Residence permit - skilled workers with vocational training
If you are a skilled worker with vocational training and would like to work in Germany, you will need a residence permit for skilled workers with vocational training.
Course description
Visa procedures: If you are from a third country (i.e. not the EU, Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein or Switzerland) and wish to work in Germany, you will generally require a visa. You must apply for this at a German diplomatic mission abroad.
Nationals of Australia, Israel, Japan, Canada, the Republic of Korea, New Zealand, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and the United States of America do not require a visa.
After arrival You must first register your residence at the Citizens’ Office.
Application and appointment: Apply for your residence permit before your visa or residence permit expires. If you are able to enter the country visa-free for this purpose, you must apply for a residence permit at the Immigration and Naturalisation Service within 90 days of your arrival. Please submit the application form and the required documents online or by post. Once your application has been assessed, we will contact you to arrange an appointment for a face-to-face interview.
Period of validity The residence permit is valid for four years or for the duration of your employment or work permit, whichever is shorter.
Prerequisites
- Recognised foreign vocational training (see Recognition in Germany) or German vocational training, minimum duration of training two years
- Professional licence (if required, only for regulated professions, e.g. healthcare, legal advice or teaching professions)
- Employment contract or concrete job offer
- Approval from the Federal Employment Agency or an exemption from the approval requirement. Approval is obtained from the German diplomatic mission abroad or the Service Centre for Immigration and Naturalisation.
- Adequate pension provision (required from the age of 45): In order to be able to pursue the desired occupation in Germany, you must earn a gross annual salary of at least 55,770 euros gross (in 2026) or provide evidence of adequate pension provision from public or private funds (assets or pension insurance).
Required documents
- Fully completed application form
- Valid passport or passport replacement
- current biometric passport photo submitted digitally by a certified photo studio or drugstore. Alternatively, you can use one of the photo terminals at the Immigration and Naturalisation Service Centre for a fee.
- Valid visa for entry to pursue qualified employment (only for first-time applicants). Citizens of Australia, Israel, Japan, Canada, the Republic of Korea, New Zealand, the United States and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland can also enter Germany without a visa and apply for a residence permit before taking up employment.
- Proof of qualification as a skilled worker with vocational training
- completed German vocational training, minimum duration 2 years, or
- a foreign professional qualification recognised as equivalent (notice of recognition)
- Proof of the current monthly costs for the flat:
- for rented flats, a current confirmation from the landlord or bank statements showing the rent amount
- for owner-occupied flats, proof of loan instalments and monthly housing benefit.
- Professional licence (for regulated professions, only for first-time applications)
- Employment contract (only for initial application)
- Fully completed declaration of employment(please upload together with the employment contract)
- Fully completed declaration of employment
- Last three salary statements from the period of employment (only for extension of residence permit)
- Adequate pension scheme (required from the age of 45 if the salary is not at least 55,770 euros per year). The salary may be lower if proof of assets or pension insurance from public or private sources in Germany or abroad is available.
- Written declaration of consent from authorised custodians (parents) if under 18 years of age
Please note
- The documents submitted (such as proof of identity and language certificates) are checked for authenticity. We will report any forgeries to the police.
- Further documents may be required in individual cases.
Questions & Answers
Qualified vocational training refers to vocational training in a state-recognised or similarly regulated occupation for which federal or state legislation stipulates a training period of at least two years.
A list of recognised apprenticeship occupations can be found on the website of the Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training.
Yes, it is possible to change employers .
Once you have completed your vocational training, you may carry out any skilled work. Assistant and semi-skilled roles are excluded. For regulated professions, you will need a separate licence (licence to practise).
Please note, however, that for the first two years you are bound to your current role and employer, and any change must be approved.
You can find information on the recognition of foreign vocational qualifications here: Recognition in Germany
If you have any further questions, you can also contact the Service Centre for the Recognition of Foreign Qualifications.
A regulated profession is an occupation for which specific professional qualifications are required in order to practise it.
A doctor, for example, needs her qualifications to be recognised in order to practise her profession in Germany. In contrast, an engineer may work as an engineer even without recognition, but may not call themselves an engineer. Only once their qualifications have been recognised are they entitled to use the professional title.
Legal basis
§ 18 AufenthG, § 18a AufenthG
Contact Us
Servicestelle für Zuwanderung und Einbürgerung
Phone number
Postal address
Servicestelle für Zuwanderung und Einbürgerung
Ruppertstraße 19
80466 München
Fax: +49 89 233-27501
Contact address
Ruppertstraße 19
80337 München
Lagehinweis: Eingang A