Avoiding scams
Official fees are small and are paid to the authority. The national visa costs €75 (paid in SGD at the embassy) and a residence permit in Berlin around €100 (Costs). Nobody can guarantee a visa, a university place or a job, and the embassy does not sell appointments.
Typical patterns
- Appointment sellers: the embassy books appointments only through its own online system. If it shows "fully booked", there are no slots; the embassy asks you not to enquire (embassy: appointments). Anyone offering to "secure" a slot for money is not the embassy.
- "Visa agents" and "guaranteed placements" for jobs, Ausbildung places or nursing jobs. The visa is decided by the embassy and the Federal Employment Agency, not by an agent. An employer never charges you for the work permit.
- Fake student visa service fees: student visa applications go through VFS Global for a fixed service fee (Study). Any extra "priority" payment to third parties is a red flag. The VFS service fee is €34.13 (embassy).
- Blocked-account and insurance upsells: use only providers listed by the German Foreign Office (blocked account).
- Rental scams: a Berlin flat whose "owner is abroad" and wants a deposit by wire before a viewing. No official Berlin source was checked for this pattern; it is widely reported.
- Berlin immigration office appointment resellers: book only via berlin.de/einwanderung.
Where to check and report
- Singapore: ScamShield (official anti-scam site) and the Singapore Police Force.
- Germany: the visa rules on the embassy site; the federal portal Make it in Germany; in Berlin any police station.
We never charge fees and never ask for money (Contact).
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