizens of different international locations that do not have visa waiver deals, which include China, Pakistan, India, and all African countries, will need a residence permit to reside in Germany. On the other hand, if you are a US, Canadian, Australian, Brazilian or Mexican citizen and your stay in Germany does no longer exceed ninety days, you will not need a Schengen visa to Germany, as these nations have visa-free journey agreements with the European Union. From 2021, you will need an ETIAS visa waiver that can be acquired on-line and will price €7 ($7.82).
Germany’s Residence Permit
A residence permit is a document or card that is required in Germany if you want to stay there for more than ninety days. If you only prefer to go to Germany for traveler purposes, you no longer need a residence permit and in this case, you will apply for a short-term Schengen visa of ninety days instead. All overseas nationals, besides those from EU countries, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein, need a residence permit to remain in Germany for more than 90 days.
Types of Residence >Permits
There are different types of residence permits in Germany depending upon your need, you may choose a suitable option or category for you from the following:
- Work visa (for employment purposes)
- Student visa
- Freelancing visa
- EU Blue Card (for highly qualified)
1- Work Visa or Employment Visa
Finding a job in Germany qualifies you for a temporary residence permit. You can first begin your job search whilst you are in your country, or you can get a job seeker visa in Germany and discover or find a job in Germany. However, once you have acquired a job offer, you can apply for a temporary residence permit. You are not allowed to begin work earlier than receiving the document. Here we will discuss all work visa categories one by one.
Details about working in Germany according to new immigration policy
Citizens of non-EU countries will now from 1 March be able to apply for a work visa in Germany with a lot more ease than before. There are more than 1.5 million jobs that Germany will find it difficult to fill in the long term, according to the Association of German Chambers of Industry and Commerce (DIHK). This indeed tells the importance of a timely decided new immigration policy.
Key Points of the new immigration law
- Suspension of the checks if there are available workers either in Germany or EU countries for the applied job of the foreigners. This will surely help to make the job offer process faster and more vocational and skilled jobs would be open for non-EU workers.
- The previously exercised norm, immigration only for highly skilled ‘Academically Qualified’ persons is to be joined by the vocationally skilled workers. This will help even diploma holders and ones with having professional experience in skilled work to count.
- Under some restrictions, students will be able to come to Germany to attend vocational training courses.
- Permanent residency is possible with less time. Foreign qualified professionals can get a permanent residence permit after four years. This is a year less than of lastly implemented laws. The new law also enables foreigners who successfully complete a vocational training course in Germany to receive a permanent residence permit two years later. This also implies on graduates.
Types of work visas under the new immigration system
i- General work visa
having a qualified occupation, the applicants will be able to apply for the work visa. This requires the following:
- a work contract from a German employer.
- basic knowledge of the German language.
- required qualification. Highly qualified and skilled people with vocational training will both be able to apply for this visa.
- recognition report from Germany for either a degree or vocational training completed
ii- Jobseeker visa for highly qualified professionals
Skilled migrant workers can come to Germany for 6 months to look for a job. To do so, one needs sufficient funds for up to 6 months of stay in Germany. Educational qualification and its recognition in Germany is also required. German language knowledge at a level of B1 is also essential (to really find the jobs). Visa holders during their stay in Germany for a job search, will be able to work for 10 hours a week for any job. Once they get the job and after getting a work visa, will be able to work full time. Read here complete details of Germany’s job seeker visa.
iii- Job seeker visa for skilled people with vocational training
Skilled workers with vocational training can also go to Germany for a job search. They will be given a residence permit for six months. The precondition for this is that the foreign qualification is recognized by the relevant institution in Germany and that the person can contribute to the duration of his or her stay and has the necessary German language skills for the required profession. Generally speaking, German language skills are required at least at the B1 level for general reference. In Germany, it is possible to get up to 10 hours a week on a trial basis during your time spent searching for a job. This enables employers and foreign professionals to know if they are suitable for each other. Accredited academic qualification professionals, who are allowed to come to Germany for six months to receive a job as before, are also allowed to work on a test basis.
iv- Vocational training finding visa
Interested applicants for vocational training search in Germany, will be able to apply for training seeking visas. This will be possible if the applicant:
- is a maximum of 25 years of age
- is capable of having a German language level of CEFR B2.
- has passed higher secondary school from abroad that allows him to pursue higher education.
- can bear the expenses of his stay in Germany.
v- Foreign students in Germany can also get a residence permit for work
Students are already allowed to switch their student visa into a work visa once they have completed (also during studies) their education in a university. For example, they could also switch to a vocational training program and can get a residence permit. But now, according to a new law under certain conditions, they are also able to switch the student visa into a work visa if they receive a job contract and can work in a qualified occupation.
http://https://youtu.be/Jlqy6_l4w4k
Guide for applying for a work visa
i- How to check the in-demand list of professions?
Germany also issues every year in-demand occupations white list that let the applicants know if they can apply for a certain category of their own interest. Some of these list jobs are:
- Carpentry, roller shutter, and blind construction
- Software development
- Construction professions in plumbing (without specialization)
- Professions in sanitary, heating, and air conditioning
Check here the complete in-demand list of workers
ii- Who can apply?
For these jobs, anyone having either higher educational qualification or vocational level education can apply. The main thing is that you must check before applying if your occupation is available on this list or not. Even if it does not exist in this list, do not worry, check with the passage of time as the list is updated from time to time with the demand in the market. You can also apply for a work visa, even if your occupation is not listed on the shortage occupation list.
2- Study permit
You need to apply for a visa at the local German embassy in your country and gain a German student visa to be eligible to enter, stay, and study in Germany. You solely need to apply for a visa if you choose to work in Germany during or after graduation. Temporary residence permits are additionally issued for students who are finishing an undergraduate, graduate, or professional degree in Germany. They normally reap a residence allow for the size of their program. During their studies, they are allowed to work full time for a hundred and twenty days or 240 days of 1/2 time. In addition, they may interact in work-study positions. However, they can’t enter into long term contracts. Foreign students have to enroll in a German university or take a language course. Some different requirements, such as a good-sized financial useful resource and acceptance letter from a corporation in Germany can also be demanded by the embassy of Germany at the time of applying for a visa.
Upon completion of the degree, students are allowed to extend their temporary permit for another 18 months due to their search for a job in Germany. German authorities enable this due to the fact they favor to keep educated people internal the country. If students get a job, they can apply for an Employment Residence Permit.
20 Steps for successful admission and visa application
- Select a course to study in Germany
- Select a university of your choice in Germany through
- Determine if you are eligible to get admission to the university directly or you have to study in a first
- After choosing the respective portal, start the process of applying for admission
- Gather the documents you need to add with your admission application (you can ask your university first about the required documents)
- Get the language proficiency test certificate. You need to show that you have the required language proficiency to study in Germany. You either need German language (only in case when your course will be taught in German medium of instruction with B2 level for bachelor degree and C1 for master degree) or English language (IELTS or TOEFL) test certificates proofs with a minimum level of 6.0 score for bachelor degree and 6.5 (IELTS score) for a master degree program.
- Get the required educational documents attested by relevant educational boards and universities (this condition is not for all countries, however)
- Carefully read the admission instructions as some universities as for some extra requirements, for example, GRE test, etc
- Once all documents are ready, send them to either uni-assist or to the university through post or online as guided by respective portals.
- After getting a successful admission offer letter, get ready to apply for a student residence in the local German embassy.
- Gather the required documents for submitting a student visa application
- For studying in Germany, you need to show a visa officer that you can manage your living expenses. Proof of financial means to cover the costs for the time of your studies by one of the following documents:
– confirmation of scholarship/ stipend
– “Verpflichtungserklärung” (formal obligation letter) by sponsor living in Germany (this simply means any of your family members living in Germany can sponsor you for your living expenses in Germany. For doing so, they must show work contract and salary slips with a bank statement that they have a good financial situation plus this letter from the local foreign office.
– Proof of blocked account in the name of the applicant showing a minimum balance of 8640,- Euros. In case you opt for a blocked account in Germany, the proof needs to include the remark that the account holder can dispose of a monthly amount of 720,- Euros. - Arrange your health insurance.
- Once you have all these documents, you can fill in the visa application form.
- Get an appointment from the local German embassy in your country to submit the visa application.
- Do not forget to read and sign the checklist and instructions of the embassy before visiting them especially the photocopies of documents, information about the previous history, and refusals of previous visa applications if any.
- You have to pay the visa application fee, confirm it from the German embassy before visiting them. Yu may be interview on the same day or later on whatever the choice of local visa officer is. Visa application reply will be given to you in 3 to 8 weeks.
Read here about our complete guide about studying in Germany
3- EU Blue Card
When it comes to the EU Blue card scheme, Germany stands alone for its astonishing benefits. Started back in 2012, the EU Blue Card visa has brought many highly qualified professionals to Germany. According to the latest statistics, alone Germany has issued so far 76,000 Blue Card visas. Indian has enjoyed it the most with one-fourth of the total followed by Chinese with 10%.
Important: All EU states offer EU Blue cards except Ireland, UK, and Denmark. (You can read here about how EU Blue Card works and all other EU states Blue Card application requirements).
Key Benefits↓
⇒ No heavy financial proofs |
⇒ No restriction of having a job offer from the shortage occupation list |
⇒ No language proficiency required |
⇒ Lowest ever time duration for PR |
⇒ No obligatory work experience required |
⇒ Visa-free entry into other EU member states |
EU Blue Card is a so-called mimic form of USA Green Card, but here in Europe, you need to have 1.5 more wages threshold of a local German. This has especially been designed to attract highly qualified professionals from non-EU countries. The major requirements for the EU Blue Card of Germany are:
- German or recognized foreign or comparable foreign university degree
- An employment contract or a binding job offer (no restriction of having a job from shortage occupation list)
In order to satisfy the conditions of wages threshold (implemented from 1 January 2021), the minimum is:
- proof of gross income of €56,800.
- for natural scientists, mathematicians, and engineers as well as doctors and IT specialists, it is based on a lower salary limit of €44,304.
Visa Duration
Initially, applicants are given a visa for 4 years of total duration. If the work contract has a validity of fewer than four years, then the visa will be issued for the job duration plus 3 months of extra time. Generally, people do not need to renew or extend the visa, as the next step is surely permanent residency.
Settlement Possibilities
Once you have been working and living on a Blue Card in Germany, you will be able to get permanent residency after a total time of 33 months. In case you have adequate knowledge at B1 level of German language proficiency, the time is reduced to 21 months. On the other hand, the normal PR time requirement is 7 to 8 years for other visa categories.
Family Reunion
You can sponsor your family to stay with you in Germany. Your spouse is also allowed to work without time restrictions.
Moving to other EU State
You can also settle in other EU member states once you have passed 18 months in Germany on this visa status. Keep in mind that you will have to face other new challenges in a new country and they will have their own regulations for family settlement and PR.
How to apply for the EU Blue Card?
Having all required documentation met, you can apply for the EU Blue Card in the local German embassy or consulate. Many embassies work on the basis of a prior appointment. So contact visa sections of the embassies for the appointment (online appointment system available in most countries). There are 227 German missions abroad that could be reached here.
If you are a citizen of Australia, Canada, Israel, Japan, the Republic of Korea, New Zealand, and the United States of America, you can enter Germany on a visa-free basis and within three months can apply for a Blue Card subject to having a job contract.
You are given 3 months of initial visa that is converted into the EU Blue Card by registering yourself into ‘Ausländerbehörde’. At the time of application, you may need to present certain types of documents to satisfy the visa offer in order to get the visa. Which are:
- visa application form for long-term (click here to download)
- your personal passport
- your national identity card
- two Biometric photos (have a look at the requirements here)
- the original job contract from the employer
- academic qualification proofs including transcripts and certificates
- any previous work experience proofs and employment letters from previous employers
- you have to submit a statement of comparability (KMK website) or an Anabin-extract matching your main subject and your university exactly (Anabin website)
- preliminary health insurance of at least 3 months valid from the intended travel date. For some countries, 6 months of health insurance is required such as for Pakistan. In this case, the initial visa will also be issued for 6 months instead of 3 months.
- in some countries, it is necessary to pay document verification fees of almost 300 US Dollars. However, this is not required for all countries.
- Applicants_Declaration
- Information provided to applicants pursuant to Section 54 (2) 8 in conjunction with Section 53 of the Residence Act)
4- Freelancer Visa
Your independent exercise must be registered with the tax workplace rather than the commercial office. The tax workplace will have the energy to difficulty tax numbers and gather taxes from you based totally on your independent activity. For some liberal professions, you need to be a member of the applicable chambers, and for others, you should understand overseas eligibility earlier than embarking on your own independent activity. 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.
Other important information that could help you for applying for all visas
1- How to find English Jobs in Germany?
There are many good websites and Facebook groups online to apply for online jobs in Germany. Our article can help you do so by clicking here.
2- Get qualification recognized from Germany
It is always advised to get a statement of comparability for your acquired qualification outside Germany. This makes it easier for the employer to consider your educational level and work experience you gained. The same applies to those who have acquired vocational qualifications instead of a proper degree to get it recognized in Germany. This will make sure that how you will be able to qualify for a certain job. Some occupations are properly regulated and for this such recognition, documentation is a must. However such are not so, for example, IT, Marketing or management jobs. Following are the respected authorities that provide you such certifications:
ZAB (organization for degree qualification recognition) Click here to open
Organization for Vocational Qualification recognition, Click here to open
3- How to find jobs in Germany?
You may well be able to find jobs in Germany while lying in your bed! How? Well, this is not that complicated. There are a lot of job portals in Germany that provide online job listings every day. These job postings are up to date and of good companies. Find below a way to find jobs either through government job portals or private job portals:
i- The government recognized job portals
ii- Private job portals
- Monster Germany, Click here to open
- Stepstone Germany, Click here to open
- Expat job seekers in Germany, Click here to open
Check here to check our complete guide for how to find English Jobs in Germany.
4- How to apply for jobs?
It is really important to apply for jobs online properly. Since you are not personally available in Germany for the employer, so your job application must be really good in order to have a good impact on the employer. You must apply for the job as advised in the online job posting. Some companies ask for a paper-based written job application that you can send them through the post. Some ask for applying through email and some through online portals (mostly used way nowadays). In all cases, you must make sure to add the following documents:
- Cover letter
- CV
- Educational Certificates
- Any professional references
- Work experience proof
i- How to write a Cover letter?
Writing a convincing cover letter is not that difficult as it often considered to be. In your cover letter, you must give the company a first
impression of yourself. You should also explain why you are interested in the post and do describe your own strengths (true facts only). Do not forget to express yourself convincingly to set yourself apart from the other candidates.
Click here to online make a cover letter in a few minutes
ii- How to write a CV?
Who denies the role of a curriculum vitae in acquiring a job? You must write a good CV to expect a good reply from your intended employer. Before writing a CV, do remember the following things:
- mention your personal and professional career
- your CV does not have to be written out in full(include just main details)
- you can list the most salient information in the form of a table (latest information such as work experience must be written first)
- in Germany, applicants must include a photo of themselves in their CV
Click here to make a good CV online in a few minutes according to German CV patterns