Do I need a student visa for Germany?

Basically, every foreigner who wants to work or study in Germany needs a visa.

Exceptions are:

Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Great Britain, Ireland, Iceland, Italy, Croatia, Latvia, Lithuania, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Austria, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Sweden, the Slovakia, Switzerland, Slovenia, Spain, Czech Republic, Hungary and Cyprus.

If you come from one of these countries, you do not need a visa to study in Germany, but you are still required to obtain a residence permit.

If you come from Australia, Israel, Japan, Canada, New Zealand, South Korea, the United States of America, El Salvador, Honduras, Monaco or San Marino you have to ask for a residence permit, but you can do it after your entry.

People coming from all other countries require a visa and are obliged to apply for it before their arrival.

A visa is generally valid for up to three months but can be easily converted into a residence permit after the application has been filed in the residence office.

A visa costs 60 euros and you have to take into consideration the visa process time, which could last several months.

For more information about the visa, please visit: Federal foreign office germany

Schengen Visa

The Schengen visa is a visa issued to people wishing to circulate in the Schengen area. The Schengen area includes not only EU countries, but also Switzerland, Iceland, and Norway. he Schengen area covers 26 countries. If your country belongs to the Schengen area, you do not need a visa. It is only required if you are planning to study, work, or live in one of the Schengen countries for more than 90 days then you must apply for a national visa of that European country.

Further information on the Schengen visa can be found on Schengen Visa Information

Am I allowed to work in Germany?

All citizens of the European Union, Iceland, Lichtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland have unrestricted access to the German labour market.

All citizens with a different nationality require a visa to work, which is converted into a residence permit in Germany. Depending on the country of origin there are different conditions for jobseekers.

More information is available on “Agentur für Arbeit”