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Paid employment
EU Blue Card
If you have completed an academic education (university) and would now like to work as a skilled worker, you can apply for an EU Blue Card. The EU Blue Card usually requires a salary of 1/2 of the annual assessment ceiling in the statutory pension insurance scheme (= € 43,800 per year). If you work in a so-called understaffed profession (this includes e.g. scientists, mathematicians, engineers, doctors and IT technicians) or are an IT specialist with at least 3 years of professional experience, a salary of € 39,682.80 is sufficient. If this salary limit applies to you, you will find the necessary information about the EU Blue Card on this page.
Applying for the EU Blue Card is also possible in individual cases if you have successfully completed a tertiary education program that is at least equivalent to a bachelor's degree and requires at least three years of training. Please submit your educational/professional qualification and, if available, a certificate evaluation from the Central Office for Foreign Education (Zentralstelle für ausländisches Bildungswesen) for the examination.
Please bring the following with you…
If you wish to apply for or extend an EU Blue Card, please bring the following documents with you (if we do not already have them):
- Your valid passport
- A current passport photo
- A completed application form
- Degree certificate
- Employment contract
- Proof of health insurance
- For extensions: last three salary statements
- Fee: up to € 100.00
Further documents may be required in individual cases. If this applies to you, we will inform you accordingly.
Please note: An appointment is required for the granting and extension of the residence permit. Please send us an appointment request.
Period of validity of the residence permit
If you have a fixed-term employment contract, the EU Blue Card will be issued for the duration of the employment relationship plus three additional months.
If you have a permanent employment contract, the EU Blue Card can be issued and extended for up to four years.
Paid employment
The residence permit entitles you to work as a skilled worker for the employer you specified.
If you want to change your employer within the first 12 months, you do not need approval from the immigration authorities. However, you must immediately notify the immigration authorities of any change of employer or any change that affects the fulfillment of the requirements for the EU Blue Card. The immigration authorities can suspend employment for 30 days in order to check whether the requirements for the continued existence of the EU Blue Card are still met and reject the change within this period. Please inform us early (at least three weeks before the planned change of employer) if you would like to change your employer.
Settling down
Holders of an EU Blue Card can be granted a settlement permit (permanent residence permit) after 27 months or after 21 months if they have sufficient German language skills (B1 level). You can find further information under settlement permit - EU Blue Card.