Costs at a glance
Official fees
| Item | Fee | Source |
|---|---|---|
| National visa (type D) | 50,000 XAF from age 18, 25,000 XAF under 18 (embassy) | Embassy, § 46, § 50 AufenthV |
| Residence permit, Blue Card: first issue | €100 | § 45 Nr. 1 |
| Extension (more than 3 months) | €93 (up to 3 months: €96) | § 45 Nr. 2 |
| Change of purpose | €98 | § 45 Nr. 3 |
| Settlement permit | €113; self-employed €124; highly qualified €147 | § 44 |
| Express issue of the electronic residence card (the document, not a faster decision) | plus €35 | § 45a |
| VFS service fee, document verification (Urkundenüberprüfung) | not confirmed | Documents |
All at AufenthV. Visa fee waiver: § 52 (1) AufenthV (spouses, partners and unmarried minor children of Germans; parents of minor Germans) and § 52 (5) (scholarship holders from public money and family). ZAB fee to be confirmed; embassy fees change.
Money you must show
| Route | Amount |
|---|---|
| Study (§ 16b), blocked account | €992 a month (€11,904 a year) |
| Language course without study preparation (§ 16f (1)), study- or training-place search (§ 17) | €1,091 a month (§ 2 (3) S. 6) |
| Opportunity Card (§ 20a) | €1,091 a month in practice (administrative practice, not a figure in § 20a) |
| Ausbildung (§ 16a, company and school-based) | €959 a month (Federal Gazette 29 Aug 2025); €822 net / €1,048 gross is a Make it in Germany practice figure |
| Blue Card | €50,700 a year; €45,934.20 lower threshold |
Amounts are reviewed every January and in autumn; check before paying in.
If a decision goes against you
Follow the remedy instructions (Rechtsbehelfsbelehrung) in the notice: they name the remedy, the authority or court and the deadline. Visa refusals: no objection (§ 68 VwGO); a suit at the Berlin administrative court within one month of notification (§ 74; one year without a correct remedy notice, § 58 (2)). See Visa and embassy. Get legal advice quickly.
A question this page does not answer? Contact us. Free orientation only, no legal advice for individual cases.