Residence Permit

If you are not a national of an EU member country or an EEA country and are residing in Germany for more than 3 months, you are required to apply for a residence permit (if your visa does not cover the entire period of your stay). This applies to anyone with a visa that expires after 3 months as well as anyone who does not require a visa to enter Germany. You are required to apply for your residence permit within the first 3 months after your arrival directly from the Berlin Immigration Office (Landesamt für Einwanderung - LEA).
 
The International Student Counseling team at TU Berlin will be happy to answer any questions you have, including about residence permits. You can drop by during office hours or send an email to binstud(at)international.tu-berlin.de.

Students are required to apply for a student residence permit. To do so, you need the following documents:

• Valid passport

• 1 recent biometric photograph
  35mm x 45mm, frontal shot with neutral facial expression and closed mouth looking straight into camera, bright background

• For your first application only: “Application for a Visa or Residence Permit” (multi-lingual form)

• Proof of financing (proof of how you will finance your stay in Germany)

• For the first issue of a residence permit: blocked account at a German bank for 10,872.00 euros / declaration of commitment on official form / scholarship certificate / notarized declaration by parents to secure your livelihood for the duration of studies with proof of your parents' income in the last six months

• When extending a residence permit: bank statements covering the previous six months

• Health insurance
  Proof of sufficient financing also requires adequate health insurance. In Germany, this is fully covered by statutory health insurance. If you are privately insured, the type and scope of your health insurance are important. Please refer to the fact sheet for further details.

• Certificate of enrollment or conditional admission (downloaded from your tuPORT account)

• Proof of residence in Berlin

• Proof of registration (certificate of registration)
  
  or

• Rental contract and confirmation of having moved in from your landlord

As a visiting scholar you additionally require the following documents:

• Work contract or hosting agreement from TU Berlin

IMPORTANT: Book an APPOINTMENT in good time to apply for a residence permit or to extend your residence permit!

NOTE: Should it be absolutely impossible for you to set up an appointment online you can also apply via email. More info is available here.