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Residence Permit

What happens to my visa after I enter the country?

International students from non-EU countries apply for a residence permit at the responsible immigration office within three months of entry (or before the expiration of any visa).

For the issuance of a residence permit to students, a matriculation certificate is usually required, which is only available after personal enrollment. Students who arrive a few weeks before enrollment can wait until they are able to present the matriculation certificate before going to the Foreigners' Registration Office.

However, you must not exceed the time limit of three months or the validity of any visa!


Application for the Residence Permit

The Foreigners' Registration Office of the City of Regensburg usually requires the following documents for the issuance of a residence permit:

Fee

Foreigners with German scholarships: free of charge
Participants in exchange programs of Regensburg universities: 100 €
Initial grant: 100 €
Renewal: 80 €


Validity and Purpose of the Residence Permit

Please always keep the following points in mind for your residence permit:

  • The purpose of your stay: This explicitly refers to the subject and the university at which you are studying. This means that if you change the subject or from a study-preparatory German course to the subject study, a change of university takes place or you end your studies, your residence permit usually automatically becomes invalid, no matter what date is written on it! You must therefore go to the Foreigners' Registration Office in good time before you change or end your studies and have it changed.

If you do not, your stay in Regensburg is illegal!

  • The period of validity: If you go to the Foreigners' Registration Office only after your residence permit has expired, you are usually in Germany illegally until the new (electronic) residence title is issued (this takes about 4 weeks).
  • The (electronic) residence permit at the Foreigners' Registration Office of the City of Regensburg is issued for at least one year. Applicants must therefore be able to prove financing for this period - in the form of a declaration of commitment or a sufficient credit balance in a German bank account.
  • If you submit your application to the Foreigners' Registration Office late, serious consequences under immigration and criminal law may follow. It is possible that you will be sentenced to a fine or imprisonment for illegal residence. It is also possible that you will no longer receive a residence permit and will have to leave Germany.

Proof of Subsistence for the Application

For the issuance of a residence permit for non-EU citizens, it is usually necessary to prove that you have sufficient means to secure your livelihood.

For orientation, you can assume that sufficient means are available if you can prove that you have 992,- Euro per month at your disposal.

You can prove that you have secured this livelihood, for example, by:

  • Presentation of a declaration of commitment according to § 68 Residence Act* or
  • Proof of corresponding scholarships from German public funds or scholarships from a funding organization recognized in Germany or
  • Scholarships from public funds of the country of origin, if the Federal Foreign Office, the German Academic Exchange Service or German scholarship organizations were involved in the placement.
  • Proof of funding by submission of bank statements or payment of a security deposit into a blocked account. For one year, at least 11.904 EUR must be proven (992 EUR per month).

*A declaration of commitment in accordance with Section 68 of the Residence Act can be submitted, for example, by your parents or siblings, but also by other third parties at a German mission abroad or at the Foreigners' Registration Office at their place of residence in Germany. The citizen thereby assumes a guarantee for your livelihood and must in principle prove his financial capacity when submitting the declaration of commitment.


Help with the Application for a Residence Permit

The Foreigners' Registration Office works closely with the Regensburg universities.

At the beginning of the semester, the tutors of the orientation program Startklar will help you with the formalities.

If you have general questions about the law on foreigners, you can contact Ms. Wunderlich, or you can go directly to the foreigners authority responsible for you.


Residence Permit for Change of Subject/University Change

If you change your field of study or university, this will affect your residence permit!

Change of the Subject of Study

In case of a change of the field of study during the studies, there is basically a change of the purpose of residence. A change of the course of study (e.g. German Studies instead of Romance Studies) or the subject of study (e.g. major or minor in Italian instead of French) in the first 18 months after the beginning of the studies is generally possible.

In the case of a subsequent change of course or subject, the applicable higher education law must first be taken into account. If the change is permissible according to university law, a change can also be approved under aliens law if the previous study achievements are credited to such an extent that the total duration of study is not extended by more than 18 months (confirmation from the university). In any case, however, you must apply for the change at the Foreigners' Registration Office and have it entered in your residence title. If these requirements are not met, or if a further change of course or subject is intended, this can only be admitted if the studies can be completed within a total period of residence of ten years.

The above regulations also apply to a change between different types of higher education institutions (e.g. change from a university program to a university of applied sciences program in the same subject area).


Further Studies after First Degree

The other commencement of a second course of training or further professional training after completion of the first course of training in Germany (e.g. specialist training after medical studies) constitutes a change in the purpose of residence. The change may generally not be permitted if the total duration of stay would exceed ten years.



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