Residence permit - skilled workers with professional experience

Description

Do you come from a third country (non-EU country, Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein or Switzerland), are you a skilled worker with professional experience and would like to work in Germany? Then you need a residence permit for skilled workers with professional experience.

Visa procedure

If you belong to a third country ( not the EU, Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein or Switzerland), you generally need a visa to enter Germany for the purpose of employment, which you must apply for at the German diplomatic mission abroad.

The visa is not required for citizens of Australia, Israel, Japan, Canada, the Republic of Korea, New Zealand, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United States of America.

After entering the country

You must first register your residence at the Citizens Office.

Application and deadline

You must apply for your residence permit before your visa/residence permit expires. If you can enter the country without a visa, you must apply for a residence permit at the Foreigners Office within 90 days of entering the country.

Please submit the application form and the required documents online or by post. After submitting your online application, you can download a completed document as a PDF for your records. The document will confirm your application and the authorisation/continuation of your previous residence. After we have checked your application, you will receive an appointment for a personal interview.

Period of validity:

The residence permit is valid for four years. If you have an employment contract of less than four years, the residence permit is valid for as long as the employment contract (plus three months).

Prerequisites

• You have at least two years of professional experience commensurate with your qualifications, which you have acquired within the last five years and which qualifies you to pursue the desired profession.
• You currently have a gross annual salary of at least 40,770 euros. If your employer is bound by collective agreements and employs you in accordance with the collectively agreed working conditions, this requirement does not apply.
• One of the following qualifications
  • a foreign professional qualification which is recognised by the state in which it was obtained and which required at least two years of training to obtain
  • a foreign university degree that is officially recognised by the state in which it was obtained, or
  • a vocational qualification obtained abroad, which was acquired through training that fulfils the requirements of the Vocational Training Act for vocational training in terms of content, duration and type of implementation and is suitable for imparting the necessary professional competence for a training occupation in accordance with the Vocational Training Act or the Crafts Code, and which has been issued by a German Chamber of Commerce Abroad.

Proof of qualification must be provided at your request and at your expense. Proof must be submitted to the Central Office for Foreign Education.

If you are working in the information and communication technology sector, proof of qualification is not required.

• Employment contract or concrete job offer
• Approval from the Federal Employment Agency
• Adequate pension scheme (required from the age of 45)
• Excluding pension provision, the minimum salary for 2024 is €49,830 gross per year.
• The salary may be lower if adequate pension provision is already ensured from other public or private sources (assets or pension insurance).

Required documents

• Fully completedapplication form
• Valid passport or passport substitute
• Biometric passport photo( you will find photo machines at the Foreigners Office)
• Valid visa to enter the country to pursue the qualified employment (only required for first-time applications).
• Proof of the qualification obtained from the Central Office for Foreign Education
• Proof of the professional experience gained
  • Detailed curriculum vitae
  • If available: Employment references or confirmations from the employer
• Proof of the current monthly costs for the flat
  • for rented flats, a current confirmation from the landlord or bank statements showing the rent amount
  • for owner-occupied flats, proof of loan instalments and monthly housing benefit.
• Employment contract (only for first application)
• Fully completed declaration of employment(only for initial application, please upload together with the employment contract)
• Fully completed declaration of employment
• Last three salary statements from the period of employment (only for extension of residence permit)
• Adequate pension provision (required from the age of 45 if the salary is not at least EUR 49,830 per year)The salary may be lower if proof of assets or pension insurance from public or private sources in Germany or abroad is submitted.
• Written declaration of consent from persons authorised to take care of the person (parents) if under 18 years of age

Further documents may be required in individual cases.

Legal basis

§ Section 18 AufenthG, Section 19c (2) AufenthG, Section 6 BeschV