Residence permit for study purposes

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A visa and a residence permit are both temporary residence titles.

A visa is required on entry to Germany from a third country and must be obtained from the German embassy before travel. A visa initially entitles you to stay in the country for max. 90 days within a 180-day period within the period of its validity.

If you intend to stay in Germany for longer, you must apply for a residence permit from the responsible foreigners’ authority in Germany. You must already hold a visa to obtain this form of residence title.

Information sourced from here: https://passexperten.de/ratgeber/aufenthaltstitel/ (German only).

A Fiktionsbescheinigung is issued when a decision about a residence title application cannot yet be taken, for example because required documents are missing or the immigration file is not available, an ordered electronic residence title (eAT) cannot be issued before the expiry of the previous residence title or it is necessary to await the outcome of criminal proceedings.

A Fiktionsbescheinigung can only be issued where the stay is still lawful at the time of application for the issue or extension of a residence title.

In cases where an existing residence title (residence permit or national visa for longer-term stays – category D) is still valid, a Fiktionsbescheinigung will be issued in accordance with Art. 81 (4) of the Residence Act (Aufenthaltsgesetz – AufenthG).

The residence title and all ancillary provisions (also with regard to the regulations governing economic activity) will then remain valid until a decision has been taken about the application. International travel and re-entry to the Federal Republic of Germany are possible with a valid Fiktionsbescheinigung issued in accordance with Art. 81 (4) AufenthG.

Where the applicant is legally allowed to stay in Germany without a visa on the grounds of their nationality, the Fiktionsbescheinigung will be issued in accordance with Art. 81 (3) AufenthG.

This entitles them to stay in the country until a decision has been taken about the application. However, this Fiktionsbescheinigung does not entitle the applicant to re-enter the country. The pursuit of economic activity is also not permitted.

A Fiktionsbescheinigung cannot be issued in the case of the following decisions on residence permit cases:

• Permission to remain
• Residence card in accordance with the Freedom of Movement Act/EU (Freizügigkeitsgesetz/EU)
• Permanent residence card in accordance with the Freedom of Movement Act/EU (Freizügigkeitsgesetz/EU)
• Temporary suspension of deportation
• Permanent settlement permit/residence title not limited in time
• (Schengen) type C visa/visitor and business visa/tourist visa

Information sourced from here: Fiktionsbescheinigung – website of the state capital of Düsseldorf (duesseldorf.de)

If all requirements are met, students from non-EU countries will be granted a residence permit for study purposes (Art. 16b AufenthG).

You can find all the necessary information here: Residence permit for study purposes – website of the state capital of Düsseldorf (duesseldorf.de)

If you do not have a residence permit, you should ideally have a valid visa or a valid Fiktionsbescheinigung.

If you do not have any valid documents entitling you to be in Germany, you are in the country unlawfully.

If a person does not yet have a residence title, a Fiktionsbescheinigung after a residence title or a visa for a longer-term stay for Germany and does not come from a privileged country, they must always first submit a visa application in the country in which they are currently resident.

In particular, it is not possible to switch from a stay as an asylum seeker, from temporary suspension of deportation or a Schengen (tourist) visa to a residence permit in accordance with Art. 16b AufenthG.

It is essential that the application for a residence permit is submitted before expiry of the visa, preferably by e-mail where a personal appointment is not possible. If a registered address cannot yet be provided at that point in time, provision of a contact address (private individuals or support organisations for the homeless) where the applicant can be reached is essential (Art. 15 of the Administrative Procedures Act – Verwaltungsverfahrensgesetz (VwVfG)).

Information sourced from here: Frings, Dorothee. Aufenthalts- und Sozialrecht für internationale Studierende: Handreichung für Beratende. Köllen Druck+Verlag GmbH, 2020.

To ensure the local responsibility of the Düsseldorf Immigration Office, you must have a registered address in Düsseldorf. If you are e.g. living with relatives and registered there at the Residence Registration Office, you can also apply for a residence permit.

No, as the local responsibility of the Düsseldorf Immigration Office is not ensured in this case.

You can find all the forms here: Residence permit for study purposes – website of the state capital of Düsseldorf (duesseldorf.de)

If you come to Germany from a country outside the EU/EEA for the purpose of studying, you will need a residence permit to stay – even if you did not need a visa to enter the country. For this reason, you must register with your local foreigners’ authority within three months of entering the country.

Information quoted from here: Enrolling and settling in (make-it-in-germany.com)

The processing time generally depends on a wide range of different factors, meaning that it is not possible to provide an average processing time.

If you have not heard anything yet, please be patient and refrain from sending repeated inquiries about the status of your application. This causes extra work for those involved, which in turn generally means that working processes take longer.

The general prerequisites for the granting of a residence title must be fulfilled.

Study application – it must be ensured that there are no fundamental obstacles to starting a study programme (it is not possible to catch up on missing school-related prerequisites here).

Study preparation – admission to a preparatory intensive language course or preparatory college.

Studies – admission to a higher education institution.

You are responsible for ensuring on-time application.

An informal application is possible. You only need to complete an application form when applying for a residence permit in Düsseldorf for the first time.

Information sourced from here: Residence permit for study purposes – website of the state capital of Düsseldorf (duesseldorf.de)

Exceeding the average period of study – not the standard period of study – by up to three semesters is not considered problematic (Administrative Regulation (Verwaltungsvorschrift – VwV) to the Residence Act no. 16.1.1.6.2). When taking a decision in this regard, the key aspect for assessment by the foreigners’ authority is always whether – at the time of the assessment – the successful completion of studies can still be expected within an appropriate period (Art 16b (2) Sentence 4 AufenthG). The evaluation thus looks to the future, not to the past (Higher Administrative Court of Magdeburg, 14 February 2020 – 2 M 3/20; Administrative Court of Karlsruhe, 3 April 2017 – 7 K 7667/16). In administration and jurisprudence, a maximum duration of ten years for the entire period of study, including study preparation but not taking any period of doctoral studies into account, has become established as a general limit (Administrative Regulation to the Residence Act no. 16.2.7).

Information sourced from here: Frings, Dorothee. Aufenthalts- und Sozialrecht für internationale Studierende: Handreichung für Beratende. Köllen Druck+Verlag GmbH, 2020.

As soon as you have completed or abandoned your studies, you need a new residence permit. The type of residence permit depends on your plans for the future.

If you intend to stay in Germany and seek a job, you need a residence permit in accordance with Art. 4 AufenthG (residence for the purpose of pursuing economic activity).

Yes, it is. Changing the residence permit purpose is not prohibited here.

There are various ways to prove your income:

• A certificate from a German bank proving a balance of at least €11,208 in a blocked account from which only 1/12 of the total amount may be paid out every month. This type of account can often already be set up from abroad at a branch of a German bank or via another bank acting as an intermediary.
• An irrevocable bank guarantee of at least €11,208 per year at a German bank. However, the fees for such bank guarantees are very high.
• A declaration of commitment from a person living in Germany in accordance with Art. 68 AufenthG.
• Proof of maintenance payments from your parents in the form of disclosure of their income and assets. In this context, the foreigners’ authority will often demand a notarial declaration and bank statements from the last 6 months or an additional bank guarantee.    
• Proof of a grant of at least €934 from the public funds of a recognised funding organisation or from public funds from your country of origin where the Federal Foreign Office, the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) or another German organisation that offers grants has arranged the placement at the German university.

• Employment contract
• Monthly income from employment
• If you are entitled to funding under the Federal Training Assistance Act (Bundesausbildungsförderungsgesetz – BAföG), you will be deemed to have a secure subsistence (Art. 2 (3), Sentence 2, No. 5 AufenthG).

Information sourced from here: Frings, Dorothee. Aufenthalts- und Sozialrecht für internationale Studierende: Handreichung für Beratende. Köllen Druck+Verlag GmbH, 2020.

People from non-EU countries who want to apply for a visa to come to Germany but do not have the financial means to support themselves may be invited by people living in Germany if these individuals submit a declaration of commitment to a German foreigners’ authority. This declaration obligates the inviting person to assume liability and act as guarantor for the living expenses of the visa applicant during their stay in Germany.

Information sourced from here: Visa for studying (make-it-in-germany.com)

International students who do not come from the EU, EEA or Switzerland may work 140 full or 280 half days or 20 hours per week in a year. You do not need permission from the foreigners’ authority for this. If you want to work more than 140 full or 280 half days or 20 hours per week in a year, you need permission from the foreigners’ authority.

International students from non-EU countries may only pursue self-employed economic activity with permission from the foreigners’ authority! Permission to pursue self-employed economic activity is already stated on some residence titles; a separate application is not necessary in such cases.

Work as a research assistant or student assistant at a university or as a tutor at the Studierendenwerk student support organisation represents an exception to this: As long as this work does not impact your studies, it can be performed for an unlimited period of time. However, the foreigners’ authority must be informed of this.

Information sourced from here: German National Association for Student Affairs – international students: Jobbing (internationale-studierende.de)

A residence permit in accordance with Art 16b AufenthG is not tied to a specific place of study or university, meaning that you can continue the same study programme or a comparable one at a different university.

However, if you move to a different place of residence, you must register at the Residence Registration Office at your new place of residence.

Information sourced from here: Frings, Dorothee. Aufenthalts- und Sozialrecht für internationale Studierende: Handreichung für Beratende. Köllen Druck+Verlag GmbH, 2020.

A residence permit in accordance with Art 16b AufenthG is not tied to a specific place of study or university, meaning that you can continue the same study programme or a comparable one at a different university.

The residence permit may include further ancillary provisions relating to the university or study programme, which must then be changed by the foreigners’ authority. However, you are legally entitled to the continuation of your residence permit as long as the remaining provisions (study prospects, securing means of subsistence, valid passport) are fulfilled.

Switching to a different study programme requires a residence permit with an amended purpose as residence permits in accordance with Art. 16b (1) AufenthG are always tied to specific studies (Higher Administrative Court of NRW, 17 October 2019 – 18 B 907/19).

Information sourced from here: Frings, Dorothee. Aufenthalts- und Sozialrecht für internationale Studierende: Handreichung für Beratende. Köllen Druck+Verlag GmbH, 2020.

A residence permit in accordance with Art 16b AufenthG is not tied to a specific place of study or university, meaning that you can continue the same study programme or a comparable one at a different university.

However, if you move to a different place of residence, you must register at the Residence Registration Office at your new place of residence. The Düsseldorf Immigration Office will send your file to the foreigners’ authority at your new place of residence.

The residence permit may also include further ancillary provisions relating to the university or study programme, which must then be changed by the foreigners’ authority. However, you are legally entitled to the continuation of your residence permit as long as the remaining provisions (study prospects, securing means of subsistence, valid passport) are fulfilled.

Information sourced from here: Frings, Dorothee. Aufenthalts- und Sozialrecht für internationale Studierende: Handreichung für Beratende. Köllen Druck+Verlag GmbH, 2020.

This depends on your current residence document. For example, if you have a valid Fiktionsbescheinigung issued in accordance with Art. 81 (4) AufenthG and a valid passport, you can travel abroad.

A permanent settlement permit in accordance with Art. 9 AufenthG cannot be granted either during a period of study (Art. 16b (4) Sentence 2 AufenthG) or during the period of a residence permit to seek employment (Art 20 (4) Sentence 4 AufenthG). Residence can only be consolidated by means of a permanent settlement permit once a residence title for the purpose of gainful employment has been granted. Various special periods apply here. When calculating the periods, periods of residence for study purposes will be credited at 50% and max. two years:

• Residence permit in accordance with Art. 18a AufenthG (employment with vocational training qualification), 18b (1) AufenthG (employment with university degree), Art. 18d AufenthG (research stay): three years
• EU Blue Card and German proficiency at B1 level: 21 months
• EU Blue Card and German proficiency at A1 level (only for English study programmes): 27 months
• Self-employed economic activity: three years
• Residence permit for other employment purposes (Art. 19c AufenthG): five years

The following additional prerequisites must also be fulfilled:

• The employment or self-employed activity must continue to exist at the time of the application.
• The means of subsistence – also for family members in Germany – must be secured.
• Pension contributions must have been paid or a comparable private pension must have been established for the same period of time as the preceding periods of residence.
• No reasons of public safety and order, incl. no serious criminal offences, may stand in the way of granting the permit.
• Proof of basic knowledge of the legal and social system must be provided.
• To this end, the “Life in Germany” test must be completed at a provider of integration courses (not for self-employed individuals).
• Proof must be provided of sufficient living space for the entire family (12 m² per person, 10 m² for children under the age of six) (not for self-employed individuals).

With regard to the pension requirement, periods of study can only be credited if you already held an employment position subject to social security contributions (also as a student worker) during those periods. No court decision has yet been taken as to whether pension contributions from marginal employment can be credited.

At the discretion of the foreigners’ authority, a permanent settlement permit may be granted for self-employed individuals before five years have passed; this enables public interests to be taken into account, which are not explicitly stated.

Information sourced from here: Frings, Dorothee. Aufenthalts- und Sozialrecht für internationale Studierende: Handreichung für Beratende. Köllen Druck+Verlag GmbH, 2020.