Permanent residence certificate - EU and EEA citizens

Description

If you live here continuously and are authorised to move freely, you acquire the right by law to stay in Germany permanently after five years. The permanent residence certificate is proof of this.

The provisions on freedom of movement apply to nationals of these countries:

European Union

• Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Croatia, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Austria, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Sweden, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Cyprus, as well as

European Economic Area

• Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway

The right to freedom of movement applies in particular to

• Employees and trainees,
• Jobseekers (for up to six months),
• established, self-employed persons,
• self-employed providers of services without establishment,
• Recipients of services,
• non-working persons with adequate health insurance cover and sufficient resources,
• Family members if they accompany or join the EU citizen,
• EU citizens and their family members with a permanent right of residence.

If you have not been in Germany for 5 years, you can apply for a permanent residence certificate in the following exceptional cases:

1. You have resided permanently in Germany for at least three years and have been gainfully employed in Germany for at least the last twelve months and
   a) you have reached the age of 65 at the time of leaving the labour market or
   b) ended your employment as part of an early retirement scheme.
2. You have given up gainful employment due to a full reduction in earning capacity,
   a) which occurred as a result of an accident at work or an occupational disease and which entitles you to a pension from a benefit provider in Germany or
   b) after you had previously resided permanently in Germany for at least two years.
3. You have been continuously gainfully employed in Germany for three years and have subsequently become gainfully employed in another EU member state, maintain your residence in Germany and return there at least once a week.
4. You are married/partnered to a German person.

Prerequisites

• You are a registered resident of the city of Munich.
• You are a citizen of the EU, Iceland, Liechtenstein or Norway.
• You have been resident in Germany for at least five years without interruption and are authorised to move freely, or one of the above exceptions applies to you.

Required documents

• Identity document (national ID document or national passport)
  If you are acting on behalf of a third person: Power of attorney (not required for parents submitting an application for their child)
• Proof of periods of residence and exercised right of free movement:
  
  If gainfully employed:
  Waiting period information from the German pension insurance with insurance history, confirmation of employment and your last three salary statements.
  
  If you are self-employed:
  Income tax assessment notices, if possible for a consecutive period of five years or if no tax assessment notice is yet available: Net profit confirmation from the tax consultancy.
  
  For pensions:
  Pension certificate
  
  If you have sufficient means of subsistence without gainful employment:
  Proof of health insurance (insurance card or membership certificate) and sufficient means of subsistence (e.g. through assets or other income)

Please note:
Further documents may be required in individual cases.

Legal basis

§ Section 4a Freedom of Movement Act/EU
§ Section 2 (2) of the Freedom of Movement Act/EU
§ Section 5 (5) of the Freedom of Movement Act/EU