Settlement permit from the age of 16

Description

Young people who have held a residence permit for 5 years may, under certain conditions, be granted a settlement permit. The settlement permit is a residence permit of indefinite duration, which allows you to live and work in Germany without any restrictions on time or location.

Eligibility:

The settlement permit, available from the age of 16, is granted to persons

• who were born in Germany or
• moved to Germany as a minor with or to join their parents, or
• who, as a minor, were granted a residence permit on grounds of international law, humanitarian or political reasons (Sections 22–25 of the Residence Act)

Minors are entitled to a settlement permit if, at the time they reach the age of 16, they have held a residence permit for 5 years.

Adults are entitled to a settlement permit if they entered the country and were first granted a residence permit before reaching the age of 18 and have held the residence permit for 5 years.

Application and appointment

You can submit your application and the required documents online:

• Please upload your documents as PDF files where possible.
• Once you have submitted your application, a confirmation will be displayed. You can save this as a PDF file for your records.
• This confirmation states that your current residence in Germany remains valid beyond the previous expiry date and that you may continue to work to the same extent as before (legal fiction).
• You can present this confirmation as proof to the authorities or at your place of work.
• Once your application has been assessed, you will be given an appointment.

Requirements

• You are registered in Munich.
• You have already reached the age of 16
• You have been living in Germany for at least 5 years without interruption and have a valid residence permit for family, international law, humanitarian or political reasons, which was issued to you as a child/minor (if available, asylum procedure periods will be taken into account)
• Your livelihood is secured (not required if you are doing an apprenticeship, attending school or studying)
• You have no criminal record

Additionally for adults:

• You have sufficient knowledge of German (level B1)

Required documents

• A fully completed application for a settlement permit
• A valid and recognised passport or passport substitute
• A recent biometric passport photograph, submitted digitally by a certified photography studio or chemist’s. Alternatively, you may use one of the photo terminals at the Immigration and Naturalisation Service Centre for a fee.
• Evidence of five years’ residence in Germany, usually in the form of annual reports, school certificates, a training contract and/or a certificate of enrolment
• If you are currently in training: a current certificate confirming school attendance, vocational training or university studies

In the case of minors who are not in education or training, proof of their parents’ ability to support them must be provided.

From the age of 18:

Evidence of a secure means of support If you are not undertaking training leading to a recognised school-leaving certificate, vocational qualification or university degree, we will also require the following from you or your parents:

For employees

• Payslips (proof of earnings for the last three months)
• ​ Confirmation of employment ​
• ​ Declaration regarding means of support

For the self-employed/freelancers

• Proof of profit after tax (latest income tax assessment) and, for the self-employed: current profit and loss account from the tax adviser or current business accounts; for freelancers: a current profit and loss statement from a tax adviser, a fee agreement, invoices for services rendered, and bank statements relating to these invoices
• Proof of health insurance (your statutory health insurance card or the policy document for private health insurance)
• ​ Business registration (if required under trade law)
• ​ Declaration of means

Evidence of benefits such as parental allowance, child benefit, child supplement, childcare allowance and maintenance payments may also be attached. You must be able to cover your living expenses without public benefits under Book II or XII of the Social Code (Unemployment Benefit II or social assistance). Receiving benefits under the Federal Training Assistance Act (BAföG) does not have a negative impact on the granting of the permit.

Proof of monthly accommodation costs:

• ​ Declaration regarding cohabitation ​
• For rented accommodation: tenancy agreement stating the size of the flat in square metres and bank statements showing the rent amount, or
• certificate of accommodation or
• For owner-occupied flats: Purchase contract stating the size of the flat in square metres and, where applicable, proof of mortgage repayments and of the monthly housing allowance/service charge.

Proof of sufficient German language skills:

• Five school reports or
• A certificate of a German school, vocational or higher education qualification or
• A certificate of German language proficiency in accordance with the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) at level B1 or above, or
• other proof of language proficiency

Note

• The documents submitted (such as proof of identity and language certificates) will be checked for authenticity. We will consistently report any forgeries to the police.
• ​ Should we require any further documents, we will write to you.

Legal basis

§ Section 35 Residence Act

§ 26 paragraph 4, sentence 4 Residence Act