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Visa Information in English
Building on the Skilled Immigration Act that took effect on 1 March 2020, the Act on the Further Development of Skilled Immigration has now expanded the opportunities for skilled workers from non-EU states to come to Germany in order to take up employment, in many cases also simplifying visa applications.
The new law has several parts. Its provisions entered into force gradually and were fully in force by 1 June 2024. Here is an overview of the individual changes: www.make-it-in-germany.com
Before you apply for a visa as a skilled worker, you must have your qualifications officially recognised. This process is carried out by specific bodies within Germany. Information can be found at www.anerkennung-in-deutschland.de. Skilled workers who are interested in applying for a visa should begin this process in good time.
The Consular Services Portal: You can apply online for Federal Foreign Office services here.
Further information is available here:
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Which visa do I need for Germany?
I want to travel to Germany as a tourist, on business, for my studies, to work, or to join family members who live there.
Which visa should I apply for?
The official online platform for qualified professionals, students and academics wanting to live and work in Germany.
The German Embassy in your home country offers plenty of information about where you can learn German in your country:
The Federal Foreign Office has decided to abolish the remonstration procedure for visa rejections worldwide from 1 July 2025.
This eliminates a legal remedy in the visa application procedure that is not statutorily prescribed and which up to now has been granted voluntarily.
This decision is based on a pilot project conducted in several German visa sections, where suspension of remonstrations for both Schengen visas and national visas was tested from 1 June 2023.
Evaluation of the pilot project has shown that Dispensing with the remonstration procedure has released considerable staff capacity in visa sections in some cases, freeing up staff to process more visa applications. As a result, it has been possible to process both more national and more Schengen visa applications and to reduce waiting times compared to the same period in the previous year.
The processing of a greater number of visa applications and a reduction in waiting times benefits all applicants. Adequate legal protection will also be guaranteed in the future, for judicial review under law will not be limited by the abolition of the remonstration procedure. Furthermore, it goes without saying that all applicants have the option of submitting a new visa application at any time in the case of a rejection.
With the general option to apply for national visas for skilled workers, apprentices, students or for family reunification purposes online via the Consular Services Portal available worldwide since 1 January 2025, applicants also receive clear and intuitive step-by-step guidance through the application process to ensure that they submit complete (digital) applications. Experience from the online application pilot project has shown that this significantly improves the quality of the procedure and avoids delays caused by incomplete applications.