Welcome
Visa for job seekers
The visa enables skilled workers who have a recognized university or vocational training qualification to travel to Germany for a maximum of 180 days to look for a job that matches their qualifications.
General Information
To apply, you must meet the following requirements:
- An academic or vocational training qualification recognized in Germany
- sufficient means of subsistence (currently approximately EUR 1027,40 net, deviations possible in individual cases) for the duration of the intended stay determined on a case to case basis
The official website of the Federal Government of Germany Make it in Germany contains a lot of helpful information about working and living in Germany.
Required Documents
Section 20 (1) (2) of the Residence Act (AufenthG)
To apply, you will need the following original documents plus one set of copies to present at your appointment at the Embassy. We highly recommend to use the information sheet as a checklist and bring it as a print out for your appointment. Please pay attention that all Tanzanian documents issued by an authority of the state needs to be Legalizations
Please sort the individual sets in the order listed below.
Information Sheet
In your application form (VIDEX) you enter all the information about your entry and your stay in Germany. You must complete this form and print it out once, sign and date it.
If you are a minor, your legal representatives must sign the application and declare their consent.
A recent biometric photo (3.5 x 4.5 cm with a light background)
Information on biometric photos can be found here
Your passport must be signed and valid for at least one year from the date your visa is issued.
Please note that the document must still have at least two blank pages (if the decision is positive, your visa will be affixed here later).
Do you not have Tanzanian citizenship?
If you are not a Tanzanian citizen, please provide us with your Tanzanian residence permit.
Proof of your residence in Tanzania can be, for example, a copy of your electricity bill, water bill or gas bill.or a rent contract.
For non- Tanzanian nationals: Tanzanian residence permit
This document can be, for example, the degree certificate of your degree program. If you obtained your degree at a university outside Germany, the degree and the university must be recognized.
Therefore, in a first step you need to receive an official Certificate of evaluation:
Please proceed via the Recognition Portal
Further information can be found in the section “Recognition of the university degree ” and “Recognition of the university”.
Please note that a legalisation is required to use Tanzanian documents. This confirms to the domestic authorities that the document was actually issued by an official Tanzanian authority.
Further information on legalisations.
For university degrees: For a pre-checkyou can use the anabin database to check whether your university degree is recognized in Germany. The anabin assessment of your university degree must be “Equivalent” or “Equivalent”. Print out the search result in the database and bring print out with you.
Should it seem as if you are eligible, please proceed to the website of the Service Centre for Professional Recognition in order to obtain and provide the ‘Statement of Comparability’ Are you unable to meet this requirement? Please contact the German authority responsible for the recognition of foreign qualifications: KMK
If you do not have an academic degree but have completed vocational training, please submit a Statement of Comparability for Vocational Qualification.
The Service Centre for Professional Recognition can help you further.
Should you come as a skilled worker with vocational training as qualification you will need to provide proof of your German language skills (at least level of B1).
Letter of motivation in German (alternatively in English) with details of the planned job search (sector, region, planned location/accommodation etc.)
Your letter of motivation should additionally contain information where you will reside and be accommodated during your stay.
Proof of communication with companies and invitation for an interview is not mandatory, however we highly recommend to provide such documents should they exist.
Curriculum Vitae
Please provide us with your CV in English or German. Please use the Europass format.
Information on the Europass format: Europass.
e.g. hotel booking, signed letter of invitation, etc. is not mandatory to be provided. However, it would be very helpful to submit should you be in a position to do so.
These must amount to at least € 1,027 net per month, to be proven by a blocked account or a formal letter of obligation (‚Verpflichtungserklärung‘) issued by the Alien’s authority where the guarantor resides as well as contain proof of financing to be able to return to Tanzania. Concerning the formal letter of obligation, it is essential that it contains ‘Arbeitsplatzsuche/Job Seeker’ as reason for reason of stay. Furthermore, it has to be established that ‘Bonität nachgewiesen’/Finances proven. It is not sufficient to confirm that ‘financing is believable’/Bonität glaubhaft gemacht.
In the case of financing in the form of a blocked account: Open the blocked account in good time BEFORE applying for a visa. When applying for a visa, only the official opening confirmation stating the total amount paid in and the monthly amount available will be accepted. A confirmation without stating these amounts is not sufficient. The deposit or transfer receipt without the bank confirmation is not sufficient.
Should you be able to receive financing during trial work of 10 hours per week or receive other means of income this could also be regarded as proof of sufficient means of subsistence.
Travel health insurance with a minimum cover of EUR 30,000 or USD 50,000, valid from the day of departure and for the entire validity of the visa (six months).
This document is only required for practicing a profession regulated in Germany, e.g. in the fields of medicine and law. You will receive this document from the relevant recognition body in Germany. Please visit the information portal ”Recognition in Germany“ to find out whether your profession is regulated.
If you are older than 45 and your annual gross salary is not at least EUR 4 152.50 per month / EUR 49 830 per year (2024), please provide proof of pension provision
You can submit various types of assets as proof of additional pension provision. These include statutory, state-regulated pension insurance policies, entitlements already acquired from private pension or life insurance policies, real estate and other assets.
In certain cases, additional documents may be required.
Processing time:
Due to the regular need for approval from the authorities in Germany, you should generally allow eight weeks for your visa application to be processed (calculated from the time you submit the complete application documents to the diplomatic mission abroad).
Please do not request a status update – these will not be answered but ignored.
Fees
Appointments
Appointments are made via an online system. It is not possible to make an appointment by telephone. You can find all information here