Migration

Hello Everyone,

I would like some help clarifying a few points about the Niederlassungserlaubnis. 

I have been living in Germany for 2 years and 6 months, and I am married to a German citizen. I'm not an EU citizen.
From what I understand, I may be eligible to apply after 3 years of residence, correct?

I have a specific question regarding employment:
I have never worked in Germany because I previously lived in Switzerland and since I moved to Germany, I continued working there as a cross-border commuter (Grenzgänger). I do pay taxes and live in Germany, but all my pension contributions are in Switzerland.
How does this affect the requirement for pension contributions or proof of social security payments for the Niederlassungserlaubnis?

Another question:
When I moved from Switzerland to Germany, I first received a Fiktionsbescheinigung, and only about 4 months later I received my residence card, which had a later issue date.
Which date is considered the official start of my residence for the 3-year rule the date on the Fiktionsbescheinigung or the date on the actual residence card?

I already have a German language certificate B1.
Is there anything else I need to prepare, and can I already apply once I reach the 3-year mark or make the request a bit earlier is fine?

Thank you in advance for any guidance.

Hi,
Please help me with more information on the blocked account opening for opportunities card visa.
Is it better to open it with a local bank in Germany?
If so, any suggestions on trusted ways or banks to open this account?

I see some companies like Fintiba which seem to be offering this. Is it trustworthy?

Please advise.

Hello Dear Handbook Germany, and thank you so much for creating this forum and resolving people's issues and offering advice and solutions. I am currently applying for the Chancenkarte and plan to move to Bremen once it is approved. I am still in the early stages of the process, but I wanted to clarify something before I make long-term plans. If I enter Germany with the Chancenkarte and I’m unable to secure a job within the allowed timeframe, is it legally possible to switch to another type of residence permit while already in Germany? For example:

Ausbildung residence permit

Spouse residence permit (after marriage)

Student residence permit

These are what I could see online based on my research and offcourse the EU blue card. I want to understand whether a permit change from inside Germany is allowed ( I am from non-Eu country in Botswana). If anyone has experience with this or knows the legal position, especially in Bremen, I would appreciate your guidance. Thank you

Greetings forum,  

I have contradicting info about gaining German citizenship - and am wondering if someone here can lend some clarity.  

I was born in Frankfurt am Main in 1962 to an American father and German mother.  I have a German birth certificate and had lived in Germany for most of my childhood, then moving with my family to the US in my early teens. I now reside in the US.  

What are my chances for gaining German citizenship? Will I have to relinquish US citizenship in doing so? 

Thanking you in advance.

I want to thank the people that are responding to my question. Im navigating this site or I would thank you personally.

Hello guys,

I am planning to be a naturalized German citizen, but my legal residence period in Germany is 4 years three months.

Is it possible to send in my application now? As the process can take about a year or longer to be completed 

I fulfilled all other requirements.

I have B2 language certificat and I have done volunteering services for many years.

Thanks 

Hello everyone and thanks for helping me with my questions, 

I have been working as a researcher in a research institute with a university in Hessen since 01.09.2023. I received an EU Blue Card on the basis of my contract(which ended on 31.09.2025). The EU Blue Card last day of validity is 31.12.2025. 

As you know how it is with research institutes and applying for grant as a Ph.D. student could be tough, we received a preliminary approval for an EU grant which begins in 01.01.2026 for a period of 3 years. 

However it is not yet finalized so the university only gave me a contract until the end of the year(so 3-month gap from 31.09.2025 to 31.12.2025). I will hopefully get a new longer term contract(from 01.01.2026 to end of 31.12.2027) very soon in the coming weeks. 

My question is what should I do with regards to my blue card situation in this case. I received a letter that I must apply for an extension of Blue card 8 weeks before. But I only atm have the 3-month contract which is not enough(I guess) for an extension. Is there a way to get some from the foreigners' office until I get the new contract?

Hello,

I am writing behalf of my spouse, who is a registered nurse here with 'Urkunde' and currently working under my Blue card visa for last 2.5 years. We would like to change her visa from spouse of Blue card holder to skilled worker category so that she will be eligible for applying permanent residency ( as per the information from internet).  

How can we change the visa category. is it possible to do online application?.

Thanks in advance for any help of useful information.

Best Regards,

Jenson 

Hello handbookgermany team,

i have a question related to visa renwal & settlement permit.

My Visa Situation:
- I came to Germany in May 2017 as a PhD student (I don’t remember the visa type, but I had an Arbeitsvertrag as wissenschaftliche mitarbeiter and paid pension for three years).
- In November 2021, I started working full-time with a §18b skilled worker visa, which is valid until mid-November 2025, and I worked until September 2024 (I quit my PhD during this time), then took a break between October 2024 and Feb 2025.
- Since March 2025, I’ve been working full-time (40h/week) at my current company with unlimited contract.

I already applied for a settlement permit with required documents (e.g. residency proof, work contract, insurance proof, pension proof, einbürgerungstest - except the B1 language certificate, which I’m preparing for now).

My Question:
Since my current visa is valid until mid-November and I already applied for a settlement permit:

- Does my settlement permit application automatically keep my visa valid until a decision is made?

- Should I also apply for a skilled worker visa to renew my §18b visa to keep my right to live and work safe regardless of settlement permit application process? 

- If I apply for the renewal of current work visa, could that be processed faster and affect my right to travel or work while waiting for the settlement permit?

thank you,
 

Hallo,

Since 15 months of my BAMF Interview, i received a letter from BAMF to wait until 15th months. Now this period is completed without any further notification from BAMF about my Interview decision.

In the meanwhile after my Interview, the reasons i highlighted in my Interview further devastated in my hosting country, while my family threat further fragile. 

I am still in the Camp und i am looking for advice, should i inform the BAMF about the worse fragile situation in my hosting country? (The German DW News, BBC, Amnesty Int. UNHCR and Human Rights reports also highlighted these fragile situations in their News and reports. 

During this 15 months period, i have completed my Integration Course with B-1 Certificate and now looking for Job (at this stage job searching is a little harder, as i need also a work permission and its taking almost 2 to 4 weeks).

How i can move ahead? How can i get a legal help free of cost?

Apologies, but i can't highlights all my reasons here, as here these information or public visible, but when i get a focal person or legal person, then i can share all my case record, reasons and post interview worse situations as well.

Thanks and looking ahead for guidance.

Ali

Goodday. I have italian resident permit ( EU) with my asylum document. I use titolo di viaggio as my passport, because am not allow to use my country passport. Please can I work in Germany ?

My name is Val, I am a Ukrainian citizen.

On November 2021, I travelled to Poland for tourism. Later, when there were clear signs of the possible war, I did not dare to return home to Ukraine. Unfortunately, the fears came true and the war started on 24 February 2022.

Because of war I moved to the Netherlands, where I received temporary protection status for Ukrainian refugees. However, my current situation is very difficult: I am a young pregnant woman without a husband (he left me), and in the Netherlands it is extremely hard to raise a child alone due to housing shortage and high inflation.

My aunt lives in Wiesbaden under temporary protection as well, and she will soon receive an apartment. She is inviting me to the city and ready to support me.

I am fluent in English, I speak Dutch, and I studied German at school and am ready to improve it further. This will make integration much easier for me.

Could you please clarify:

• Is it possible for me to obtain temporary protection (§ 24 AufenthG) in Germany, even though I already hold protection in the Netherlands?
• If necessary, could I travel to Ukraine and then re-enter Germany in order to apply for protection here?
• Which documents will be required from me?