Residence permit - change of conditions

The application for a change of conditions must be submitted to the immigration authority before the intended change. The application must be made in writing. A decision will be made on the change of conditions. The residence permit will not be extended.

Changes to your studies

If you plan to change your current field of study during the course of your studies or if you wish to be permitted to work on a freelance basis (which is related to your studies), you must submit an application to the Foreigners' Registration Office in advance.

Change when changing jobs

The residence permit already indicates whether gainful employment is permitted. If the entry in the residence permit reads "Gainful employment permitted." any gainful employment is permitted. This includes employment, but also self-employment. No further application is necessary here. If the entry is "Employment permitted." Any dependent employment is permitted. No further application is necessary here either.

If, for example, the entry reads "Employment only permitted with the permission of the Aliens' Registration Office" or if a specific job is permitted on your current residence permit which you would now like to change, an application for permission for dependent employment must be submitted to the Aliens' Registration Office. In order for the application to be processed, the specific job offer must be available and the "Declaration of employment relationship" completed by the employer must be submitted.

Before making a decision on this application, the immigration authority must always involve the responsible Federal Employment Agency. This procedure can take up to six weeks.

Changing the residence requirement

The supplementary sheet to the residence permit shows whether there is a residence requirement. If the entry on the supplementary sheet reads, for example, "Residence is restricted to the Free State of Thuringia", an application to change the residence requirement can be submitted to the immigration authority with an individual justification.

Before making a decision on this application, the foreigners authority must always involve the competent foreigners authority at the requested place of relocation.

All incoming applications will be reviewed without a personal visit.

Please send us the relevant application forms and all necessary documents either by post or electronically by e-mail to: antrag-abh@jena.de(link sends e-mail). Please do not send us any original documents.

We will contact you directly if we have any queries. Therefore, please make sure that you can be reached by post or, if necessary, by e-mail or telephone for any queries.

If a personal appointment is necessary after final examination of your application, you will receive an appointment from us at short notice.

Documents for changing subject area during studies

• Written application (informal)
• passport
• Scan of existing electronic residence permit with supplementary sheet
• current certificate of the future duration of studies, taking into account previous achievements (available from the International Office of the Friedrich Schiller University Jena or from the Head of the Student Secretariat of the Ernst Abbe University of Applied Sciences Jena) with signature of the university
• If applicable, declaration of consent to the storage and use of your e-mail address and telephone number

Documents for approval of self-employed work on a fee basis during your studies

• Written application (informal)
• passport
• Scan of existing electronic residence permit with supplementary sheet
• Written proof of who is to carry out the freelance work, how much time, for how long and at what remuneration

Documents when changing jobs

• Written application (informal)
• passport
• Scan of existing electronic residence permit with supplementary sheet
• Proof of termination of the previous employment relationship (e.g. letter of termination, last proof of earnings)
• Concrete job offer (declaration of employment completed by the employer)
• If applicable, declaration of consent to the storage and use of your e-mail address and telephone number

Documents for the change of residence requirement

• Completed application form (see downloads)
• Proof of the reason for the change of residence, e.g:

  • Employment contract, training contract, letter of admission to university

  • Proof of family ties (e.g. birth certificate, marriage certificate, acknowledgement of paternity, extract from the family register)

  • Medical evidence in the case of illnesses (e.g. medical certificates or expert opinions, expert opinions from the medical service, proof of degree of care)

• Law on the residence, employment and integration of foreigners in Germany (Residence Act - AufenthG)
• Ordinance on the Employment of Foreign Nationals (Employment Ordinance - BeschV)
• Residence Ordinance (AufenthV)