Residence permit

Third country nationals who are citizens of a non-EU or non-EFTA country will need to clarify whether their residence status or permit entitles them to go self-employed. If your current residence permit does NOT include any of this, you must apply to the Foreigners Office for an additional permit to go self-employed. Please check:

• Does your current residence permit bear the words “Erwerbstätigkeit gestattet” (“Employment permitted”) or “Selbständige Tätigkeit gestattet“(“self-employed work permitted”)? Then an additional permit is not required.
  Good to know: This information can usually be found on the “Zusatzblatt zum Aufenthaltstitel“ in the section “Nebenbestimmungen” (ancillary provisions). The Zusatzblatt is an additional sheet in the form of a folded card that has been issued together with your residence permit.
• Does your current residence bear the word “Niederlassungserlaubnis” (“settlement permit”)? Then an additional permit is not required.

Are you an international student who would like to work as a self-employed person while pursuing academic studies? Being a third-country national, you as an international student, need to obtain approval from the Foreigners Office.

With a visa for self-employment, you can realize your start-up project in Munich. Depending on whether you are planning on setting up a business or engaging in a liberal profession, different conditions may apply.

False friends:
The terms “freelancer” and “self-employed” are often confused and used as synonyms. Learn more in our FAQ.

Special regulations apply to certain activities of self-employed work. To find out if the qualifications which you acquired in your home country meet with these requirements, please go to the Federal Recognition Portal.

A. Setting up a business

You can obtain a residence permit for self-employment in accordance with Section 21 (1) or (2a) on the Residence Act (“AufenthG”) if the business activity

• meets special regional demands or coincides with overriding economic interests or is expected to have positive effects on the economy.
• has a solid financial basis (sufficient owner’s equity or a loan commitment)

The assessment of the these requirements is particularly focused on the sustainability of the under-lying business concept, your entrepreneurial experience, the impact on the employment and training situation and the contribution to innovation and research. Your business plan and the additional documents have to prove that you meet all these requirements. It is therefore vital to ensure that you have a comprehensive, well-prepared business plan which is revealing your in-depth planning: defining concrete measures and action plans for implementation. The business plan needs to be as carefully worked out as if applying for a bank loan.

The Munich Foreigners Office requires the following documents:

• application form (PDF, 242 KB), completed and signed
• valid passport
• a recent biometric passport photo
• proof of housing: Wohnraumbescheinigung (PDF, 64 KB), completed and signed
• health insurance
• detailed outline of your business idea: business plan
  • profile of the founder/team including professional skills, personal strengths and industry experience
  • market assessment with market potential, target group
  • competitor analysis including strengths, weakness, opportunities and threats
  • analysis of your location
  • company organization and personnel management, legal form, organization chart, workflow management, personnel structure
  • risk analysis
  • details and time frame regarding the number of jobs and training positions to be created
• Financial planning for three years consisting of a capital requirements plan, costs (buffer) for the start-up phase, revenue and profitability forecast, liquidity planning, detailed explanations on your calculation base
• Documentation of the intended capital input, where necessary the amount of owner’s equity such as bank statements, confirmation of your bank and the amount of borrowing (loan commitment)
• proof of existing business contacts in Germany and abroad, such as letters of intent, outline contracts, preliminary contracts
• in case staff is hired: job description with detailed information on requirements, tasks, salary, starting date, full or part time
• description how your business idea may contribute to innovation and research (where applicable)
• Detailed curriculum vitae with diplomas, certificates and other evidence of your qualifications and your entrepreneurial experience. Foreign documents require a certified German translation. In some cases a formal acknowledgement of your qualification is required.
• In some cases supplementary documents may be required.
• A fee of currently EUR 100 applies.

Are you older than 45 years of age?

Then you also need to provide proof of adequate old age pension provisions. A pension insurance is for example considered sufficient if it grants a capital amount of minimum 250,000 Euro at the time of retirement. Detailed information can be obtained from the local Foreigners Office.

The Chamber of Commerce and Industry (IHK) for Munich and Upper Bavaria will be involved for a second expert opinion of your business plan. In addition to the documents mentioned above, IHK requires the following documents, according to their checklist (PDF, 77 KB)

• Proof of entry in the commercial register (“Handelsregister”), applies only if the company has already been registered
• Proof of articles of partnership or association (“Gesellschaftsvertrag”) depending on the legal form, does not apply to sole proprietors

The assessment can also involve other competent bodies in the area of your planned activity, for example the Chamber of Skilled Crafts (HWK) for Munich and Upper Bavaria.

B. Start working in a liberal profession

You can obtain a residence permit for self-employment in accordance with Section 21 (5) on the Residence Act (“AufenthG) if your planned self-employed activity solely belongs to the liberal profession. You need to provide

• application form (PDF, 242 KB), completed and signed
• valid passport
• a recent biometric passport photo
• proof of housing: Wohnraumbescheinigung (PDF, 64 KB), completed and signed
• health insurance
• revenue forecast
• Detailed curriculum vitae with diplomas, certificates and other evidence of your qualifications. Foreign documents require a certified German translation. In some cases a formal acknowledgement of your qualification is required.
• proof of sufficient funds to finance your projects.
• letters of intent, preliminary service contracts
• fee contracts
• any licenses required to perform the job in question.
• proof of adequate old age pension provisions (if you are older than 45 years of age).
• A fee of currently EUR 100 applies.

Are you older than 45 years of age?

Then you also need to provide proof of adequate old age pension provisions. A pension insurance is for example considered sufficient if it grants a capital amount of minimum 250,000 Euro at the time of retirement. Detailed information can be obtained from the local Foreigners Office.

What is a liberal profession?

It must be a self-employed academic, artistic, literary, teaching, educational or other self-employed professional occupation in accordance with Section 18 (1) on the Income Tax Act (“Einkommensteuergesetz EStG”). Doctors, dentists, vets, lawyers, notaries, patent attorneys, tax advisers, architects, engineers, business consultants, journalists, interpreters, translators, physiotherapists are all examples of liberal professions.

It is important to clarify whether your planned activity genuinely belongs to the liberal professions. Classification can be difficult and depends on the individual case!
Get advice:
Institute for Liberal Professions (Institut für Freie Berufe)
Startup hotline +49 911 23 565 28, Mon – Fri 09:00 am – 1:30 pm
www.ifb.uni-erlangen.de

C. Information for US citizens and citizens from Japan

According to the website of Munich’s Foreigners Office, citizens of the United States or Japan are not obliged to submit the documents listed above. Instead they are required to provide the following documents when applying for a permit for self-employed work in Munich:

• application form (PDF, 242 KB), completed and signed
• valid passport
• a recent biometric passport photo
• proof of housing: Wohnraumbescheinigung (PDF, 64 KB), completed and signed
• proof of health insurance
• proof of pension provision (compulsory pension insurance contributions or a life insurance policy with sufficient coverage
• proof of sufficient income to earn your livelihood

D. Requirements for international students

Are you an international student who would like to work as a self-employed person while pursuing academic studies? Being third-country nationals, international students need to obtain approval from the Foreigners Office.

According to the Foreigners Office approval may be granted if your self-employed activities

• are related to the field of your studies and
• do not jeopardize the success of your studies

Examples of self-employed activities that are basically structured like dependent employment include work as a “Honorarkraft” (contract work for your university) or a “studentische Hilfskraft” (student assistant at your university). Throughout your studies, you may work 120 full days or 240 half days, in addition to performing student jobs.

The German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) has summarized rules for side jobs.

You can apply for a residence permit for self-employed using the online application tool. It is currently available in German only.

After starting the online application tool you can choose to sign up for an account or to continue without. When you reach the page “Bescheinigungen” you are asked to choose an option from the drop-down lists.

1. Drop-down list next to “Bitte Zutreffendes auswählen”: choose either “Selbständige Erwerbstätigkeit” for a business activity or “Freiberufler” for an activity in a liberal profession. 
2. Drop-down list next to “Auswahltyp”: choose “Verlängerung”. It is only then that you will able to upload these documents:

• application form (PDF, 242 KB), completed and signed
• national passport
• proof of housing: Wohnraumbescheinigung (PDF, 64 KB), completed and signed
• health insurance
• income tax return notices
• other proofs of income
• profit and loss account or business analysis
• In case of commercial self-employment (=trade/business): comprehensive business plan, see chapter requirements above
• In the case of liberal profession:
  Service contract, order invoices, account statements showing order invoices, see chapter requirements above

The time it takes to process an application varies. To avoid delays and to ensure that your application can be processed as fast as possible, please submit all required documents completely to the local Foreigners Office. Complete documents of high quality are critical to the processing time of your application. Good preparation is the key.

What happens next

Once you have uploaded all required documents completely to the online application form of the local Foreigners Office, you will be contacted soon.

Meanwhile, your business plan will not only be reviewed and analyzed by the local Foreigners Office. The assessment additionally will involve other competent bodies in the area of your planned activity, for example the Chamber of Commerce and Industry (IHK) for Munich and Upper Bavaria or the Chamber of Skilled Crafts (HWK) for Munich and Upper Bavaria. The authorities involved give an expert opinion on the provided business plan, although only the local Foreigners Office is authorized to make the final decision on the application.

If your application has been successful, you will receive a temporary residence permit. The residence permit according to Section 21 on the Residence Act (“AufenthG”) is basically bound to a specific purpose and issued for a limited period of time.

When your residence permit expires and you plan to continue living and working self-employed in Munich, you will need to repeat the same application process with the Foreigners Office as when you initially applied. All documents will be requested and checked once again. Your actual business development will then be compared with your originally submitted financial planning and business plan on the basis of your income statement. If your business idea has proven to be successful and you are able to support yourself and your family, your residence permit can be extended.

Are you already working and living in Munich with a temporary residence permit and wish to stay permanently? Under certain conditions, you as a skilled professional can apply for a permanent residence title, otherwise referred to as a settlement permit in accordance with Section 18c on the Residence Act – AufenthG

A settlement permit (Niederlassungserlaubnis) offers several benefits. One of them ist that all forms of economic activity are permitted including self-employment. A permanent residence permit is usually possible after five years if you meet all necessary requirements. However, in some cases, a settlement permit can be issued under facilitated conditions. Here is a selection as stated on the website of the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees:

• EU Blue Card holders
  When meeting the necessary requirements, you can request to obtain a settlement permit for EU Blue Card holders after 33 months of employment in a qualified job. And if you can provide proof of German language skills at B1 level, the required time of 33 months can be reduced to 21 months.
• Have you successfully completed academic education or vocational training in Germany?
  You can request to obtain a settlement permit for skilled workers if you have held a residence permit for two years for employment as a skilled worker (with vocational training or an academic education) or as a researcher, hold a job, have paid compulsory pension insurance contributions for 24 months and have sufficient knowledge of the German language.
• Skilled workers
  You can request to obtain a settlement permit for skilled workers (Niederlassungserlaubnis für Fachkräfte) if you have held a residence title for four years for employment as a skilled worker (with vocational training or an academic education) or as a researcher, hold a job, have paid compulsory pension insurance contributions for 48 months and have sufficient knowledge of the German language.
• Self-employed persons
  If you have already been issued a permit for self-employed work for business purposes (Aufenthaltserlaubnis für eine selbstständige Erwerbstätigkeit), have proven to be successful and are able to earn your livelihood and support your dependants with sufficient income, you may apply for a settlement permit (Niederlassungserlaubnis für Selbständige) after three years. Self-employed persons who do not have a business but work in the liberal professions will have to wait longer before they can apply for a settlement permit, in general up to five years.
• Highly qualified professionals
  In individual cases, highly qualified professionals can receive a settlement permit (Niederlassungserlaubnis für Hochqualifizierte) straight away, without having to spend a set amount of time in Germany first.

“Working and Living in Germany” hotline
Phone hotline +49 30 1815 – 1111
available from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm CET, Monday through Thursday, and Friday from 9:00 am to 12 pm CET

The “Working and Living in Germany” hotline allows you to ask more detailed questions related to your personal situation, going beyond the information that is available from other sources. It is operated jointly by the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) and the Federal Employment Agency (BA). Qualified professionals from abroad interested in immigration as well as companies in Germany will receive advice on any of the following topics:

• Job search, work and careers
• Recognition of foreign vocational qualifications
• Entry and residence
• Learning German

Use this world map to get an overview of contacts and offers of German institutions in your country of residence.
www.make-it-in-germany.com

City of Munich
Foreigners Office
Phone hotline at +49 89 233-96010
online contact form

Munich Foreigners Office (Ausländerbehörde) is based at the District Administration Service (Kreisverwaltungsreferat) at Ruppertstrasse 19. You can see the Foreigners Office for regular visits or emergency cases by appointment only. Please check their English language FAQ website for more information.

Chamber of Commerce and Industry for Munich and Upper Bavaria (IHK)
The local Chamber provides information and initial advice on foreigners law.
Phone hotline at +49 89 5116-0
E-Mail: info@muenchen.ihk.de

For professional legal assistance and consulting please contact a lawyer. Find professionals through search engines or contact your embassy or consulate for a recommendation.

amiga Career Center for Internationals
Phone hotline at +49 89 318809-0
E-Mail: anmeldung@amiga-muenchen.de
amiga supports Internationals seeking employment in Munich to get their career started -whether individual counselling, career trainings or exchanges with companies. amiga is funded by the municipal “Munich Employment and Qualification Program” (MBQ).

Integreat Munich
This online guide for refugees and new immigrants provides information on everyday life, health care, school and daycare attendance, German courses, work, training, housing, free leisure, sports and cultural activities, offers for women, LGBTI+ and people with disabilities in Munich. Content is available in ten languages.

Have you trained for a profession or studied? And would you like to work in your profession in Germany? Recognition is essential in Germany for certain professions. For other professions, professional recognition is voluntary. This also applies to professions for which a higher education qualification is required. When is recognition essential? When is it voluntary? This depends on how your profession is regulated and on your country of origin. You are required to provide certificates as evidence of your professional qualification.

• The anabin plattform provides information on how foreign professional qualifications are evaluated.
• Use the Recognition-Finder to learn how and where you can have your qualification recognized.

Recognition authorities (Anerkennungsstellen)

The recognition procedure is carried out by the so-called competent authority (Anerkennungsstellen). If you want to have your professional qualification recognized, you must submit your application for recognition to the competent authority in Germany. You can find the competent authority in the Recognition-Finder.

Counseling services

You should seek advice before applying for recognition. This is provided in Germany and abroad. You can find your nearest counselling centers by using the online counseling search provided by the information portal of the German government for the recognition of foreign professional qualifications.

“Working and Living in Germany” hotline
Phone hotline +49 30 1815 – 1111
available from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm CET, Monday through Thursday, and Friday from 9:00 am to 12 pm CET

The “Working and Living in Germany” hotline allows you to ask more detailed questions related to your personal situation, going beyond the information that is available from other sources. It is operated jointly by the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) and the Federal Employment Agency (BA). Qualified professionals from abroad interested in immigration as well as companies in Germany will receive advice on any of the following topics:

• Job search, work and careers
• Recognition of foreign vocational qualifications
• Entry and residence
• Learning German

Service Center for Professional Recognition (ZSBA)
Are you still abroad and would like to apply for recognition from there? The Service Center for Professional Recognition will advise and support you during the recognition procedure. The ZSBA expands on the initial guidance provided by the hotline “Working and Living in Germany”. Contact the ZSBA by email at  recognition@arbeitsagentur.de

Do you already live in the Munich region?

Advisory Service for Recognition of Foreign Qualifications by the City of Munich

If you have a foreign qualification and live in the Munich area, you may contact the municipal Advisory Service for Recognition of Foreign Qualifications. If you would like to ask for an appointment, please submit their completed consultation form. Please note that there might be longer waiting periods.

IHK Foreign Skills Approval (IHK FOSA)

IHK Foreign Skills Approval (IHK FOSA)  is the German center for the evaluation and recognition of foreign vocational qualifications within the area of the chambers of industry and commerce (IHKs). IHK FOSA accepts applications that refer to professions within the area of the chambers of industry and commerce, conducts the proceedings and issues official and legally binding certificates of equal standing. The local Chamber of Commerce and Industry (IHK) offers an initial consultation with regard to the submission of applications, the process, costs and the duration. For Munich and Upper Bavaria contact IHK für München und Oberbayern by phone at +49 89 5116-0 or by email to berufsanerkennung@muenchen.ihk.de

Handwerkskammer für München und Oberbayern (HWK)
Chamber of Skilled Crafts

Do you have a foreign professional qualification for a skilled trade? Please contact the Chamber of Skilled Crafts (Handwerkskammer). For Munich and Upper Bavaria contact „Handwerkskammer für München und Oberbayern (HWK)“. HWK will inform you to what extent your foreign professional qualification is comparable to a German professional qualification. You may file the assessment of equivalence application following the consultation. Contact HWK by phone at +49 89 5119-264 or by email at berufsanerkennung@hwk-muenchen.de to arrange a meeting. Download their leaflet (PDF, 7,3 MB) to learn more about the documents you need to provide for the consultation and the next steps.

Chambers and Associations for liberal professions
For certain professions you must prove your qualification or expertise. This applies in particular to liberal professions such as doctors, architects, experts and the like. Here is a list of relevant professions in Bavaria that require a license, a permit, admission and other obligations. This includes liberal professions as well as other activities.