German work visa for Non-EU citizens
Types of visa and steps you need to follow to get a work permit
It’s not that difficult to obtain official permission to live and work in Germany if you’re a skilled non-EU citizen with a job offer from a local company.
In general, there is no so-called “visa sponsorship” in Germany. If a company is ready to offer a candidate a job contract, he/she can apply for the work permit. It is, actually, much faster and easier to receive a work permit in Germany compared to other developed countries.
Once you’ve got a job offer from a German employer, you can immediately start preparing documents for visa and work permit.
The first step you should make is to determine what kind of work visa to Germany you can apply for and seek assistance from your local German consulate or embassy.
Find out which is the closest one to you here: https://www.make-it-ingermany.com/en/visa/local-contacts/world-map/
Types of German work visas
There are two types of work visas that are suitable in case you’ve already got a job offer: EU Blue Card and German (Work) Employment Visa.
EU Blue Card
EU Blue Card (Blaue Karte EU) is a residence title for academics (high-skilled individuals with a recognized degree in Germany or a degree which is corresponding to a degree in Germany) from outside the European Union, who wish to work in an EU member state.
To obtain an EU Blue Card, applicants are required to have a university degree and a work contract that meets the minimum gross salary requirement of 39,624 euros a year (3,302 euros per month) for IT-skilled workers.
For more details concerning Blue Card, we recommend you to check the official website: https://www.bluecard-eu.de/eu-blue-card-germany/
You can find out whether your university degree is recognized in Germany, by referring to the following web page: https://anabin.kmk.org/anabin.html.
Please, pay attention to the fact that there is only a German version of the page, however, using Chrome Translate for the website will be enough to get the necessary information.
To apply for an entry visa to Germany, you will need to prepare the following documents:
- Work contract (original)
- University degree (original and official translation)
- Health insurance
- Proof of application fee payment
- Additional documents (for the list of needed papers, please, check your consulate’s website)
If all your documents meet the requirements, a consulate will issue an entry visa within 1–4 weeks.
Work Visa
Work Visa is an option for those people, who don’t possess a university degree, but as with Blue Card, they already received an offer from a German company.
The application process for Work Visa is a bit longer since an employer is obliged to ask the German Federal Employment Agency (Bundesagentur für Arbeit) for a pre-approval (Vorabzustimmung) of candidate’s intention to enter the German labor market. To get this preliminary permission you would need to prove that you have 5 years of work experience in the field.
The application process for a work visa is quite similar to one for obtaining Blue Card, but still envisages some additional steps:
- The first step should be made by a company: once it decided to hire you, it sends a request to the Federal Employment Agency. Note that your detailed CV, ID details and some additional documents may be needed for the request;
- The agency decides on the request (it may take up to 4 weeks) and if it’s approved, issues permission;
- Then you should go to an embassy and submit original permission and certificates from previous employers proving you have necessary work experience.
Upon your arrival in Germany, you would need to make an appointment with the local Foreigners Office (Ausländerbehörde), which is responsible for issuing Blue Cards and Residence Permits.
For further information regarding the documents you will need to present to the Foreigners Office, please, refer to its webpage: https://www.auswaertigesamt.de/en
Below are some more helpful links with additional information regarding visas, work permits and documents needed for registration:
- German government’s official information on immigration issues: https://www.make-it-in-germany.com
- A website with a lot of valuable information for expats: https://www.justlanded.com/
- Portal for the recognition of foreign professional qualifications: https://www.anerkennung-in-deutschland.de/tools/berater/en/
Do you want to know more about relocation to Germany? Download our relocation guide and check our open job opportunities.
Who we are?
Zero to One Search is a Germany-based international recruitment agency with a focus on connecting IT professionals with tech companies. Our mission is to help tech players to find candidates in accordance with their businesses’ needs, and IT specialists to get the right jobs with interesting challenges and opportunity to relocate to Europe. The company was established in 2017 as a remote agency with a team of recruiters from all over the world.
