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I recently moved to Germany (Aschaffenburg) with a family reunion visa (My wife is a software developer who lives and works in Aschaffenburg). I found a job in Frankfurt two weeks ago as a software developer (I have 8 years of experience in the field) with 52K € salary per year. I also have a university degree in the civil engineering field. I currently have a 90 days visa and I should apply for either a blue card or a work visa.

  • Since my job position is in a different field than my university degree, is it possible to apply for a blue card? If yes, should I just bring the translation of my degree to the immigration office or should I do something else before bringing it there? If no, is there anything that I can do to fix the problem? (Like getting a quick online certificate!)
  • I heard that the minimum annual gross salary for jobs in computer science fields should be 43,056 to apply for a blue card. Is that correct?
  • What other documents do I need for applying for a blue card?
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  • The questions you are asking will still be relevant for people who are in a different position than you are but in your case is there any reason not to apply for a residence permit based on family reunion?
    – Relaxed
    Sep 8, 2020 at 12:29
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    @Relaxed - It's because my wife's job is unstable and we don't know how long she can keep her job so I want to have a separate residence permit based on my job and in case my wife loses her job, she can get a permit base on my permit. I also want it to be a blue card so I can get the permanent residence in 22 months.
    – Yandirr
    Sep 8, 2020 at 12:44
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    Fair enough, but I just wanted to point out that it's not true that you should apply for a Blue Card in case that wasn't clear. The family route might be easier but it does have, as you say, its disadvantages.
    – Relaxed
    Sep 8, 2020 at 15:00
  • I'm in a bit of a similar situation here, but slightly different. I have a degree in Biomedical Engineering, and applying for a Product designer role. I'm wondering how things worked out for you? Did you get your Blue card with your Civil Engineering degree?
    – Mohamed Eltazy
    May 10, 2021 at 17:36
  • @MohamedEltazy The officer told me it's not possible to apply for a blue card with my situation! I think it's just a rule in my state (Bavaria) because my friend with the same situation got a blue card in Berlin two years ago!
    – Yandirr
    May 11, 2021 at 9:55

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Answering your questions:

  • According to the relevant ministry (BAMF, see https://www.bamf.de/DE/Themen/MigrationAufenthalt/ZuwandererDrittstaaten/Migrathek/BlaueKarteEU/blauekarteeu-node.html), the degree should be relevant for the job position. I'm not sure how far your particular degree is from IT one. IMHO, "fixing" it with "quick online course" will not be possible. Maybe one can get a bachelor or directly master degree in IT online within next years, if it is relevant.
  • yes, the blue card salary borders (one generic, one for jobs with a lack of specialists) should be reviewed once per year. The salary border 2020 for jobs with a lack of specialists is 43,056 Euro per year brutto.
  • you can find it on the web site of your local Ausländerbehörde

Besides Blue Card, there are at least 3 more types of residence permits one can get in such a situation:

You can check my answer about the difference between Blue Card and residence permits for the purpose of working for further information.

Without any kind of relevant education after school, from my personal understanding (I'm not a lawyer), even though the AufenthG §18a mentions vocational degree needed, somewhere deep in the law there was a regulation that 3 years of relevant work experience in IT might be counted instead. So if one has 3 years of work experience in IT, one can apply for residence permit with the purpose of work without any degree (this statement needs to be checked since it might be a subject to some law changes).

It is worth mentioning that the residence permits for the purpose of work will have some limitations against residence permit for the purpose of family union and vice versa. An example might be an employer lock for the first 2 years (if one has a residence permit for the purpose of work, including Blue Card, within first two years a separate application to Ausländerbehörde is needed to change the employer).

All in all, I would recommend you to discuss your situation with a lawyer (specialised on immigration law and with good reviews) in order to decide which type of residence permit you should apply for.

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  • Thanks a lot for the information
    – Yandirr
    Sep 9, 2020 at 6:55

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