Entry and residence - Selected countries

Course description

Visa-free entry

Citizens 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 can also enter Germany without a visa and apply for a residence permit in Munich.

After entering the country

You must first register your residence in Munich at the Citizens Office.

Application and appointment
If you are entering Germany without a visa and intend to stay here for longer than 90 days or wish to take up gainful employment, you must apply for a residence permit at the Immigration and Naturalisation Service Office within 90 days of your arrival. If you are travelling with a visa, you must apply for a residence permit before your visa expires. As long as the Federal Employment Agency has not yet agreed to your taking up employment, the Immigration and Naturalisation Service Office cannot usually issue the residence permit.

To apply and make an appointment, please send us your application form and the required documents online or by post. After we have checked your application, you will receive an appointment for a personal interview.

Residence permit for family members
If your spouse, children or registered same-sex partner have a different nationality, they may need to apply for a family reunion visa. Possible exceptions to the visa requirement and further information can be found on the website of the Federal Foreign Office.

Prerequisites

• You are registered in Munich.
• You belong to one of the countries listed above.
• Residence permit: After registering, you apply for your residence permit at the Immigration and Naturalisation Service Office in the District Administration Department.

Required documents

• Fully completed application form
• Valid national passport or passport substitute
• 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.

You want to work as an employee:

• Employment contract
• Fully completed insurance for the exercise of employment(please upload together with the employment contract)
• Completed form " Declaration of employment relationship"
• Last three salary slips (only for extension)

You wish to be self-employed or freelance:

For nationals of the United States of America and Japan:

• Proof of health insurance
• Proof of a pension scheme (compulsory insurance for self-employed persons or life insurance in sufficient amount)
• Proof that you have sufficient means of subsistence

Please submit your documents via our online contact form.

Additional documents are required for citizens of Australia, Israel, Canada, the Republic of Korea and New Zealand. You can find them here.

You are not gainfully employed, for example a pensioner:

• Proof of means of subsistence (pension certificate with certified German translation, savings, declaration of commitment from a third party or other)
• Proof of health insurance
• Proof of sufficient living space (rental agreement/purchase contract stating the number of square metres and proof of the rent amount or interest and repayment and the amount of the monthly house allowance/housing benefit)

Please submit your documents via our online contact form.

You want to bring your family members with you:

information on family reunification

Please note

Further documents may be required in individual cases.

Legal basis

§ Section 19c (1) AufenthG, Section 26 BeschV, Section 41 AufenthV