AnonOfNemo2025

What residence options exist after my §18d research permit expires?

I have been working in Germany under §18d since March 1, 2022. My current contract and residence permit both expire on December 31, 2025. I applied for permanent residency on May 6, 2025, but approval is unlikely without a new employment contract. I would like to stay in Germany after my contract ends, but I have not yet found a new job. At the same time, I am a PhD student and will not complete my dissertation before December 2025.

My questions are:

1) Can I receive unemployment benefits (ALG I) if contributions were paid, or will my expiring residence permit prevent this?

2) What options exist to extend my residence permit until I find new employment?

3) Can a PhD in ethnology count as German higher education to exempt me from the Einbürgerungstest/Leben in Deutschland test?

4) I have 20 unused vacation days. If I cannot take them before the contract ends and my employer refuses to pay them out, do I have a right to compensation?

2 Comments

Reply (2)

My_Community_Managerin

Thank you for reaching out to us, @AnonOfNemo2025 .
May I ask you to please change your name in to a nickname to ensure your privacy. Thank you!

Your situation sounds challenging but I would like to answer your questions accordingly:

1 You can receive unemployment benefits (ALG 1), since you paid them during your employment. Nevertheless, you need to have a valid residence permit to be able to receive them. So, it is very important to get an extension or a new residence permit.

2 You could apply for a residence permit as a jobseeker. Please note that therefore you need to provide enough financial means to support your livelihood. Depending on how high your ALG 1 would be, this can be a part of your proof. On Handbook Germany you can find the required documents to apply for a jobseeker.

Maybe you have any chance to receive an extension of your contract to be able to finish your dissertation?

3 Your PhD should count as a higher education, especially if your studies were in German. Best would be to check this with your case worker when you will apply for it.

4 This question is best to address our consultants from @Faire__Integration_BB & @Faire__Integration_in_Schleswig-Holstein . They can answer this more precisely.

I hope this helps for a start and you can figure out a way to apply for an extension or a new residence permit. Please let me know if you have further questions.

Faire__Integration_in_Schleswig-Holstein

Dear @AnonOfNemo2025,

In reply to your fourth question regarding compensation for vacation days, we can tell you the following:

If you cannot take your vacation days until the end of your employment, you are entitled to compensation for the legal minimum of vacation days (Vacation pay). The legal minimum of vacation days depends on the amount of working days in a week. For example, if you work 5 days a week, your legal minimum of vacation days are 20 days per year.

However, the employer is free to offer their employees more vacation days per year. These are called additional contractual vacation days. Whether you are also entitled to compensation for the additional vacation days you did not take, depends on what is regulated in your employment contract. As we do not know what is regulated in your employment contract regarding vacation days or if your employer offers any additional vacation days, we cannot tell if you can claim compensation for your 20 unused vacation days.

However, it is always better to take your vacation days in person, considering that you still have three months of work left. The purpose of the legal vacation entitlement is to allow employees to rest. Please note that if you get financial compensation for unused vacation days the Agentur für Arbeit (unemployment agency) takes vacation pay into account. This means that the start of your entitlement of unemployment benefits will be postponed. The length of the postponement depends on the amount of vacation pay. Please also note that you need to inform the unemployment agency three months prior to the end of your employment that you will be unemployed by January 2026.

If you have further questions or need a more detailed consultation please refer to the Faire Integration office in your federal state (https://www.faire-integration.de/de/topic/11.beratungsstellen.html).

Best regards

Theresa

Faire Integration in Schleswig-Holstein

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