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Germany job search visa: how long the Opportunity Card (Chancenkarte) takes, what it costs, and whether it leads to permanent residence
Work Permit
Job-search residence for up to 12 months
Section 20a job-search residence title for up to 12 months. Either a qualification recognised in Germany, or a formal qualification plus at least 6 points. Not settlement; after a qualified job you switch to another title.
Source: Federal Government (Make it in Germany) · verified 2026-08-15
Does Opportunity Card (Chancenkarte) lead to permanent residence?
- Residency
Temporary — not a permanent-residence route on its own
Source: Federal Government (Make it in Germany) · verified 2026-08-15
Do you need a job offer for Opportunity Card (Chancenkarte)?
- Job offer
Not required
Source: Federal Government (Make it in Germany) · verified 2026-08-15
What education does Opportunity Card (Chancenkarte) require?
- Education
Option 1 accepts a fully recognised vocational or academic qualification, including a German non-academic vocational qualification. Option 2 requires a state-recognised vocational or academic qualification (vocational training at least two years), not specifically a bachelor's degree. Previous stored value 'bachelor' was too narrow and has been removed.
Source: Federal Government (Make it in Germany) · verified 2026-08-15
Needs review — the stored record is incomplete
How much money do you have to show for Opportunity Card (Chancenkarte)?
- Funds
From EUR 1,091
Blocked account with a minimum of EUR 1,091 net per month, amount applicable in 2026, or a declaration of commitment. A part-time job of at least EUR 1,091 net per month can also meet the requirement.
Source: Federal Government (Make it in Germany) · verified 2026-09-21
How many points do you need for Opportunity Card (Chancenkarte)?
- Points
At least 6
Source: Federal Government (Make it in Germany) · verified 2026-09-21
How much does Opportunity Card (Chancenkarte) cost to apply for?
- Application fee
EUR 75
National visa fee EUR 75 (Federal Foreign Office / AufenthV § 46). After arrival, issuing a residence permit is a separate AufenthV § 45 charge of EUR 100. Do not treat 75 as the total of visa plus permit.
Source: Federal Foreign Office · verified 2026-08-15
How long does Opportunity Card (Chancenkarte) take to process?
- Processing time
No commitment to a processing time
Open the authority's page for this fact
Source: Federal Foreign Office · verified 2026-08-15
We tell you when we re-read a route you follow, in the note from that check, with the official link.
What does Federal Government (Make it in Germany) actually require?
Quoted from the pages named beside each rule, not paraphrased.
- Age
Age awards points at the time of the visa application: two points if you are no older than 35 (until the day you turn 35), one point if you are aged between 35 and 40. Age is not published as a hard eligibility cut-off.
Source: Federal Government (Make it in Germany) · verified 2026-08-15
- Language
Points-system applicants must show German at least CEFR A1 or English at least CEFR B2. Recognised skilled workers (Option 1) do not have to prove language skills. Extra points for German above A1 and for English at C1 or native-speaker level.
Source: Federal Government (Make it in Germany) · verified 2026-08-15
- Points test
If you do not have a German or fully recognised foreign qualification, you must score a total of at least 6 points in the points system, and you must still show a formal qualification and the required language skills. Option 1 (recognised skilled worker) does not use the points system.
Source: Federal Government (Make it in Germany) · verified 2026-09-21
Not published on the pages we read
We checked for each of these and the page carried no figure. The absence is recorded with the reason, so this page states nothing the authority does not.
Processing time
Same national-visa rule as other long-stay visas: may take several months; if foreigners-authority consent is needed, 'bis zu drei Monaten, gelegentlich auch länger'. Varies by mission. No fixed month range is stored.
Source: Federal Foreign Office · verified 2026-08-15
The process
How it works
- 1Qualify either with a fully recognised qualification, or with a formal qualification and at least 6 points.
- 2This title is for job search. After a qualified job you switch to another residence title.
What changed when we last checked this record
Route is open under Section 20a AufenthG. Issued first as a search opportunity card for a maximum of 12 months. Previous stored age 18–50 hard cap, bachelor-only minimum, USD 800 fee, 2–4 month processing, and 33-month PR pathway were unsourced or contradicted and have been removed. Recheck 2026-09-25: Make it in Germany was not re-read. Curl returned a Radware interstitial, Playwright stopped on an hCaptcha, and WebFetch returned 403. Known infrastructure block, same class as the Canada and Australia bot-wall findings. Stored field values are unchanged because nothing on the page was re-read. Encoding risk, not a confirmed bug (Make it in Germany not re-read 2026-09-25): the stored record describes two paths. Option 1 is a recognised qualification and does not use the points system or a language proof. Option 2 needs at least 6 points plus German A1 or English B2. The catalogue still stores a single pointsThreshold.minimum of 6, and the language floor is applied to the whole route. Re-check both paths once the bot wall is solved before splitting this into qualifying routes or changing scoring.
Source: Federal Government (Make it in Germany) · verified 2026-08-15
Estimate against the official table: What score do I need for the Opportunity Card (Chancenkarte)?
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Official sources
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