In this guide, We will show you how to apply for the German work visa and the EU Blue Card Online.

• The German work visa is a residence permit that lets you work as an employee in Germany.
• The EU Blue Card is like a work visa, but better. The application process is almost the same.

Who needs a work visa or Blue Card?

If You need a residence permit :

• You want to live and work in Germany
• and you are not a citizen or buy permanent resident of Germany, the European Union, Liechtenstein, Norway or Switzerland
• and your current residence permit does not let you work in Germany. For example, the German freelance visa lets you work as a freelancer, but not as an employee. CONTACT US NOW!

You do not need a residence permit if:

• You are a permanent resident of Germany, or a citizen of the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway or Switzerland¹
• or your current residence permit lets you work in Germany. For example, the German student visa lets you work up to 120 days or 240 half days per year.²
• or you want to be self-employed. You need a freelance visa for this.

Use this tool to know if you need to obtain residence permit to work in Germany.

Types of German work visas

There are many types of residence permit that let you to work in Germany. The work visa and the Blue Card are not your only options.

Blue Card

University graduates can apply for an EU Blue Card instead of a work visa. The Blue Card is better than a work visa:

• You can get it faster
  You don’t need permission from the ZAV if your salary is over 58,400€. This makes the application process shorter.³
• It’s easier to change jobs
  After 2 years with a Blue Card, you can change jobs without applying for a new Blue Card.⁴ This saves a lot of time. With the work visa, you must apply for a new visa every time you change jobs.³⁶ How to get a German work visa online
• You can get your permanent residence faster
  With a Blue Card, you can get your permanent residence in 33 months⁵ instead of 60 months.⁶ If you get a B1 language certificate, you can get your permanent residence in 21 months.⁵
• It’s easier to move to other EU countries
  You can move to other EU countries (except Denmark and Ireland³⁹)) more easily. If you had a Blue Card for over 18 months, you can move to another EU country, and apply for the Blue Card there.⁷
• You can travel longer outside Germany
  With a Blue Card, you can leave Germany for 12 months before your residence permit becomes invalid.⁸ With a work visa, you can only leave for 6 months. If you want to leave longer, you can get special permission from the Ausländerbehörde.

The Blue Card has more requirements:

• You need a high income
  You must make at least 58,400€ per year (before taxes).⁹ If there is a shortage of skilled workers in your field, you must make at least 45,552€ per year.¹⁰ This list shows which fields have a shortage of skilled workers.
• You need a university degree
  Your degree must be recognised in Germany. It must be listed as equivalent (entspricht or äquivalent) in the Anabin database.¹¹ In other EU countries, you can get a Blue Card with no degree and 5 years of experience. This does not work in Germany, so you must have a university degree.¹²

In this guide, I show you how to get a Blue Card.

Working Holiday Visa

Citizens of Australia, New Zealand, Israel and Japan between 18 and 30 years old can apply for a Working Holiday Visa.³ The Working Holiday Visa lets you work in Germany for up to 1 year. Working Holiday Visas are easier to get than work visas and Blue Cards. You can apply for the Youth Mobility Visa in Germany, or from your home country.⁴⁰

Youth Mobility Visa

Canadian citizens between 18 and 35 years old can apply for the Youth Mobility Visa. The Youth Mobility Visa is similar to the Working Holiday Visa. It lets you work in Germany for up to a year. You can apply in Canada or in Germany.⁴⁰ Youth Mobility Visas are easier to get than work visas and Blue Cards.

More information about the Youth Mobility Visa – German Missions in Canada

Freelance visa

Business owners, freelancers and self-employed people must apply for the German freelance visa. This is a completely different process.

Work Visa

Everyone else must apply for the work visa. It lets you work as an employee in Germany. In this guide, I show you how to get a work visa. How to get a German work visa online

German work visa requirements

• You must have a job offer in Germany. It must be a concrete job offer, not just a job listing.⁵⁹
• You must have a university degree or a vocational qualification⁶¹
  Your job must be related to your education. You do not need a university degree to get a German work visa.¹³ Vocational training is enough. Your school does not need to be recognised in Anabin.
• Your employer must be in Germany
  For example, you can’t work for an American company, unless they have an office in Germany.¹³
• You must be qualified for the job¹⁴
• You must be allowed to do this job in Germany
  If you need specific qualifications to do your job in Germany, you must prove that you have them.⁶² For example, doctors, engineers and tax advisors need specific qualifications. Use the recognition finder to know if your profession requires specific qualifications.
• You must have approval from the ZAV
  The ZAV verifies that the position can’t be filled by a EU citizen. See below for details. If you apply for a Blue Card, and you make over 58,400€ per year, you don’t need this.
• You must have German health insurance and a place to stay
  You must find a place to live and get German health insurance before you apply for the work visa.⁴¹

You do not need to speak German to get a German work visa.

EU Blue Card requirements

The Blue Card has the same requirements as the work visa. It also has these two requirements:

• You must have a high income
  You must make at least 58,400€ per year (before taxes).⁶³ If there is a shortage of skilled workers in your field, you must make at least 45,552€ per year.⁶⁴ This list shows which fields have a shortage of skilled workers.
• You must have a university degree
  Your degree must be recognised in Germany. It must be listed as equivalent (entspricht or äquivalent) in the Anabin database.¹⁵ In other EU countries, you can get a Blue Card with no degree and 5 years of experience. This does not work in Germany, so you must have a university degree.¹²

You do not need to speak German to get a Blue Card.

Two ways to apply

There are two ways to apply for the work visa and the Blue Card:

1. Apply in Germany
   Come to Germany, find a job, then apply for a work visa or Blue Card in Germany. You can’t work until you have a work visa or Blue Card, but you can look for a job and prepare for your residence permit interview.⁴² It’s easier to find a job, find an apartment and get health insurance if you are already in Germany. You might have to wait a few months without any income. This is riskier and more expensive. How to get a German work visa online
2. Apply in your country
   Apply for a temporary visa at the German embassy in your country, come to Germany, then convert your temporary visa to a work visa or Blue Card. You can start working as soon as you arrive in Germany. This is safer and cheaper. It takes around 4 months.¹⁶

The best option depends on your citizenship:

• If you are a citizen of Australia, Canada, Israel, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, the United Kingdom or the United States, you can stay in Germany for up to 90 days without a visa.¹⁷ You can come to Germany, find a job, then apply for a work visa or Blue Card in Germany.¹⁸ You can also apply in your home country.
• If you are a citizen of any other country, there are two ways to get a work visa or Blue Card:
  1. Apply for a work visa or Blue Card at the German embassy in your country.
  2. or apply for a Job Seeker Visa at the German embassy in your country,¹⁹ come to Germany, find a job, then apply for a work visa or Blue Card in Germany.

How to apply in Germany

Step 1: Come to Germany

• You need: a job seeker visa (except for citizens of certain countries¹⁷)
• You get: the right to come to Germany and look for work

If you are a citizen of Australia, Canada, Israel, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, the United Kingdom or the United States, you can come to Germany without a visa, and apply for a residence permit in Germany.²⁰ You can stay for 90 days before you need a residence permit.

If you are a citizen of any other country, you might need a Job Seeker Visa to enter Germany. The Job Seeker Visa lets you to come to Germany and look for a job.¹⁷ It’s valid for up to 6 months. It does not allow you to work in Germany. After you find a job, you can apply for a residence permit in Germany. The job. You can’t do this with a tourist visa. If you enter Germany with a tourist visa, your work visa or Blue Card application will be rejected.²¹ How to get a German work visa online

If you can, find an apartment before you come to Germany. It’s really hard to find an apartment in some cities. It’s easier to find an apartment if you already have a job offer. You can also stay in a temporary place: a friend’s house, a hotel or a furnished apartment.

Step 2: Find a job in Germany

• You need: useful skills
• You get: a job offer

You need a job offer to apply for a work visa and a Blue Card.²² It must be a skilled job. You can’t get a work visa or Blue Card for unskilled work.²³ For example, you can’t get a work visa to be a cashier or a call centre employee.

If you apply for a Blue Card, your salary must be at least 58,400€ per year (before taxes). If there is a shortage of skilled workers in your field, your salary must be at least 45,552€ per year. This list shows which fields have a shortage of skilled workers.

If you can, find a job before you come to Germany. When you arrive in Germany, you can focus on other problems. How to get a German work visa online

How to find a job in Berlin ➞

Step 3: Get pre-approval from the ZAV (optional)

• You need: a job offer, the pre-approval application form
• You get: a letter from the ZAV that makes your visa application go faster
• How long it takes: up to 6 weeks

You might need approval from the ZAV to get a work visa. There are two ways to get the ZAV approval:

1. Before you apply for your residence permit
   You can get pre-approval from the ZAV before you apply for the work visa. Usually, your employer applies for you.²⁶ When you have pre-approval from the ZAV, your visa is approved faster.²⁷ It takes around 6 weeks to get the ZAV approval,⁴⁵ and it costs your employer around 400€.²⁸ It’s not a lot of work for your employer.⁶⁵
2. While you apply for your residence permit
   If you don’t get pre-approval from the ZAV, it will be done when you apply for the work visa.⁴⁶ This is the easiest way, because you don’t need to do anything. It takes a little longer to get your work visa this way.

Getting the approval in advance has advantages:

• You can get it while you wait for your work visa appointment.
• It makes the work visa application process smoother. You can find problems with your application before your visa appointment. If you have the ZAV approval, you are almost guaranteed to get the work visa.⁶⁵

You do not need approval from the ZAV if:

• You have a degree from a German university, and that degree is related to your job⁴³
• or you are applying for the Blue Card and your salary is over 58,400€ per year.⁴⁴
• or you are a teacher, scientific assistant, guest scientist, engineer or technician in the research team of a guest scientist⁴³
• or you are a teacher at a state school, state-approved private substitute school or a recognised private complementary school⁴³
• or you are applying for the Bundesfreiwilligendienst²⁴

Step 4: Open a bank account (optional)

• You need: your passport, a registration certificate (if possible)
• You get: a bank account
• How long it takes: 1 or 2 days

You don’t need a bank account to get a residence permit, but you need it for other things:

• To get paid by your employer
• To pay your rent
• To buy food and other things you need

You don’t need to choose a German bank; any bank that supports SEPA transfers is okay. N26 is a good option, because they speak English and don’t ask for a registration certificate. I use N26 since 2016.

German banks for expats ➞

You need money in your bank account to pay your apartment deposit (Kaution), and to survive until you get paid. I used Wise to transfer money from another country to my German bank account.

Step 5: Find a place to live

• You need: a European bank account, money for the Kaution, a job offer (if possible)
• You get: a place to live, a Wohnungsgeberbestätigung

You must find a place to live before your residence permit interview. Start looking for an apartment as soon as possible. Finding an apartment in Berlin is really hard. If you don’t speak German, it’s even harder.

How to find an apartment in Berlin ➞

When you sign a lease, your landlord must give you a Wohnungsgeberbestätigung. This document confirms that you are allowed to live there. You can’t get a residence permit without this document.²⁹

• Hotels and Airbnbs will rarely give you a Wohnungsgeberbestätigung.
• Apartments and rooms that are listed as “no Anmeldung possible” will not give you a Wohnungsgeberbestätigung.
• You can live at a friend’s apartment, but only with the landlord’s permission. Without the landlord’s permission, you can’t get a Wohnungsgeberbestätigung.

During your residence permit interview, you must prove that you live in Germany. There are two ways to do this:¹³

• Show your lease and the Wohnungsgeberbestätigung you received from your landlord
• or show the registration certificate (Anmeldebestätigung) you get when you register your address.

Step 6: Register your address

• You need: a place to live, a Wohnungsgeberbestätigung
• You get: a registration certificate (Anmeldebestätigung), a tax ID
• How long it takes: 1 to 4 weeks to get an appointment, 30 minutes to go to your appointment

After you find an apartment, sign a lease and get your Wohnungsgeberbestätigung, you must register your address. This is called the Anmeldung.

When you register your address, you get a registration certificate (Anmeldebestätigung). It proves that you officially live at this address. You don’t need this for your visa interview, but you might need it to open a bank account, get health insurance, get a SIM card etc.

How to register your address in Berlin ➞

2 to 4 weeks after you register your address, you get a tax ID in the mail. Your employer needs it to calculate your salary tax. If you don’t have a tax ID, they might take more income tax from your salary.⁴⁷

If you can’t register your address, there are other ways to get a tax ID. How to get a German work visa online

Step 7: Get health insurance

• You need: a German bank account, an Anmeldebestätigung (if possible)
• You get: health insurance, a proof of health insurance coverage
• How long it takes: 2 to 14 days

You need German health insurance to get a residence permit.⁴¹

Which health insurance do you need for your German visa? ➞

How to choose German health insurance ➞

Health insurance brokers help you choose the best health insurance for your needs. Their help is free.

Ask a health insurance broker

I recommend Feather Insurance because I work with them since 2017. I know the founder and the team personally. They helped me switch to private health insurance in 2022. They helped thousands of my readers over the years.

Step 8: Make your residence permit appointment

• You need: nothing
• You get: an appointment at the Ausländerbehörde or German consulate
• How long it takes: 15 minutes to a few weeks, depending on your luck

You must get an appointment at the Ausländerbehörde. Do this as soon as you can, because it’s really hard to find an appointment.⁴⁸ In Berlin, your appointment can be weeks or months in the future. The appointment is free. You only pay if you get the residence permit. How to get a German work visa online

In Berlin, you must go to the Friedrich-Krause-Ufer Ausländerbehörde.²⁹ You can book your appointment here. If you are applying for the Blue Card, you must go to the Keplerstraße Ausländerbehörde.⁴⁹

If you can’t find an Ausländerbehörde appointment online, you can apply by email.

Book an appointment to apply for a residence permitBook