Route: vocational training (Ausbildung)

§ 16a AufenthG, German level, money, training pay, searching for a place.

An Ausbildung is a 2–3.5 year vocational programme, usually dual (company plus vocational school). Legal basis: § 16a AufenthG. Visa from the embassy, see Visa and embassy.

Requirements and money

• A training contract; German at B1, unless the institution has tested your German or a preparatory German course is planned (§ 16a (3) S. 2).
• Living costs must be secured: €959 a month (BAnz AT 29.08.2025 B1). Training pay counts. Make it in Germany uses working values of €822 net / €1,048 gross; ask the embassy which it applies.
• Minimum training pay for contracts starting 2026: €724 / €854 / €977 / €1,014 in years 1–4; for starts in 2027: €764 / €902 / €1,031 / €1,070 (BIBB). Collective agreements often pay more.
• Side job up to 20 hours a week.

Searching for a place (§ 17)

A permit to look for a training place in Germany requires university entrance qualification, age under 35, German B1 and €1,091 a month (§ 17). Whether Singapore A-Levels count as university entrance qualification for this purpose: see Study.

Information: Make it in Germany, Federal Employment Agency.