EU Blue Card in Germany: 2026 salary thresholds, requirements and settlement

You need one of the following qualifications:

• a German university degree;
• a foreign university degree that is recognised or comparable to a German one. You can usually show this with the anabin database, where both the university and the degree type must be listed as equivalent. Otherwise, use a paid Statement of Comparability from the Central Office for Foreign Education (ZAB), which costs €208 in 2026;
• certain non-academic qualifications at level 6 of the European Qualifications Framework, for example some master craftsperson qualifications. Check with the authority whether yours counts;
• no degree, as an IT specialist with enough experience (see below).

You also need:

• a job offer or contract in Germany for at least six months, appropriate to your qualification;
• an employer with a place of business in Germany;
• for regulated professions, the German licence or a promise of it;
• health insurance and no security concerns.

The minimum is the gross annual salary agreed in your contract:

• Standard threshold: €50,700 a year (€4,225 a month) in 2026. This is 50% of the pension contribution ceiling. No approval from the Federal Employment Agency (BA) is needed.
• Lower threshold: €45,934.20 a year (€3,827.85 a month) in 2026. This is 45.3% of the ceiling. The BA must approve the job and checks that pay and conditions are comparable to those of local employees. It applies to:
  • shortage occupations: certain managers (for example in production, ICT and professional services), scientists, mathematicians, engineers and architects, doctors, nurses and other health professionals with degrees, vets, dentists and pharmacists, teachers, and IT professionals;
  • new entrants: people who earned their degree within the last three years before applying;
  • IT specialists without a degree.

The Federal Ministry of the Interior publishes the new thresholds in the Federal Gazette (Bundesanzeiger) by 31 December each year. If your salary is close to the line, ask the immigration office which pay components it counts before relying on bonuses or allowances.

You can get a Blue Card without any formal qualification if:

• the job is in an IT profession (ISCO-08 groups 133 or 25, for example ICT managers, software developers, system administrators);
• you have at least three years of relevant professional experience at a level comparable to graduate work within the last seven years, and it matches the job in Germany;
• the salary is at least €45,934.20 (2026);
• the BA approves the employment.

Collect references that show your role, responsibilities and dates. Employment contracts, reference letters and project descriptions all help.

• Validity: up to four years. If your contract is shorter, the card runs for the length of the contract plus three months, and it can be extended while you meet the conditions.
• Changing employer in the first 12 months: you must inform the immigration office. If the new job does not meet the Blue Card requirements, the office can object within 30 days or ask you to stop.
• After 12 months of employment: no permission is needed to change employer. Your Zusatzblatt (additional sheet) shows the exact conditions.
• Losing your job: you must inform the immigration office within two weeks of learning that the job will end. In Berlin, the permit normally stays valid unless the Zusatzblatt says otherwise, and the LEA usually allows up to 12 months to find a new job before it considers shortening your permit. Claiming contribution-based unemployment benefit (Arbeitslosengeld) does not harm your status. Claiming basic income support can. If money is tight, applying for an Opportunity Card can allow part-time work while you search. See the Opportunity Card guide.

• Spouse or registered partner: does not need to prove German skills before arrival. You do not need to prove sufficient living space. Unlike many other permits, the marriage does not have to have existed when the card was issued. Your family's livelihood must still be secured, except when you moved on with a Blue Card from another EU country where you lived together.
• Right to work: family members who join you may work in Germany.
• Children: minor unmarried children can join. Children aged 16 or 17 do not need to prove German skills or integration prospects when the parent holds a Blue Card.
• Parents and parents-in-law: if your Blue Card was first issued on or after 1 March 2024, your parents can be granted residence. So can your spouse's parents, if your spouse lives in Germany permanently. Their livelihood, including health insurance, must be covered. This is discretionary.
• Applying together: in Berlin, family members can be included in the Blue Card holder's online application.

Details are in the Family reunification guide.

The Blue Card is the fastest route to a settlement permit (Niederlassungserlaubnis):

• after 27 months in Blue Card employment with A1 German, or
• after 21 months with B1 German.

In Berlin you also need:

• to still be in a job that qualifies for the Blue Card;
• pension contributions for those 21 or 27 months (statutory, or comparable private provision);
• basic knowledge of the legal and social system, for example a completed integration or orientation course, a German school or university qualification, or vocational training in Germany;
• sufficient living space for you and your family.

The Berlin fee in 2026 is €56.50 for processing plus €56.50 for issue. Plan for at least four weeks between the appointment and the card. See the Settlement permit guide.