A German language course visa is a sort of educational visa that is provided to foreigners who plan to do a 3- to 12-month intensive language course in Germany. The courses that visa applicants must complete must have a minimum of 18 hours of instruction per week.

If the goal of attending the language course is not to pursue further education in Germany, the visa can be extended for up to one year in some situations.

If you want to study in Germany but don’t speak the language, you need to enroll in a language course given by a German university or language school. The majority of study programs are in German, and you must have a C1 level of proficiency in the language (or equivalent to DSH-2).

Do I need a visa to enroll in a language course in Germany?

Either a language course visa or a resident permit are required. Your country of origin and the length of time you plan to stay in Germany will determine if these documents are required.

What country do you hold citizenship in?	Language Course Visa?	Residence permit?
EU/EEA, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Iceland	No, you do not need a visa to enter Germany. You neither need to have a certificate of enrollment prior to entering Germany.	No, you just have to register your residence once you arrive in Germany, using a passport or valid ID.
Australia, Israel, Japan, Canada, South Korea, New Zealand, the UK, and the USA	No, you do not need a visa to enter Germany. You neither need to have a certificate of enrollment prior to entering Germany.	Yes, if you intend to stay in Germany for more than 90 days, you need to apply for a residence permit at the Immigration Authority Office upon your arrival in Germany.
Andorra, Brazil, El Salvador, Honduras, Monaco and San Marino	No, you do not need a language course visa to enter Germany, if you do not intend to subsequently work in Germany.	Yes, if you intend to stay in Germany for more than 90 days, you need to apply for a residence permit at the Immigration Authority Office upon your arrival in Germany.
If you are not a citizen of one of the countries listed above	Yes, you need to apply for a language course visa in order to enter Germany and begin learning German.	Yes, upon landing in Germany, you must additionally apply for a residence visa.

It is strongly advised that you contact a German consulate general or embassy in your country for more information before traveling to Germany. If you don’t have enough time or can’t make it to a German diplomatic mission, you can also visit our visa consultation.

📚 Language Course Visa

If you are not a citizen of one of the countries listed above, you can apply for a German long-stay language course visa in Germany.

You can do the following with a German language course visa:

• enroll in an intensive German language course.
• require an extension of the visa, if the German language courses will not be followed by full-time studies – the extension may be for up to one year (counted as of the day of arrival in Germany)

You can’t do the following with a German language course visa:

• convert it into a student or student applicant visa
• change it into a work permit
• undertake any gainful employment
• start university studies
• apply for university admission

The validity of German language course visa is limited to the duration of the course, which might range from three months to one year, and it cannot be extended while in Germany.

Documents required for a German language course visa

• Two duly completed visa application forms
• A valid passport
• Confirmed registration in the language course, or, certificate of enrollment (the course must contain at least 18 hours/week of classes)
• Proof of financial means to cover the costs for the time of your stay in Germany by showing one of the following documents:
  • Verpflichtungserklärung (formal obligation letter) by a sponsor living in Germany
  • Scholarship
  • Blocked bank account (at least 10,332 € per year)
• Health insurance for language course students 
• Two recently taken portrait photographs 
• Three photocopies of the passport ID pages
• A motivational letter for attending the language course
• Proof of accommodation – for the complete stay

Note: Each original document must have 2 photocopies attached.

Did you know that many visa applications are turned down by the German embassy owing to simple formal mistakes? They don’t have a credible proof of financial resources or proof of health insurance. You will have to apply for a visa again if you are disqualified, and the previous fee will not be reimbursed, meaning you will have to pay the amount again or even more if it is rejected again. To avoid this problem, you can open a blocked bank account with us. We ensure that the financial institutions with whom we open your account are legally recognized in Germany. When you use our blocked account as proof of your financial means, you’ll have a better chance of receiving a student visa. Learn more about blocked account and health insurance here:

💡 Important information

Please note that you should apply for a German language course visa with the German representative organization responsible for visa admission (e.g. German embassy, German consulate) in your country of residence. After completing the application process in your home country, you will receive a 90-day language course visa. The process is not done here. Once when you arrive in Germany, you must also apply for a residence permit.

If you intend to study after completing the language course, you must apply for a student’s language course visa and state in your motivational letter that you intend to study at a German university when the course is completed. If you don’t declare your goal explicitly, you’ll have to return to your home country to apply for a student visa, once you’ve completed the language course. This is because the language course visa was designed for persons who wanted to study the language for cultural reasons rather than for educational purposes.

Please keep in mind that you cannot work in Germany while holding another form of Schengen visa, for example, a tourist visa. If you want to enter to Germany for employment, you cannot use tourism as a reason for doing so. You must initially apply for a work visa in your country of residence. When you are in Germany, you cannot convert your tourist visa to a work visa.

There are a few more things you should be aware of

• During the visa interview, the visa officer may request further documents
• Germany work visa is not automatically given – so you have to wait for up to 4 months to get a response from the Embassy or Consulate and there is no guarantee you will be granted a visa
• Keep in mind that a visa application that is incomplete may be denied.
• In case of visa rejection, the applicant gets informed about the main reason for a rejection
• Visa fee will not be reimbursed in case of visa refusal
• Upon arrival at the airport, original documentation may be required.

We understand that if you are not from one of the above-mentioned “favored nations”, the visa application processes appear to be complicated and difficult. To begin, you’ll need a German language course visa to enter Germany, and then you’ll need to apply for a residence visa once you’ve arrived. After that, you’ll need to go to your local registration office and register your address. We’ve done our best to walk you through the process by describing it as clearly as possible. You may have noticed that our information is precise and simple to understand. This is because our AZAPA visa service staff has gathered these lessons from real-life situations. We are capable of providing competent assistance. You can contact us for a visa consultation to make all of the processes easier and to greatly improve your chances of acquiring a visa.

🏠 Residence Permit

Do I need a resident permit to stay in Germany?

✔️ Citizens of EU/EEA, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Iceland do not need to apply for a residence permit. If you intend to stay in Germany for more than 2 months, you have to register your residence once you arrive in Germany, using a passport or valid ID. You can get the Confirmation on Registration (Meldebestätigung) at the registration office (Einwohnermeldeamt), which is normally in the town hall (Rathaus) or a central building of the municipal administration. If you cannot find your local registration office, search for “Bürgerbüro” and type the name of the German city you reside in.

➡️ Citizens of other countries who intend to stay in Germany for more than 90 days or 3 month are required to apply for a Residence Permit (Aufenthaltsgenehmigung) at the Immigration Authority Office (Ausländerbehörde) upon your arrival in Germany. After that, you must also obtain a Confirmation on Registration “Meldebestätigung” at the registration office (Einwohnermeldeamt).

Citizens of other countries	Do I have to obtain a Residence Permit?	Do I have to obtain a Confirmation on Registration?
If you intend to stay in Germany for more than 2 months (but not longer than 3 months)	➖	✔️
If you intend to intend to stay in Germany for more than 90 days or 3 month	✔️	✔️

Temporary Residence Permit

The Temporary Residence Permit, also known as the Limited Residence Permit (Aufenthaltserlaubnis), is intended for shorter stays in Germany. This form of residence visa only allows you to stay in Germany for a year or up to two years.

Foreign nationals who have a specific cause for staying in Germany are awarded a Temporary Residence Permit. When you apply for this form of permit, you must explain why you wish to stay, and the card you receive will detail this. After that, you won’t be able to do anything that your residence permission forbids. If you apply for a temporary residency visa to learn German, it will indicate that you are only allowed to partake in an intensive German language course. Working part-time is permitted, but not in excess of the maximum hours specified in your residence permit.

You must present proof of attendance in the course and a certificate of registration in a language course given by the language school in order to apply for a language course visa resident permit.

💡 Do you know that our AZAPA visa service team can assist you with Visa and Residence Permit Application Processes?

Our government-licensed Schengen and National Visa Service consultants are experts in German visa requirements and are up to date on the most recent criteria. We will provide you with the greatest possible assistance, and if you desire it, we will manage the full visa application process for you. Do you want to schedule a consultation? Now is the time to schedule a visa consultation with us.