(E / I) Migration to Germany, Part 1

In view of the fact that my previous post on the study of computer science in Germany became popular and many questions were asked in the comments about what opportunities exist for working abroad, in particular in Germany, I will try to cover this issue a bit in a series of posts. In the context of these posts, I do not consider emigration to be a move to obtain a non-permanent residence permit (permanent residence), although this may be the ultimate goal, but the possibility of moving to receive at least a temporary (limited by a certain period of time, and possibly an employer) residence permit ( Residence permit).

So, let’s first consider what are the general possibilities for obtaining a residence permit in Germany.

Immigration opportunities in Germany:
I. Upon birth	II. For social and professional reasons.
German immigration (late immigrants). Jewish immigration. Refugees	For the purpose of study. Marriage and family reunion. Professional immigration. Business immigration.

Although group I is not directly related to professional immigration, in which readers of habrahabr are interested, I will nevertheless briefly consider them in order to give an overall picture.

To immigrate from German roots, you must be born in a family of Russian Germans and, if possible, preserve German traditions and language. When conducting a language exam at the German Consulate in Russia, they especially pay attention to this preservation of traditions: do children know German rhymes, counters, sayings. Also, attention is often paid to the emphasis - it requires not classical German, but most often the dialect spoken by these Germans before emigrating to Russia.

Type of immigration:	German immigration.
Requirements for the applicant:	At the time of the applicant’s birth, at least one of his parents had German citizenship, even if it was not documented at that time. It refers mainly to ethnic Germans living in Russia (Volga Germans, Kazakhstan) and their descendants.
Place and time for consideration of the application:	An application is considered by a special authority; consideration may take several years (3-5).
Status in Germany:	After establishing the status of a late migrant (Spätaussiedler), the applicant receives citizenship within a fairly short period of time. Renunciation of another (Russian) citizenship is not required.

Jewish immigration began around 1991 and refers to people of Jewish nationality with at least one of their parents - a Jew. To confirm this fact, it is required to provide a birth certificate, or a Soviet passport. Currently, this immigration is limited and there are additional requirements for immigrants not to sit on state. benefits, but could fully integrate into German society (that is, they found work and provided for themselves).

Type of immigration:	Jewish immigration.
Requirements for the applicant:	At the time of the applicant’s birth, at least one of his parents was Jewish, which was documented either in the applicant’s birth certificate or in the Soviet passport of his parents.
Place and time for consideration of the application:	An application is considered by a special authority; consideration may take several years (3-5).
Status in Germany:	After establishing the status of Jewish immigrant, the applicant receives permission not to stay for a period of 3 years (in some lands - permanent residence). Since August 2007, renunciation of another (Russian) citizenship is required when applying for German citizenship.

Refugee status is the most “inconvenient” status in Germany, because usually you have to live in a special closed camp for refugees and if you refuse to grant this status, you will be deported at home without the possibility of obtaining a visa to Schengen or EU countries for 10-15 years.

Now we will consider (at first also schematically, in the following posts in more detail) the reasons from the II group.

The easiest way to obtain German citizenship or permanent residence is traditionally marriage. In this case, reunification is often possible even if the partner does not have enough means of subsistence and the spouse is forced to receive benefits from the state (provided that one of the spouses has German citizenship, of course).

Type of immigration:	Marriage and / or family reunion.
Requirements for the applicant:	The applicant must be married (registered, for example, in Russia or in the territory of the “third” state, for example Denmark) or be about to do so (then the “bride’s visa” is first issued) with a German citizen. Since August 2007, to obtain an entry visa it is necessary to prove proficiency in German in the amount of A1 (the exam can be taken at the embassy or at the Goethe Institute branches in different countries).
Place and time for consideration of the application:	The application is considered by the embassy, ​​which makes a request to the registry office and to the ABH (Institution dealing with the status of foreigners in Germany), usually the review takes 2-3 months if all the documents are available.
Status in Germany:	The applicant receives a category D entry visa, which is valid for 90 days for a single entry. During this time, you need to enter the country and get a residence permit in the ABH. Usually a residence permit is granted for 1 year and is extended either for 1 or 2 years. After 2 years of marriage and 3 years of being in Germany (i.e. after 3 years of marriage, if the reunion occurred only after the marriage, and after 2 years if the applicant had already lived in Germany at least a year before the time of reunification), the applicant can apply for German citizenship, the condition for which is financial independence and renunciation of previous citizenship. After 3 years of marriage, the applicant can apply for permanent residence (unlimited permission not to stay).

The easiest and fastest way to get the opportunity to live in Germany for a while is to go there for the purpose of study. At the same time, it is not at all necessary to start studies from the very beginning - in Germany you can go to graduate school (PhD), or you can do masters (for example, MBA, although M.Sc. is possible). Although the requirements for opening a visa and issuing a residence permit seem rather stringent, they are quite feasible and in most cases a student can finance his studies by working 2-3 days a week in his spare time. In more detail we will consider this way in the following posts.

Type of immigration:	For the purpose of study.
Requirements for the applicant:	To apply to a German university, you must have at least 2 courses (3, if in absentia) of a completed Russian university, in which case you can apply for a similar specialty. To submit documents to the master, you must have a completed bachelor's degree (or even a diploma) and 2-3 letters of recommendation. For graduate school it is necessary to have a diploma (confirm at least 5 years of education!), As a rule, the diploma itself is not so important if you have 5 years of education (that is, a mathematician can do graduate school in physics and computer science without any problems). To obtain an entry visa and a residence permit for 1 year, you must demonstrate the presence of 7200 Euros (this is the subsistence minimum of a student for 1 year). In a number of lands it is required to open a special “blocked account” on which this money is located, with a limit on the maximum amount that can be withdrawn in a month (so that there are no frauds from “borrowed - showed - transferred money back”.
Place and time for consideration of the application:	Communication with universities can and should begin already in advance, since an invitation from a university (Zulassung) is required to obtain a study visa. To obtain it, you need to fulfill a number of requirements (for example, pass an exam for knowledge of the German language and so on). The application is considered by the embassy within a month (the so-called “silence period”).
Status in Germany:	The applicant receives a category D entry visa, which is valid for 90 days for a single entry. During this time, you need to enter the country and get a residence permit in the ABH. Typically, a residence permit is granted for 1 year (if 7200 is available, it can be for a shorter period, but not less than six months, as a rule) and is extended either for 1 or 2 years (usually first for 1, and then for 2, even if the funds are for the account is only enough for 1). Years of study do not count (or half count) in the period of stay for permanent residence and citizenship. It is impossible to obtain permanent residence or citizenship while in the status of a student, but you can set off this term of stay if you find a job and receive the status of a “worker” after successful graduation.

The status of a “worker” in Germany is the most promising in terms of obtaining permanent residence and a residence permit, and does not require the adoption of such a number of obligations, such as marriage. But to get this status is the most difficult. This is due to the fact that, according to German laws, in order to obtain this status, it is necessary to “check the labor market”, that is, it is necessary to prove that there is no candidate for the job position that you are applying for in Germany itself (1) and in no country EU (2). Therefore, this status is mainly obtained by scientists (there is no need to prove anything here, the law exempts from verification) and specialists of a very high level, and only large companies are ready to work for such companies, who are ready to go through the whole hassle of this “labor market audit”.

Type of immigration:	For the purpose of work.
Requirements for the applicant:	As a rule, the applicant must be either a scientist with a scientific degree no lower than a candidate of sciences, or a specialist with extensive experience and excellent resumes to prove the absence of a similar candidate throughout the EU. Naturally, the job positions that are offered usually require high specialization.
Place and time for consideration of the application:	The visa application is submitted by the applicant together with the employer, the employer is obliged (with the help of the Labor Exchange in Germany) to conduct a “labor market check” and prove to German authorities that there is no other applicant from among German or EU citizens who could take this worker a place. Only after this is it possible to obtain a visa and a working residence permit. An application can be considered up to six months.
Status in Germany:	The applicant receives a category D entry visa, which is valid for 90 days for a single entry. During this time, you need to enter the country and get a residence permit in the ABH. Typically, a residence permit is given for the duration of the contract (if there is a trial period, then first until the end of this period). After 3 years of work, the restriction on a particular employer is removed and a transfer to another employer is possible. After 5 years of working residence permit, the applicant can apply for permanent residence and citizenship subject to financial independence, payment of pension contributions and renunciation of previous citizenship.

The last option for immigration to Germany is the so-called business immigration, when the reason for moving to Germany is to open your own business. This option is suitable for those who have about 300-500 thousand Euros that he can invest in any business and is ready to develop this business in Germany. Given the high competition and contented tax burden, this is far from always a solvable task.

Type of immigration:	Business immigration.
Requirements for the applicant:	The applicant must be able to invest 500 thousand Euros in the German economy and create 5 jobs. These figures (before August 2007 this amount was 2 times larger) are the “upper limit”, that is, if you have a detailed business plan and a concept for developing your business, then you can get a visa to do business with less investment - the decision remains with the employees of the tax and financial authorities who evaluate the application. Upon reaching the amount of 500 thousand under the law, there must be a very serious reason for refusing a business visa!
Place and time for consideration of the application:	To obtain a visa, it is necessary to prove the availability of financial resources and provide a business plan, which is considered by the financial authorities of Germany. The issuance of a visa can last up to six months.
Status in Germany:	As in all other cases, the applicant receives a national category D visa, which he upon arrival will convert to a residence permit. The extension of the residence permit depends on the success of the company’s affairs; the residence permit can be closed at any time if there are suspicions of insolvency of the company or tax hiding. This visa is equivalent to a work visa in relation to the rights to obtain permanent residence and citizenship.

Here are briefly what are the possibilities of immigration (albeit temporary) in Germany. Tomorrow I will try to highlight the possibilities of entering graduate school at a German university.


UPD: Topic moved to the new blog "Work and study in Germany." The blog is open to all, any entries in it are only welcome.

UPD2: Added a section on business immigration (which may be relevant for someone in the IT field).