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EU Blue Card: newcomer guide (Blaue Karte EU, §18g AufenthG)

For university graduates with a qualifying job offer in Germany. See what's typically required and how to apply, step by step.

Checked 6 Nov 202615 official sources6 not yet confirmed

Your local offices

City not listed? Find your Bürgeramt with the federal service search and your Ausländerbehörde with BAMF-NAvI, or see the guide for your state.

General information summarised from official sources. Rules change and the authorities make every decision. Check with your Ausländerbehörde or a qualified adviser.

This guide is general information, and it does not promise any outcome. Check with your local Ausländerbehörde before acting. Rules and figures change, so confirm them with the competent authority (German mission abroad or your local Ausländerbehörde).
Your local office: documents, fees, booking and waiting times are set by each Ausländerbehörde and differ from city to city. Pick your situation and city in the step finder to get a direct link to your own office, or see the local office guide for your state. You can also find your office with BAMF-NAvI or the federal service finder.

Sources key (all checked 2026-11-04):

1. What it is

A residence title for academics and people with comparable qualifications who take up qualified employment in Germany (MIG, checked 2026-11-04). Legal basis: §18g AufenthG (§18g, checked 2026-11-04).

2. Who qualifies

  • Qualification: a German degree, a recognised foreign degree, or a foreign degree comparable to a German one. Alternatively, a tertiary programme equivalent to a degree that took at least 3 years and corresponds to at least ISCED 2011 / EQF level 6 (§18g Abs. 1 S. 5; MIG, checked 2026-11-04).
  • Job: a concrete job offer or contract in Germany lasting at least 6 months (§18g Abs. 3, checked 2026-11-04). The job must match your qualification (§18g Abs. 1; MIG, checked 2026-11-04). The employer must have a place of business in Germany Not yet confirmed.
  • Licence to practise (regulated professions, e.g. medicine): must already exist, or be in prospect, when you apply for the visa (MIG, checked 2026-11-04).
  • Health insurance: statutory German insurance or comparable private cover. Foreign insurance is generally not enough Not yet confirmed.
  • No security or public-order concerns. Even fines can block issuance, and an open criminal investigation stops processing Not yet confirmed.

3. 2026 salary thresholds

The law sets thresholds as 50% (standard) or 45.3% (reduced) of the annual pension contribution ceiling. The Federal Interior Ministry publishes the figures each year (§18g Abs. 1, 7, checked 2026-11-04).

Category2026 gross / year2026 gross / monthBA approval?
Standard€50,700.00€4,225.00No
Shortage occupation (ISCO groups 132, 133, 134, 21, 221, 222, 225, 226, 23, 25)€45,934.20€3,827.85Yes
New entrant (degree earned no more than 3 years before applying), any occupation€45,934.20€3,827.85Yes

Sources: MIG; §18g Abs. 1, all checked 2026-11-04. Bonuses and other fully variable payments do not count toward the threshold Not yet confirmed. On renewal, the reduced threshold still applies if your degree is no more than 3 years old, or if fewer than 24 months have passed since a first new-entrant Blue Card was issued (§18g Abs. 6, checked 2026-11-04).

4. Degree recognition (anabin / ZAB)

You can check whether your foreign degree is recognised in the anabin database. If anabin has not rated your degree, get a statement of comparability (Zeugnisbewertung) from the ZAB (Zentralstelle für ausländisches Bildungswesen). This costs extra Not yet confirmed.

5. IT specialists without a degree

ICT managers and specialists (ISCO-08 groups 133 or 25) can get a Blue Card without a degree if all of the following apply (§18g Abs. 2; MIG, checked 2026-11-04):

  • salary of at least 45.3% of the contribution ceiling, which is €45,934.20 in 2026 (MIG, checked 2026-11-04)
  • at least 3 years of relevant professional experience within the last 7 years, at a level comparable to a degree
  • a job of at least 6 months
  • Federal Employment Agency (BA) approval

Documents, fees and steps at your local office

Each Ausländerbehörde publishes its own document checklist, fees and booking or online-application process, so this guide doesn't copy one city's list. Pick your situation and city in the step finder for a direct link to your office's page, or open the local office guide for your state. Fees for residence permits are set nationwide in § 45 AufenthV; your office tells you the exact amount.

7. Applying from abroad (embassy / consulate)

  • Whether you need a visa to enter depends on your nationality. Visa-free nationals may not take up gainful employment during a visa-free stay (AA footnote 1, checked 2026-11-04). Citizens of Australia, Israel, Japan, Canada, the Republic of Korea, New Zealand, the UK and the USA may enter visa-free and apply for a residence permit in Germany (§41 Abs. 1 AufenthV, checked 2026-11-06). Swiss citizens have free movement and don't need a Blue Card.
  • You can apply online via the Federal Foreign Office's Consular Services Portal (MIG, checked 2026-11-04). The responsible German mission abroad issues the visa (glossary in MIG, checked 2026-11-04).
  • BA approval is needed for the shortage-occupation, new-entrant and IT-without-degree routes (MIG; §18g, checked 2026-11-04).
  • National (D) visa fee: generally €75, €37.50 for minors (AA visa fees; §46(2) AufenthV, checked 2026-11-04). Your mission confirms the fee for your case.
  • Embassy wait times vary; check your German mission's website.

10. Processing times

  • Embassy visa processing times vary; check your German mission's website.

11. Validity — ⚠️ sources conflict Sources conflict

  • Maximum validity of 4 years: MIG (checked 2026-11-04).
  • Fixed-term contracts: the law says the card runs for the contract (or BA-approval) period "zuzüglich sechs Monate" — plus 6 months, capped at 4 years (§18 Abs. 4 AufenthG); MIG also says plus six months (checked 2026-11-04). Confirm with your Ausländerbehörde which period it will grant you.

12. Family reunification

  • Spouses of Blue Card holders are entitled to a residence permit (§30 Abs. 1 S. 1 Nr. 3 g). They do not need to prove basic German before arrival (§30 Abs. 1 S. 3 Nr. 5). Both spouses must generally be at least 18 (§30, checked 2026-11-04).
  • If your spouse or children are third-country nationals, they need a family-reunification residence permit. The mission abroad or the Ausländerbehörde explains the procedure (MIG-FAM, checked 2026-11-04).
  • Family members who come for family reunification may work (BAMF, checked 2026-11-04). Children aged 16+ of Blue Card holders are exempt from the German-language condition (§32 Abs. 2, checked 2026-11-04).

13. Changing jobs

  • You do not need the Ausländerbehörde's permission to change jobs. During the first 12 months of employment, the authority may suspend the change for 30 days and refuse it within that time if the Blue Card conditions are not met (§18g Abs. 4, checked 2026-11-04).
  • MIG says you must notify the Ausländerbehörde of a job change in the first year. If the new job doesn't meet the requirements, you may get a different permit instead (checked 2026-11-04).
  • After 1 year in the job, any employment is allowed without informing the authority or changing the card Not yet confirmed.

14. Path to permanent settlement (Niederlassungserlaubnis)

Under §18c Abs. 2 (§18c; MIG, checked 2026-11-04):

  • 27 months of Blue Card employment with pension contributions (or comparable provision) for that period, plus basic German (A1) and the general conditions of §9 Abs. 2
  • 21 months with sufficient German (B1)

Your eligibility is always decided case by case. This guide cannot promise a result.

Waiting times and checklists

Embassy and Ausländerbehörde wait times and embassy checklists vary. Check the relevant website.

Sources

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