Residence permit (incl. EU Blue Card) in Munich

What it is

If you are not an EU/EEA/Swiss citizen you need a residence title to stay in Germany beyond a short visit. Usually you enter with a national visa and then apply for the residence permit or EU Blue Card at the foreigners' authority of your place of residence before the visa expires. Citizens of some countries (e.g. Australia, Canada, Japan, the UK, the USA) may enter without a visa and apply within 90 days. Federal law sets the conditions and the fees; offices, appointments and processing are run by each city.

Who:Non-EU/EEA/Swiss nationals who want to live, work or study in Germany, e.g. skilled workers with vocational or academic training, holders of a university degree with a qualifying job offer (EU Blue Card), students and family members.

Documents

As listed by München:

• Completed application form (Antrag auf Erteilung eines Aufenthaltstitels) Source: stadt.muenchen.de · as of 13 Nov 2026
• Valid passport or passport substitute (gültiger Pass oder Passersatz) Source: stadt.muenchen.de · as of 13 Nov 2026
• Entry visa for qualified employment and entry stamp, if required (first application only) (Einreisevisum) Source: stadt.muenchen.de · as of 13 Nov 2026
• Recent biometric photo, sent digitally by a certified photo studio or drugstore (or taken at the office's photo terminal for a fee) (biometrisches Lichtbild) Source: stadt.muenchen.de · as of 13 Nov 2026
• Employment contract or concrete job offer, plus the completed employment declaration (Erklärung zum Beschäftigungsverhältnis) and the "Versicherung zur Ausübung der Beschäftigung" (Arbeitsvertrag oder konkretes Arbeitsplatzangebot; Erklärung zum Beschäftigungsverhältnis; Versicherung zur Ausübung der Beschäftigung) Source: stadt.muenchen.de · as of 13 Nov 2026
• First application: university degree (with certified translation and anabin or ZAB evaluation) or a recognised tertiary qualification; IT specialists without a degree: at least 3 years of IT experience in the last 7 years plus CV (Hochschulabschluss (anabin/ZAB) bzw. IT-Berufserfahrung und Lebenslauf) Source: stadt.muenchen.de · as of 13 Nov 2026
• Professional licence, if your profession is regulated (Berufsausübungserlaubnis) Source: stadt.muenchen.de · as of 13 Nov 2026
• Extensions: payslips for the first two and the last two months (Gehaltsabrechnungen) Source: stadt.muenchen.de · as of 13 Nov 2026

Good to know in Munich

• By appointment only. You apply online first and receive an appointment after your application has been reviewed. Upload documents as PDFs. (Nur mit Termin) Source: stadt.muenchen.de · as of 13 Nov 2026
• After applying online you receive a confirmation (PDF) that your current residence status stays valid beyond its expiry date and you may keep working under the same conditions. Source: stadt.muenchen.de · as of 13 Nov 2026
• Processing can take up to 7 months. (Bis zu 7 Monate) Source: stadt.muenchen.de · as of 13 Nov 2026
• Salary threshold for 2026 as stated by the city: at least 50,700 euros gross per year; 45,934.20 euros in limited cases (shortage occupations or recent graduates within 3 years). Thresholds can change yearly. Source: stadt.muenchen.de · as of 13 Nov 2026
• In the first 12 months you must report a change of job to the immigration office. Source: stadt.muenchen.de · as of 13 Nov 2026

Steps

1. In most cases, apply for a national visa for your purpose (e.g. employment) at the German mission abroad and enter Germany with it. (Als eine außerhalb der EU lebende Person benötigen Sie in der Regel ein Visum zum Zweck der Erwerbstätigkeit, das von der zuständigen deutschen Auslandsvertretung ausgestellt wird.) Source: bamf.de · as of 13 Nov 2026
2. After entry, apply for the residence permit or EU Blue Card at the foreigners' authority (Ausländerbehörde) of your place of residence before your visa expires. A residence title is only issued on application. (Anschließend müssen Sie vor Ablauf des Visums bei der örtlichen Ausländerbehörde die Blaue Karte EU beantragen.) § 81 Abs. 1 AufenthG · Source: bamf.de · as of 13 Nov 2026
3. Citizens of Australia, Israel, Japan, Canada, South Korea, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the USA may enter without a visa, also for a longer stay, and obtain the residence title in Germany; they must apply within 90 days of entry. Citizens of Andorra, Brazil, El Salvador, Honduras, Monaco and San Marino may do the same only if they do not want to work (apart from certain activities listed in § 17 Abs. 2 AufenthV). (können auch für einen Aufenthalt, der kein Kurzaufenthalt ist, visumfrei in das Bundesgebiet einreisen und sich darin aufhalten. Ein erforderlicher Aufenthaltstitel kann im Bundesgebiet eingeholt werden.) § 41 Abs. 1 bis 3 AufenthV · Source: gesetze-im-internet.de · as of 13 Nov 2026
4. To extend your permit or switch to another one, apply before your current permit expires: your current permit then continues to be valid until the authority decides (does not apply to a Schengen visa). (Beantragt ein Ausländer vor Ablauf seines Aufenthaltstitels dessen Verlängerung oder die Erteilung eines anderen Aufenthaltstitels, gilt der bisherige Aufenthaltstitel vom Zeitpunkt seines Ablaufs bis zur Entscheidung der Ausländerbehörde als fortbestehend.) § 81 Abs. 4 AufenthG · Source: gesetze-im-internet.de · as of 13 Nov 2026

Rules that apply everywhere

• EU Blue Card: for a skilled worker with academic training in a job matching their qualification, the gross salary must be at least 50 percent of the annual contribution ceiling of the general pension insurance; no approval of the Federal Employment Agency is needed. (wenn sie ein Gehalt in Höhe von mindestens 50 Prozent der jährlichen Beitragsbemessungsgrenze in der allgemeinen Rentenversicherung erhält) § 18g Abs. 1 Satz 1 AufenthG · Source: gesetze-im-internet.de · as of 13 Nov 2026
• Lower EU Blue Card threshold of at least 45.3 percent of that ceiling (with approval of the Federal Employment Agency) for shortage occupations listed in the law (ISCO-08 groups 132, 133, 134, 21, 221, 222, 225, 226, 23, 25) and for people who obtained their degree no more than three years before applying. (wenn die Höhe des Gehalts mindestens 45,3 Prozent der jährlichen Beitragsbemessungsgrenze in der allgemeinen Rentenversicherung beträgt) § 18g Abs. 1 Satz 2 AufenthG · Source: gesetze-im-internet.de · as of 13 Nov 2026
• IT specialists (ISCO-08 groups 133 or 25) without a degree can get an EU Blue Card with at least three years of relevant professional experience gained in the last seven years and a salary of at least 45.3 percent of the ceiling (with approval of the Federal Employment Agency). (die auf einer in den letzten sieben Jahren erworbenen, mindestens dreijährigen Berufserfahrung ... beruhen) § 18g Abs. 2 AufenthG · Source: gesetze-im-internet.de · as of 13 Nov 2026
• The exact minimum salaries in euros for each calendar year are published by the Federal Ministry of the Interior in the Federal Gazette (Bundesanzeiger) by 31 December of the previous year. (Das Bundesministerium des Innern und für Heimat gibt die Mindestgehälter nach den Absätzen 1 und 2 für jedes Kalenderjahr jeweils bis zum 31. Dezember des Vorjahres im Bundesanzeiger bekannt.) § 18g Abs. 7 AufenthG · Source: gesetze-im-internet.de · as of 13 Nov 2026
• An EU Blue Card requires a concrete job offer for at least six months. (dass das konkrete Arbeitsplatzangebot ... eine Beschäftigungsdauer von mindestens sechs Monaten vorsieht) § 18g Abs. 3 AufenthG · Source: gesetze-im-internet.de · as of 13 Nov 2026
• EU Blue Card holders do not need permission from the foreigners' authority to change jobs. During the first twelve months of employment, the authority can suspend a job change for 30 days and refuse it within that period if the Blue Card conditions are not met. (In den ersten zwölf Monaten der Beschäftigung kann die zuständige Ausländerbehörde den Arbeitsplatzwechsel des Inhabers einer Blauen Karte EU für 30 Tage aussetzen) § 18g Abs. 4 AufenthG · Source: gesetze-im-internet.de · as of 13 Nov 2026
• According to BAMF, the EU Blue Card is generally issued for four years; if the employment contract is shorter, for the length of the contract plus three months. (Die Blaue Karte EU ist ein befristeter Aufenthaltstitel, der grundsätzlich für die Dauer von vier Jahren erteilt wird. Beträgt die Dauer des Arbeitsvertrages weniger als vier Jahre, wird die Blaue Karte EU für die Dauer des Arbeitsvertrages zuzüglich von drei Monaten erteilt.) Source: bamf.de · as of 13 Nov 2026
• According to BAMF, a person who has held an EU Blue Card in another EU member state for at least 12 months may enter Germany without a visa and must apply for the German EU Blue Card within one month of entry. (Die Blaue Karte EU in Deutschland muss innerhalb eines Monats nach der Einreise bei der für Ihren Wohnort zuständigen Ausländerbehörde beantragt werden.) Source: bamf.de · as of 13 Nov 2026
• For a child born in Germany who is not automatically granted a residence title, the application must be made within six months of birth. (Für ein im Bundesgebiet geborenes Kind, dem nicht von Amts wegen ein Aufenthaltstitel zu erteilen ist, ist der Antrag innerhalb von sechs Monaten nach der Geburt zu stellen.) § 81 Abs. 2 Satz 2 AufenthG · Source: gesetze-im-internet.de · as of 13 Nov 2026

Legal basis

• § 18a AufenthG: Skilled workers with vocational training get a residence permit to take up any qualified employmentas of 13 Nov 2026
• § 18b AufenthG: Skilled workers with academic training get a residence permit to take up any qualified employmentas of 13 Nov 2026
• § 18g AufenthG: EU Blue Card: conditions, salary thresholds (as a percentage of the pension insurance contribution ceiling), job offer of at least six months, job changesas of 13 Nov 2026
• § 81 AufenthG: Applying for a residence title; when to apply after entry; current permit continues if you apply for extension in timeas of 13 Nov 2026
• § 41 AufenthV: Citizens of certain countries may enter visa-free and apply for the residence title in Germany within 90 daysas of 13 Nov 2026
• § 45 AufenthV: Fees for residence permits, EU Blue Cards and ICT Cardsas of 13 Nov 2026

FIM/LeiKa service key 99010038001000 (Blaue Karte EU beantragen), source.

German terms you will see

Aufenthaltstitel

Residence title (generic term for visa, residence permit, Blue Card, settlement permit)

Aufenthaltserlaubnis

Temporary residence permit

Blaue Karte EU

EU Blue Card, residence permit for highly qualified workers

Ausländerbehörde

Foreigners' authority (immigration office) of your city or district

Fachkraft

Skilled worker (with recognised vocational or academic qualification)

Beitragsbemessungsgrenze

Contribution ceiling of the statutory pension insurance; Blue Card salary thresholds are a percentage of it

Bundesagentur für Arbeit

Federal Employment Agency (must approve some permits)

Auslandsvertretung

German embassy or consulate abroad

Fiktionswirkung / Fortgeltung

Your current permit continues to count as valid while a timely extension application is pending

Zweckwechsel

Change of the purpose of stay (e.g. from studies to work)

Compare

Residence permit (incl. EU Blue Card): nationwide rules and all cities compared · Everything for Munich (München) · First-30-days checklist

• Berlin
• Hamburg
• Frankfurt am Main
• Cologne
• Stuttgart
• Düsseldorf