Those who already hold a residence permit from another Schengen state often assume that moving to Germany is relatively straightforward. In fact,Section 39 No. 6 of the German Residence Ordinance (AufenthV) contains an important exception to the generally required visa procedure: Under certain conditions, a German residence permit can be applied for directly at the immigration office in Germany. However, the regulation is less far-reaching than its wording initially suggests. In particular,...

Why BA approval is often misunderstood In practice, with employment visas, the impression often arises that the approval of the Federal Employment Agency is equivalent to a preliminary decision on the visa. An employer submits the declaration regarding the employment relationship. The Federal Employment Agency reviews the case. Approval is granted. From the perspective of the company and the foreign employee, the crucial part of the process appears to be complete. If, despite this, a critical...

Months of work on the application, stacks of translated documents, reaching the five-year deadline – and suddenly the final step towards German citizenship is delayed. Citizenship applications are stalled. Many highly qualified skilled workers from the USA , Companies in Great Britain or Canada, as well as HR departments looking to retain top talent in Germany long-term, often feel secure after receiving a B1 language certificate. However, many applicants experience a nasty surprise...