Visa and residency

A visa grants the holder the right to enter or travel through another country. In Germany, citizens of other countries need this type of residence permit; exemptions apply to EU countries and certain other countries. Depending on the purpose and duration of your stay, there are different types of visas. The German diplomatic missions abroad (embassies or consulates) are responsible for issuing visas.

For more information, please visit here.

Citizens of other countries require a visa to enter Germany. Exemptions apply to EU citizens and certain other countries (referred to as “privileged countries”).

Here, you can find out if you need a visa to enter Germany.

For stays not exceeding 90 days in Germany and depending on the purpose of your visit, you can apply for a Schengen visa.

However, since most stays abroad for the purpose of studying exceed 90 days, you will need a national visa issued specifically for Germany.

Note: A Schengen visa cannot be converted into a student visa. For stays for study purposes, you must apply for a student visa or a visa for the purpose of seeking a university place.

For more detailed information, please visit “DAAD” and “Make it in Germany”. 

As a rule, you apply for the visa at the German diplomatic mission in the country where you live or have your permanent residence.

An overview of the German diplomatic missions abroad can be found here.

In many countries, you can now apply for a study visa or a visa for the purpose of seeking a university place online via the German government’s consular services portal.

To find out if this option is available in your country, please contact your local German diplomatic mission.

Processing times at German diplomatic missions abroad frequently range from several weeks to several months (and in some cases even longer), and there are often long waiting times for appointments. We therefore recommend that prospective students find out about appointment scheduling as early as possible and prepare the necessary documents well in advance.

Important: You do not have to wait to be admitted to start the visa process! Even before you receive your letter of admission, you can apply for a visa for the purpose of seeking a university place, and this visa can be converted into a residence permit for study purposes in Germany.

For more detailed information, please visit “DAAD” and “Make it in Germany”. 

If you need proof for your visa application that you have applied for admission to TUM, you can download a corresponding confirmation from TUMonline. It is available as soon as your application for admission has been submitted on time. Instructions for downloading your confirmation are available here. 

Please note that not all German diplomatic missions abroad offer visas for the purpose of seeking a university place. Therefore, please ensure that you check with the responsible German embassy or consulate well in advance to determine whether this visa is available in your country.

If you have not received a valid visa by the start of the semester, please contact the departmental student advisor for your degree program and find out if you can start your studies later.

If you would like to or need to postpone the start of your studies to another semester, you can decline your offer of admission or withdraw from enrollment until the enrollment deadline (5 weeks after the start of lectures) and reapply within the regular application deadlines. As a rule, your admission remains valid as long as there have been no significant changes to the admission criteria of the degree program.

You can find more information about deferring admission here.

For more information on withdrawing from enrollment, please visit here.

Information on the refund of semester fees and tuition fees can be found here.

To find out if and how the waiver scholarship can be deferred, please contact Semester Fees Management via beitragsmanagementspam prevention@.tum.de.

A residence permit is a permission to stay that is normally granted for a limited period of time for a specific purpose. Anyone staying in Germany for more than 90 days (especially third-country nationals or non-EU citizens) must apply for a residence permit at the relevant Immigration Office, which allows them to reside in the country, enter and leave it.

With your residence permit, you will receive a plastic card with an electronic chip that stores your personal data (such as your name, date of birth, nationality, and address), biometric characteristics (photo and fingerprints), and ancillary provisions (requirements and conditions). In addition to your residence card, you will usually also receive a supplementary sheet (Zusatzblatt). The supplementary sheet contains additional information and ancillary provisions that are not directly stated on the residence card itself, such as regulations on gainful employment, place of residence, or conditions for termination.

Detailed information can be found on the website of the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees.

Please note: If you leave Germany for more than 6 months, your residence permit for study purposes will automatically lose its validity!

For more information on this, please visit here.

Citizens of the EU, Liechtenstein, Norway, Iceland, and Switzerland do not need a residence permit to study or live in Germany. Citizens of all other countries require a residence permit!

Note for Swiss citizens:

Even though they do not need a residence permit, many Swiss citizens still apply for one voluntarily, for example to make administrative procedures easier or to present it to other institutions. For more information, visit this website here.

1. Register at the Citizens’ Office (Bürgerbüro)/Residents Registration Office (Einwohnermeldeamt)

Before you can apply for a residence permit, you need to register with the Citizens’ Office or Residents Registration Office responsible for your area within 14 days upon arrival in Germany.

• If you live in Munich, you can make an appointment at stadt.muenchen.de/en/buergerservice/wohnen-meldewesen/meldewesen.html.
• If you live in Garching, you can make an appointment at garching.konsentas.de/modules/ota_public/form/1/?signup_new=1.
• If you live in Freising, you can make an appointment at www.freising.de/rathaus/buergerbuero/termin-vereinbaren.
• If you live in Straubing, you can make an appointment at www.terminland.de/stadt_straubing/.
• If you live in Heilbronn, you can make an appointment at welcome.heilbronn.de/en/new-in-heilbronn/registration.html. 

If no appointments are available, we recommend checking the respective websites regularly. Depending on their availability, the Citizens’ Offices often publish appointments that have spontaneously become available for the respective day about 30 minutes before they open. 

Should you not live in one of the cities listed above, but in a surrounding municipality, the Residents Registration Office is located in the town hall of the respective municipality. The relevant addresses are listed online. Please note that the opening hours of regional offices often differ from those of the main office.

2. Applying for a residence permit at the Immigration Office

Once you have registered, you need to apply for a residence permit at the Immigration Office serving your area well before your visa expires. To find out where to submit your application, visit here.

Citizens of EU countries, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Iceland only need to register with the relevant Citizens’ Office/Residents Registration Office.

Citizens of Andorra, Australia, Brazil, El Salvador, Honduras, Israel, Japan, Canada, Monaco, the Republic of Korea, New Zealand, San Marino, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States have to apply for a residence permit at the Immigration Office within 90 days of entering the country.

All prospective students and students who have entered the country on a visa for study purposes or for the purpose of seeking a university place must apply for a residence permit before their visa expires. If you live in Munich, we recommend submitting your application immediately upon arrival, provided you have all the required documents.

Please always check the processing time of the respective immigration office and plan your application well in advance. If you are registered in Munich, please check the website here.

Prospective students and students who live in another city or municipality must contact the relevant administrative office directly.

If you have applied for a new residence permit or an extension of your old one in time before your visa or residence permit expires but have not yet received an appointment or a new residence permit, you will be granted an automatic, probationary permit (Fiktionswirkung).

This means that you are still legally allowed to stay in Germany, even if your original visa or residence permit has already expired.

Important: If you urgently need to leave the country and do not yet have a valid residence permit, you have to apply for a probationary permit (Fiktionsbescheinigung) before leaving. Without a probationary permit, you may have problems re-entering the country. As a rule, the probationary permit can be obtained by making an emergency appointment with the Immigration Office serving your area.

All information on emergency appointments at the Kreisverwaltungsreferat (KVR) is available here. 

Please keep in mind that the residence permit will be issued for no longer than your passport is valid!

• Confirmation of registration

Available in TUMonline once you have submitted your application before the deadline.

• Letter of admission

Available in TUMonline, also includes the proof that the language requirements have been met.

Note: Instructions for downloading your confirmation of registration and the letter of admission are available at www.tum.de/en/studies/application/application-info-portal/online-application/application-status.

• Confirmation of the total amount of tuition fees / “Fee Structure”

To be requested by e-mail from: beitragsmanagement@tum.de

• Payment confirmation of semester fees and, if applicable, tuition fees

Available only after enrollment in TUMonline. Before enrollment it can be requested by e-mail from: beitragsmanagement@tum.de

• Documentation of language of instruction and language proficiency

If requested by the embassy, please contact the departmental student advisor of your degree program.

• “Late Arrival Letter” (confirmation of delayed arrival)

If requested by the embassy, please contact the departmental student advisor of your degree program.

• Confirmation that the study program will take place in person

If requested by the embassy, please contact the Departmental Academic Advisor of your degree program.

• Contact person under “Reference” in the application form

If you need to provide a reference person in your visa application, you can name the departmental student advisor as your reference.

Note: You can find the contact details for the relevant departmental student advisors at www.tum.de/en/studies/support-and-advice/support-during-studies/studentadvising#c43309. Select your degree program in the drop down menu or go the degree program overview at www.tum.de/en/studies/degree-programs and choose your degree program the column on the right.

• Proof of enrollment

Available in TUMonline under “Documents.” 
You can request a sealed proof of enrollment in person at the Service Desk of the Admissions and Enrollment unit or by e-mailing studium@tum.de.

• Enrollment record

Available in TUMonline under “Documents.”

• Preliminary degree certificate

Available in TUMonline under “Student record.”

• Certificate of disenrollment

Only available in TUMonline if you are no longer enrolled in any degree program at TUM. Then the document is available under “Documents.”

• Grade report of courses and exams passed, secured with a digital seal

Available in TUMonline under “Student performance record".

• Graduation documents

Issued by the person in charge of the respective degree program at the Graduation Office.

Note: All information on the topic of “Graduation documents” and the contact details of the Graduation Office is available here.

• Confirmation of the anticipated duration of studies

Can be issued by the departmental student advisor for the respective degree program upon request.

• Confirmation of academic progress / active studies

Can be issued by the departmental student advisor for the respective degree program upon request.

Note: You can find the contact details for the relevant departmental student advisors at www.tum.de/en/studies/support-and-advice/support-during-studies/studentadvising#c43309. Select your degree program in the drop down menu or go the degree program overview at www.tum.de/en/studies/degree-programs and choose your degree program and see the right side column.

Use this link to find the Immigration Office responsible for you.

For visa applications: Please contact the relevant German diplomatic mission in your country of residence. An overview of German diplomatic missions abroad can be found at here (only in German).

For applications for a residence permit: Please contact the Immigration Office in Germany serving your area.

You should receive your visa well before the start of lectures. Because you also need time to arrive in Germany and find an apartment before you can start your studies. If you have not received your visa by the time your classes start, you can defer your place in the degree program or withdraw from enrollment. Up until the enrollment deadline (5 weeks after the start of lectures), you can withdraw from your planned degree program without any consequences.

If you are registered in the City of Munich: During the first three semesters, it is possible to change degree programs without approval. Notify the Immigration Office and submit your new proof of enrollment and proof of the credits you have earned to date.

Starting with the fourth semester, approval is required (including justification, report of courses and exams passed, curriculum).

Further information can be found here.

If you are registered in another city or municipality, please contact the Immigration Office serving your area.

Transferring to a university in the same city: Notify your Immigration Office about the change. Usually the letter of admission or proof of enrollment is required.

Transferring to a university in another city: Check with the responsible Immigration Offices in your old and new city early on to find out what the procedure is. Don't forget to register in your new city in time.

Taking a semester off usually has no negative impact on your residence permit. However, bear in mind: There must be a valid reason for a leave of absence, the total duration of study must remain reasonable, and a maximum of ten years must not be exceeded for the entire study visit.

Important: If you leave Germany for more than 6 months, your residence permit for study purposes will automatically lose its validity. Should this be the case, you will need to apply for a separate certificate before leaving Germany.

For more information on taking a leave of absence, please visit here.

More information on leaving Germany can be found here if you are registered in Munich.

If you are registered in a city or municipality other than Munich, please contact the Immigration Office serving your area.

Check your supplementary sheet (Zusatzblatt) as it may contain information on the validity of your residence permit in connection with your disenrollment. 

If this is not the case, the following applies to students who are registered in the City of Munich (“Kreisverwaltungsreferat/KVR”): Disenrollment alone has no direct effect on the validity of your residence permit. However, you are required to report your disenrollment from university to the KVR. The KVR will then check whether your residence permit can remain valid or whether it must be revoked or changed.

If you are registered in another city or municipality (this includes the rural district of Munich!), it is best to contact the Immigration Office serving your area directly.

Students with a residence permit for study purposes are generally allowed to work during their studies without obtaining a permit, but no more than 140 days or 280 half-days per calendar year (up to 4 hours count as half a day; more than 4 hours count as a full day).

Please carefully read your supplementary sheet (Zusatzblatt), as it specifies rules for taking up employment that may differ from the statutory provisions.

As a rule, you are not allowed to work more than 140 full days. Exceptions may be made if you find yourself in financial difficulties for which you are not responsible. In such cases, a permit is required before taking up employment.

No, work as a Student Assistant may be performed without any limitations on hours, and no permit is required.

If it is a mandatory internship, it will not be counted toward the 140 days. 

Voluntary internships count toward the 140 days.

Most Immigration Offices require a separate permit for such work. For more detailed information, please contact the Immigration Office serving your area.

Yes, as long as you do not exceed 140 full days.

Yes, as long as you do not exceed 140 full days. If you work for more than 20 hours, you may no longer be able to stay in student insurance. Please check with your health insurance provider.

Useful information on working while studying in Munich can be found here (only in German).

If you have any questions concerning your right to work, please always contact the Immigration Office that issued your residence permit directly! They are the only place that can provide you with reliable information on your individual situation.