Applying for a settlement permit for holders of a residence permit granted on grounds of international law, humanitarian or political reasons

• You must apply for a settlement permit before your current residence permit expires.
• Find out whether your foreigners authority allows you to apply online or has a special application form.
• If the application can only be submitted in person, make an appointment at the Foreigners' Registration Office. If you apply online, the Foreigners' Registration Office will contact you after receiving your application to arrange an appointment.
• During the appointment, your identity and documents will be checked (please bring your documents to the appointment, preferably in the original).
• If your application is approved, your fingerprints will be taken so that your settlement permit can be issued in the form of a new electronic residence permit (eAT card).
• The foreigners authority orders the production of the eAT card from Bundesdruckerei. After completion, you will receive information and can collect the eAT card from the relevant office. The eAT card must always be collected in person.
• If your application is rejected, you will receive a rejection notice.

Immigration office

• You hold a valid residence permit on grounds of international law, humanitarian or political reasons (see Section 5 of the Residence Act)
• You have held a residence permit for at least five years (the period spent undergoing asylum proceedings is included in this calculation).
• You and your spouse or registered partner are able to support yourselves (including health insurance) and the family members living in your household without having to rely on state benefits.
  Please note: Your living expenses may also be covered by third parties (for example, spouses, registered partners or parents). You are not required to cover your
  own living expenses if you have an illness or disability that prevents you from doing so.
• You have made compulsory or voluntary contributions to the statutory pension scheme for at least 60 months, or have paid premiums to be entitled to comparable benefits from an insurance company. Please
  note: In the case of a marriage or registered civil partnership, it is sufficient for your partner to meet this requirement.
  This requirement does not need to be met if an illness or disability prevents you from doing so.
• You hold a permanent work permit and, if you work in a regulated profession, the necessary professional licence (for example, a medical licence or professional authorisation).
  Please note: If you are married or in a registered civil partnership, it is sufficient for your partner to hold the relevant licences.
• You have a sufficient command of German (level B1). If you were not entitled to attend an integration course or were not obliged to do so, a basic knowledge of German at level A1 is sufficient.
  Please note: You are not required to meet these language requirements if you have an illness, disability or other circumstances that make learning the language permanently impossible or unreasonable.
• You have a basic understanding of the German legal system and social order. Please
  note: You are not required to provide evidence of this knowledge if you have an illness, a disability or other reasons that make it permanently impossible or unreasonable for you to acquire such knowledge.
• You have sufficient living space (for yourself and your family).
• You do not hold a humanitarian residence permit under
  • Section 24 (Granting of residence for the purposes of temporary protection),
  • Section 25(4), first sentence (residence permit on urgent personal or humanitarian grounds),
  • § 25(4a), first sentence, or § 25(4b), first sentence (residence permit for certain victims of criminal offences) or
  • Section 104a(1), first sentence (temporary residence permit)
    of the Residence Act (no settlement permit may be granted to holders of such a permit).
• They have no previous convictions.
• There are no grounds for deportation against you

• Recognised and valid identity document (e.g. passport or passport substitute)
• Current biometric photo in passport format (45 x 35 mm)
• Evidence of a secure means of support (for example, proof of income, an employment contract, a pension notice, proof of receipt of benefits such as parental allowance or child benefit, maintenance payments) or evidence of an illness or disability that prevents the individual from securing their own means of support (for example, through a specialist medical report or proof of residential care).
• Proof of health insurance cover (for example, a confirmation of cover from your health insurance provider or an insurance policy)
• Proof of contributions made towards a pension scheme (for example, a pension statement from the German Pension Insurance Scheme or proof of entitlement to comparable benefits from another insurance or pension provider) or proof of an illness or disability that prevents the individual from making their own pension provisions (for example, by means of a specialist medical report or proof of placement in a care home).
• Professional authorisation (e.g. licence to practise, professional licence) for the pursuit of a regulated profession
• Proof of proficiency in the German language at level A1 or B1 of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (for example, a language certificate, German school, vocational training or higher education qualifications, or evidence of successful completion of an integration course) or proof of a medical condition, disability or other reasons that make learning the language permanently impossible or unreasonable (for example, a specialist medical report or proof of residential care).Proof of a basic understanding of the legal and social system in Germany (for example, a certificate or confirmation of successful completion of an integration course) or proof of an illness, disability or other reasons that make learning the language impossible or unreasonable in the long term (for example, by means of a specialist medical report or proof of residential care).
• Evidence of a basic understanding of the legal and social system in Germany (for example, a certificate or confirmation of successful completion of an integration course) or evidence of an illness, disability or other reasons that make learning the language permanently impossible or unreasonable (for example, by means of a specialist medical report or proof of residential care).
• Proof of adequate living space (tenancy agreement or property purchase contract stating the floor area)
• If there was an obligation to attend the integration course: a certificate confirming successful completion of the integration course

The documents and information must always be submitted in German. In individual cases, the foreigners authority may require less or further evidence.

• Section 52(3)(1) of the Residence Regulation

• Section 26(3) of the Residence Act (AufenthG)
• Section 9(2), first sentence, points 2 and 4 to 6, 8 and 9, and sentences 2 to 4 and 6 of the Residence Act (AufenthG)

• Appeal against the decision of the Immigration Authority
• Action before the court named in the notice of objection if the objection is not upheld

Informal application possible: Yes

Personal appearance required: Yes

• The granting of a settlement permit is at the discretion of the relevant immigration authority. Applicants are therefore only entitled to a decision that is free from errors of discretion.

• Minors and young adults who were granted a residence permit as a person entitled to asylum or a recognised refugee before reaching the age of 18 should find out about the service ‘Granting of a settlement permit for minor children’. This settlement permit is granted on a different legal basis, subject to less stringent conditions, from the age of 16 (Section 35 of the Residence Act).
  Please note: It is not sufficient to have entered the country as a minor and to have been in the middle of an ongoing asylum procedure upon reaching the age of majority.
• The proceedings are usually conducted in German.
• A settlement permit may lapse if you stay outside Germany for more than six months, unless this stay abroad has been agreed in advance with the Immigration Authority.
• Holders of a residence permit as persons entitled to asylum or recognised refugees (including resettled refugees) may, in principle, also obtain a settlement permit under this provision; however, a settlement permit under Section 26(3) of the Residence Act will generally be more favourable in such cases. Those affected are advised to find out more about the service ‘Granting of a settlement permit to holders of a residence permit as recognised persons entitled to asylum and refugees’.
• All information provided to the Immigration Office should be correct and complete to the best of your knowledge and belief so that the request can be processed without major delays.
• Incorrect or incomplete information can slow down the procedure and be detrimental to the person concerned. In serious cases, incorrect or incomplete information that is not completed or corrected in good time vis-à-vis the immigration authority can result in the cancellation of residence rights that have already been granted, a fine, a prison sentence of up to three years or expulsion from the federal territory.
• Due to the complexity of residence law, this description is for information purposes only and is not legally binding.