Apply for a residence permit for skilled workers with vocational training

How do you get a residence permit as a skilled worker with vocational training?

Do you have vocational training and would like to work in Germany? Then the authority must grant you a residence permit as a skilled worker. It is valid for up to four years. If your employment contract is shorter, the authority issues it for that shorter period. The same applies if the Federal Employment Agency (Bundesagentur für Arbeit) has only consented for a shorter period. With this residence permit, you may take up any qualified employment.

For the application, you must meet several requirements. You need a German vocational qualification from at least two years of training. Or you have a foreign qualification that is equivalent to a German one. A recognition body reviews this and certifies the equivalence. You also need an employment contract or at least a draft of one. Your employer must have a place of business in Germany. Normally, the Bundesagentur für Arbeit must also consent. You have to be insured for health in Germany. A foreign health insurance is generally not enough. Please read the information leaflet of the State Office for Immigration (Landesamt für Einwanderung) on this.

If you are already 45 years old or older, an additional condition applies. Normally, you then have to provide proof of an adequate pension provision. Your gross salary must be at least 4,647.50 euros per month. That corresponds to 55 percent of the annual contribution assessment ceiling in the general pension insurance for 2026. The salary may be lower if you have already made sufficient pension provision from other sources. If your profession requires a permit to practise, for example nursing, you have to provide proof of this permit beforehand.

You submit your application online under the title "Temporary residence title for employment". Upload all documents as PDFs if possible. You can also photograph them with your smartphone and upload them. Permitted file formats are PDF, JPG, JPEG and PNG. A single file may be a maximum of 7 MB. All files together may not exceed 100 MB. Before submitting, you have to pay the processing fee. Possible payment methods are credit card (Visa or Mastercard) and PayPal. After submitting, you''ll receive a PDF confirmation. This shows that your current residence title remains valid. Be sure to save this confirmation and, if possible, also print it out. Caution: this does not apply if you have a Schengen visa (C visa) or if your residence title had already expired on the day of application.

Note: You can submit the application at the earliest four months before your national D visa or current residence permit expires. You must have your main residence in Berlin. A secondary residence is not enough. If your spouse or your children live with you in Berlin and also need a residence permit, enter them directly in your online application. Don''t submit a separate application for them. The Landesamt für Einwanderung will then contact you about their residence permits.