How to Move to Germany from the UK

It is still possible to visit Germany without a visa for up to 90 days as a British citizen. However, if you want to live in Germany (or spend longer than 90 days in the country) you need to apply for a residency permit and register yourself in Germany. This applies whether you are emigrating to Germany to work, study, undertake vocational training or to reunite with family.

When you arrive in Germany, you must register at your local registration office within 14 days of arrival. Bear in mind that the office might have different titles locally such as Einwohnermeldeamt, Kreisverwaltungsreferat (KVR), Burgerburo or Burgeramt.

There are three main residency permits in Germany: Temporary Residence Permit, Permanent Residence Permit and the EU Blue Card.

If you are a highly qualified person, you may be eligible for the EU Blue Card (more on this below). However, the majority of British citizens who wish to emigrate to Germany will need to apply for a Temporary Residence Permit/Limited Residence Permit (Aufenthaltserlaubnis).

The Temporary Residence Permit is granted to foreign nationals if they have a specific reason for staying in Germany. If you are emigrating to Germany to work, study, undertake a vocational course or reunite with family, you can apply for the Limited Residence Permit.

The Temporary Residence Permit is granted to foreign nationals if they have a specific reason for staying in Germany.

If you are emigrating to Germany to work, study, undertake a vocational course or reunite with family, you can apply for a Temporary Residence Permit.

When you apply for the Temporary Residence Permit, you need to state the reason why you want to move to Germany. If your application is successful, you will be given a card which states the reason why you are in Germany and what you are permitted to do.

You will only be able to undertake and participate in certain activities in Germany, which are in line with the reason you wanted to move to Germany. For example, you might be given a card which allows you study in Germany as a student, but not work.

Generally, the Temporary Residence Permit is valid for one year. However, it can be extended provided your circumstances haven’t changed significantly.

Ultimately, the Temporary Residence Permit provides a base from which you can begin your journey towards permanent residency in Germany.

In order to be eligible for a residence permit, you will need to be able to fulfil a number of requirements.

The main requirements are as follows:

• Have a valid passport
• Able to prove your proficiency in German is at least to B1 level
• Have German health insurance
• Not have a criminal record
• Able to demonstrate that you have the financial means to support yourself (and any family members)
• Pass a health check which proves you are healthy enough to work and/or study in Germany

You will also need to provide certain other information, depending on your circumstances.

• If you will be working in Germany, you must provide a letter from your employer in Germany with job offer and description
• If you will be studying in Germany, you will need proof that you have been admitted into a university
• If you will be joining your spouse/civil partner in Germany, you will need to provide a recognised marriage/civil partnership certificate

You can begin the process of applying for a residence permit in Germany either in the UK or within 90 days of arriving in Germany. Owing to the length of time it can take to process immigration applications, we recommend starting the process whilst you are in the UK.

The first thing you need to do is register your new German address with the German authorities. Once you have registered your address, you will get a certificate.

It is imperative that you register your German address. You will not be eligible for a residence permit if you do not do this.

Getting Health Insurance and a German Bank Account

If you want to apply for a residence permit, you must have health insurance. Your health insurance must be provided by a German company too.

As mentioned, you must provide evidence that you have the financial means to support yourself and any family members in Germany.

It is prudent to open a German bank account before applying for German residency. You could transfer funds to that bank account and get bank statements to prove your financial status, which you can then submit to the German authorities along with your other information.

If a German company offers you a job, you will be eligible to apply for a Temporary Residence Permit.

As a British citizen, it is not expected that you will need to apply for a specific work visa/permit to work in Germany. Also, you do not need to have a job offer before you travel to Germany (though you can only receive a residence permit with a job offer).

As mentioned, you will also need to have proficiency in German and have health insurance to be eligible for the permit.

Your German employer needs to prove that the position couldn’t be filled by a German or EU citizen, or a priority workers (those who have been in Germany for a long time). You must also get approval from the Federal Employment Agency or Bundeagentur fur Arbeit.

Generally, your permit will be valid for the length of your contract. You can extend the permit as long as you maintain your employment status.

It is possible to move to Germany if you’re self-employed. However, it is a particularly lengthy and complex process to secure a German residence permit as a self-employed person.

To be accepted as a self-employed person in Germany, you will need to:

• Prove the business will fulfil a need in Germany and benefit its economy
• Show a viable business plan
• Prove you have the relevant experience
• Show evidence of business funding
• Prove that you can financially support yourself

If you are over the age of 45, you will need to show evidence of your own pension provision.

If you are a freelance worker, you can also apply for a residence permit on the basis of being self-employed. In Germany, a freelancer is determined as someone with catalog professions, known as katalogberufe. This includes those working in science and engineering, the arts, teaching, professional writing, doctors, dentists and lawyers.

You can apply to become a resident in Germany on the basis of your relationship to a family member who is living in Germany.

For British citizens, there is no German Family Visa or Spouse Visa per se. A British citizen who qualifies for family reunification will instead be able to apply for a temporary residence permit.

To be eligible, you must be one of the following to the family member:

• Spouse/civil partner
• Long-term unmarried partner
• Their child who is under 16
• Their child who is between the ages of 16 and 18 and you are not married, divorced or widowed

It is also possible to apply for family reunification if you are the parent/legal guardian of a child under the age of 16 who is a German citizen.

Generally speaking, the process of family reunification for British citizens will be similar if your family member is a German citizen or person with permanent residency, or if they are an EU citizen currently working and living in Germany.

However, if your family member is from a non-EEA country and they are living and working in Germany, there are certain conditions which must be met in order for you to be able to join them.

• Your partner has a permanent residence permit or an EU Blue Card for Germany
• As a family, you have enough money to financially support yourselves
• Your partner has rented accommodation in Germany which is large enough for your family
• You have sufficient health insurance cover
• You must have basic knowledge of German, which typically needs to be at B1 level

If you have children who are born in Germany and you have a valid right of residence, they will receive a residence permit.

EU Blue Cards are for highly-qualified people who are from non-EU countries. Holders of EU Blue Cards can live and work in EU countries without the need to go through the standard immigration systems of those countries.

In Germany, you could be eligible for an EU blue card if you have at least a university degree and a guaranteed job with an income of at least €50,800. If you will be working in an occupation with a shortage of workers, this is reduced to €39,624.

EU Blue Card holders enjoy more favourable immigration conditions than those living in Germany with a temporary residence permit.

Typically, you can apply for permanent residency in Germany once you have spent five years lawfully living in the country. Spouses of German citizens and graduates from a German university may be eligible sooner.

As a person with permanent residency, you can stay in Germany without any immigration conditions. However, you won’t have the same rights as a German citizen. You can apply for German citizenship after you have lived in Germany for eight years.