Avoiding scams
Official fees are small and are paid to the authority. The national visa costs €75 (Costs). Nobody can guarantee a visa, a job or a place, and nobody can buy an appointment on the waiting list.
Typical patterns
- Fake agencies and "guaranteed jobs": an agency asks for a registration, placement or "processing" fee for a job in Germany, often citing the migration agreement. The agreement creates no quotas or guaranteed jobs: Migration agreement. Ask for the employer's name and check it independently.
- Appointment and visa sellers: the Embassy uses waiting lists; registering is free (Visa and Embassy). Pay no one to "jump the list".
- Fake document services: people offering to "apostille" or "legalise" Kenyan papers. Neither is possible for Germany: Documents.
- Nursing agencies: demands for training fees or bonds that tie you to an employer. Kenyan nurses can be recruited privately, so look for the seal Faire Anwerbung Pflege Deutschland and read the contract. Nursing and health.
- Fake study offers and "admission letters": check the university on its own site and on anabin; applications go to the university or uni-assist.
- Payment by M-Pesa or to private accounts to individuals: official fees are paid to the Embassy or TLScontact under their own instructions.
Where to check
- German Embassy Nairobi, Make it in Germany, Federal Employment Agency.
- Kenyan authorities for reporting fraud and for licensed private recruitment agencies (National Employment Authority): not verified here.
A question this page does not answer? Contact us. Free orientation only, no legal advice for individual cases.