Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) revelation: LEA's regulation on adhesive tokens instead of plastic cards is a demonstrable legal violation.

A recent disclosure under Section 3 Paragraph 1 of the Berlin Freedom of Information Act (IFG) reveals internal management decisions of the authority that expose a systematic and deliberate violation of the law . What appears on the surface to be a bureaucratic efficiency measure turns out, upon closer inspection, to be an unlawful practice: The Berlin State Office for Immigration (LEA) now routinely issues residence permits for so-called "positive nationals"—that is, highly qualified academics, expats, and young professionals—as well as for fee-exempt individuals, only as a simple sticker in the passport , instead of producing the legally required electronic residence permit card (eAT).

Why is the blanket issuance of adhesive labels by LEA Berlin illegal?

The legal regulations in the Residence Act are clear. According to Section 78 Paragraph 1 of the Residence Act, residence permits are generally issued as a separate document with an electronic storage medium – the so-called eAT card. The use of adhesive labels is strictly limited to "exceptional cases" according to Section 78a Paragraph 1 Sentence 1 of the Residence Act . The Berlin State Reception Center (LEA Berlin) justifies this practice in its internal procedural guidelines (Section 78a.1.0 VAB) with the authority's "particular strain." This is where the fundamental legal error lies: A structurally overburdened or dysfunctionally organized authority does not constitute an individual exceptional case within the meaning of the law . Legally speaking, an adhesive label may only be used in cases of exceptional hardship on the part of the applicant, not to conceal official failure. A closer look at the internal management decisions from January and February 2026 reveals the true, unlawful reason: It is simply about a supposed "cost-saving measure." Since residence permits for recipients of social benefits (according to SGB II, SGB XII, or AsylbLG) must be issued free of charge in accordance with Section 53 Paragraph 1 Number 1 of the Residence Ordinance, the LEA ( State Office for Immigration and Asylum) saves the approximately 30 euros in production costs for the Federal Printing Office by using a cheaper adhesive label. Extending this practice to privileged countries of origin without any objective justification lacks any legal basis.

What acceptance problems do skilled workers and expats face in everyday life due to the adhesive label?

For HR departments, international professionals , and their families , the denied plastic card is far more than an aesthetic issue. The makeshift-looking adhesive sticker in the passport leads to massive acceptance problems in German business transactions . Anyone wanting to open a bank account, sign a mobile phone contract, or compete for an apartment in Berlin is surprisingly often thwarted by the sticker. Many compliance departments of banks and HR departments of German companies are trained to scan the standardized eAT card. A sticker in a foreign passport regularly triggers error messages in automated identification procedures (such as PostIdent or VideoIdent). At border controls within the Schengen Area or upon re-entry into Germany, the absence of the forgery-proof plastic card repeatedly leads to time-consuming inquiries and uncertainty. LEA Berlin is thus directly passing its internal budget problems on to the everyday lives of its skilled immigrants .

How can you successfully assert your right to an electronic residence permit (eAT)?

The good news for those affected: No one has to accept the unlawful sticker. Documents from the LEA management team, disclosed through the Freedom of Information Act (IFG), reveal that an important fallback option exists internally: "The old rule, according to which a customer who insists on an electronic residence permit (eAT) will be granted one, will be reinstated. " To obtain the eAT card, it is generally sufficient to clearly express your desire for an electronic residence permit during an in-person appointment or in the written application process. As an experienced law firm, we advise you not only to mention this wish verbally, but to explicitly record it in the minutes or submit it in writing beforehand. As soon as the case workers realize that an applicant is aware of their rights and is specifically insisting on the issuance of the plastic card, the authority usually relents in order to avoid lengthy appeals or legal action for failure to act.

Conclusion: Don't settle for the cheap solution.

The practice of the Berlin State Office for Immigration (LEA Berlin) of issuing residence permits en masse as stickers instead of electronic residence permits (eAT) is a politically motivated and legally untenable cost-cutting measure at the expense of immigrants. This sends a particularly disastrous message to highly qualified professionals from the USA , Canada, or the UK , whom the German labor market urgently needs. If you or your foreign employees are applying to the LEA Berlin, you should proceed strategically from the outset. The eAT is the standard legal option, not a privilege. As a law firm, we support you in asserting your rights against the immigration authorities so that your start in Germany doesn't fail due to bureaucratic cost-cutting measures.