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EU long-term residence permit (Erlaubnis zum Daueraufenthalt – EU)

Ausländerbehörde · Residence law

In person

The EU long-term residence permit (Erlaubnis zum Daueraufenthalt – EU), which the Residence Act (Aufenthaltsgesetz, AufenthG) regulates in § 9a AufenthG, is a permanent residence title for third-country nationals who have been staying in Germany with a residence title for five years. It is based on the EU Long-Term Residents Directive (Richtlinie 2003/109/EG) and is the only German title that opens up onward migration to other EU member states. As with the settlement permit (Niederlassungserlaubnis), old-age provision plays a role: under § 9c Satz 1 Nr. 2 AufenthG, fixed and regular income as a rule requires contributions or expenses for adequate old-age provision, although without a fixed minimum number of contribution months and at most to the extent of § 9 Abs. 2 Satz 1 Nr. 3 AufenthG. The Ordinance Governing Residence (Aufenthaltsverordnung, AufenthV) sets the fee at a fixed €109.00 in § 44a AufenthV, not €113.00; the higher amount belongs to the settlement permit. The competent authority is the Ausländerbehörde (foreigners authority) at your place of residence, not the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (Bundesamt für Migration und Flüchtlinge, BAMF).

Last updated3 October 2026
Legal basis§ 9a AufenthG · § 44a AufenthV
VerificationChecked by AmtsDeutschland.de
Written and reviewed byAndrés Sánchez Botta
Independent information website: we are not the Ausländerbehörde, not an authority and not a paid advice service – we do not submit applications on your behalf. All information comes from official sources and is explained here in plain language; binding information always comes from the competent body. All information is provided without guarantee. We are neither lawyers nor tax consultants: we document official procedures and check the information against the official source – this is information, not legal or tax advice.
Costs€109.00Fixed amount under § 44a AufenthV · minors: no more than €54.50
Processing timeNo statutory deadlineDepends on the competent Ausländerbehörde
MethodIn personAppointment at the Ausländerbehörde · biometric data capture
Required documents

What you need to bring

§ 9a Abs. 2 Satz 1 AufenthG lists six requirements: five years of residence with a residence title, subsistence secured by fixed and regular income, sufficient knowledge of German, basic knowledge of the legal and social order, no conflicting reasons of public security or order, and sufficient residential space. The Ausländerbehörde requires proof for each of these requirements.

Valid passport or recognised passport substitute

Your passport must be valid both at the submission of the application and when the electronic residence title (eAT) is handed over, because the authority establishes your identity and nationality from the original document. Copies or photos are not accepted. If your passport expires in the coming months, have it extended beforehand at the diplomatic mission of your home country – otherwise the eAT will at most be issued with a shortened card validity.

All previous residence titles – proof covering five years

§ 9a Abs. 2 Satz 1 Nr. 1 AufenthG requires that you have been staying in the federal territory with a residence title for five years. Therefore bring all your previous cards, the labels affixed in your passport and the notices granting them, so that the authority can trace the chain without gaps. Gaps between two titles are the point at which applications fail most often; § 9b AufenthG governs which periods count.

Proof of fixed and regular income

Here the law requires more than for other titles: your subsistence and that of your dependants entitled to maintenance must be secured by fixed and regular income (§ 9a Abs. 2 Satz 1 Nr. 2 AufenthG). Employees usually submit their employment contract, the payslips for the last few months and bank statements; self-employed persons submit tax assessment notices, a business management evaluation (betriebswirtschaftliche Auswertung) and a certificate from their tax consultant. The competent Ausländerbehörde determines which period the proof must cover.

Proof of health insurance

Under § 2 Abs. 3 AufenthG, secure subsistence includes adequate health insurance coverage, which is why the authority wants to see a current Mitgliedsbescheinigung (health insurance membership certificate) from your statutory health insurance fund (Krankenkasse) or the policy of your private health insurance. You can obtain the certificate free of charge via the customer portal or a branch office of your Krankenkasse. Make sure that family members insured with you are expressly listed.

Knowledge of German at level B1

§ 9a Abs. 2 Satz 1 Nr. 3 AufenthG requires sufficient knowledge of the German language; according to the legal definition in § 2 Abs. 11 AufenthG, this corresponds to level B1 of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages. Proof can be provided, for example, by the B1 certificate of the Deutsch-Test für Zuwanderer (DTZ, German language test for immigrants), an equivalent language certificate or a German school-leaving qualification or university degree. Under § 9a Abs. 2 Satz 2 AufenthG, the waiver rules of § 9 Abs. 2 Sätze 2 to 5 AufenthG apply accordingly, for example in the case of illness or disability.

Basic knowledge of the legal and social order

Under § 9a Abs. 2 Satz 1 Nr. 4 AufenthG, you must prove basic knowledge of the legal and social order and of living conditions in the federal territory. In practice, this proof is provided via the “Leben in Deutschland” (Life in Germany) test or the certificate of a successfully completed integration course. The competent Ausländerbehörde decides which proof is recognised in the individual case – clarify this before registering for a test that is subject to a fee.

Proof of sufficient residential space

§ 9a Abs. 2 Satz 1 Nr. 6 AufenthG requires sufficient residential space for you and the family members living with you in the same household. Depending on the authority, you submit the tenancy agreement stating the floor area in square metres, the current service charge statement, the Wohnungsgeberbestätigung (landlord’s confirmation) or, in the case of ownership, a Grundbuchauszug (land register extract). How many square metres per person are required depends on the administrative guidelines of the respective federal state (Bundesland) and therefore differs from one federal state to another.

Digital biometric photograph

A biometric photograph is required for the electronic residence title. Since 1 May 2025, passport photos submitted on paper have not been permitted for official identity documents; the photo must be transmitted digitally – either at the self-service terminal of the authority for €6.00 or by a certified photographer who provides it in encrypted form. If you bring a paper photo, the appointment cannot be completed.

Application form and Meldebescheinigung

Depending on the authority, the application for a residence title is completed online, by post or at the appointment; many Ausländerbehörde offices provide the form for download in their appointment portal. In addition, a current registration certificate (Meldebescheinigung) from the Bürgeramt (citizens’ office) is often required, because it shows the local jurisdiction and your housing situation. Bring the signed application with you – this saves time at the appointment.

Proof of adequate old-age provision

Contrary to what is often claimed, old-age provision also plays a role here: under § 9c Satz 1 Nr. 2 AufenthG, fixed and regular income as a rule only exists if you or your spouse living with you as a family unit have paid contributions or incurred expenses for adequate old-age provision in Germany or abroad; this does not apply to anyone who was prevented from doing so by illness or disability. Under § 9c Satz 3 AufenthG, at most as much may be required as for the settlement permit under § 9 Abs. 2 Satz 1 Nr. 3 AufenthG, i.e. 60 months of compulsory or voluntary contributions or comparable expenses. Therefore, bring a current insurance history (Versicherungsverlauf) from the Deutsche Rentenversicherung (German statutory pension insurance) or proof of private old-age provision. Large Ausländerbehörde offices such as those in Berlin, Hamburg and Munich as a rule require proof of 60 contribution months or five years of old-age provision; what is sufficient in an individual case depends on the competent Ausländerbehörde.

Step by step

How to proceed

The application is submitted to the Ausländerbehörde at your place of residence. The BAMF is not competent for granting this title – it is responsible for integration courses and asylum procedures, not for granting residence titles.

  1. 1

    Check the six requirements of § 9a Abs. 2 AufenthG

    Go through the requirements one by one: five years of residence with a residence title, subsistence secured by fixed and regular income, knowledge of German at level B1, basic knowledge of the legal and social order, no conflicting reasons of public security or order, and sufficient residential space. Pay particular attention to the income requirement: fixed-term contracts, fluctuating income or top-up social benefits regularly lead to refusal, because the criterion “fixed and regular” is then not met. Under § 9c Satz 1 Nr. 2 AufenthG, fixed and regular income as a rule also requires contributions or expenses for adequate old-age provision – however, unlike for the settlement permit, the law does not prescribe a fixed minimum of 60 contribution months here.

  2. 2

    Clarify how periods of residence are counted and the grounds for exclusion

    Before your appointment, calculate how many of the five years actually count. Under § 9b AufenthG, stays abroad do not count against you as long as they do not exceed six consecutive months or a total of ten months within the five-year period; only half of any period of residence for the purpose of studies or vocational training is counted. If you hold an EU Blue Card (Blaue Karte EU), you can additionally count periods of residence in other EU member states. In parallel, § 9a Abs. 3 AufenthG excludes certain purposes of residence from the outset – among others, stays for the purpose of studies, humanitarian titles (except for recognised persons entitled to international protection and titles under § 23 Abs. 2 AufenthG) and stays that are temporary by nature.

  3. 3

    Make an appointment at the Ausländerbehörde and gather your documents

    Most Ausländerbehörde offices allocate appointments exclusively via an online portal, and in metropolitan areas waiting times of several weeks to months are common. Therefore, book your appointment as soon as it is foreseeable that the five-year period will be met, and use the waiting time to obtain your language certificate, proof of residential space and income documents. Check the list of documents applicable to your district in the appointment portal: it differs from authority to authority, because proof of residential space and of income is handled differently according to the requirements of each federal state.

  4. 4

    Submit the application, provide biometric data and pay the fee

    At the appointment, you hand in the signed application, have the digital photograph and your fingerprints captured for the electronic residence title, and pay the fee. Under § 44a AufenthV, it is a fixed €109.00; for minors, under § 69 Abs. 5 Nr. 7 AufenthG it may be no more than half, i.e. €54.50. Which means of payment are accepted is not regulated uniformly nationwide and depends on the competent authority – some offices only accept card payment, others require a bank transfer in advance. Ask for a receipt confirming that you have submitted the documents.

  5. 5

    Wait for the decision

    Neither the Residence Act nor the Ordinance Governing Residence contains a processing deadline; how long the examination takes depends solely on the competent Ausländerbehörde and on whether your documents are complete. Ask about the usual duration in your district directly at the appointment. If you submitted the application before the expiry of your previous title, that title is deemed to continue until the decision under § 81 Abs. 4 AufenthG; a Fiktionsbescheinigung (provisional residence document) can document this for employers and travel. If the application is refused, half the fee is still payable under § 49 AufenthV, i.e. €54.50.

  6. 6

    Collect your electronic residence title

    The card is handed over in person and bears the annotation “Daueraufenthalt-EU” – this entry is decisive, because other EU member states rely on it in a later application for onward migration. When collecting the card, check all entries as well as the ancillary provisions (Nebenbestimmungen), and have any errors corrected immediately. The title itself is permanent; the card technically expires after ten years at most and is then issued again for €67.00 under § 45c AufenthV, without the requirements being examined again. You can read how the collection works in detail under Collecting your eAT.

Fee information

Costs and payment

The fee is regulated uniformly nationwide: § 44a AufenthV expressly sets €109 for the EU long-term residence permit. This is a fixed amount, not a minimum amount; information such as “from €113” wrongly adopts the fee for the settlement permit from § 44 AufenthV.

Fees

Amount€109.00 (§ 44a AufenthV)
Minorsno more than €54.50 – half as the upper limit under § 69 Abs. 5 Nr. 7 AufenthG
Turkish nationals with rights under the EEC/Turkey Association Agreement€46.00; €27.60 for persons under 24 (§ 52a AufenthV, since 7 February 2026)
Processing fee€54.50 – half, under § 49 Abs. 1 AufenthV; credited against the €109, but not refunded in the event of refusal
Other costsDigital photograph from €6.00 at the terminal of the authority; B1 language certificate and “Leben in Deutschland” test depending on the provider; issuing a new document (card) later: €67.00 (§ 45c AufenthV)
Place of paymentAt the Ausländerbehörde at your place of residence
Means of paymentDepends on the competent authority

€109, not €113. The two amounts are found in two different provisions: § 44 AufenthV governs the settlement permit (€113 as a rule, €124 for self-employment, €147 for highly qualified persons), § 44a AufenthV the EU long-term residence permit at €109. If you are quoted a higher amount at the appointment, refer to § 44a AufenthV.

Reductions and exemptions. For minors, § 69 Abs. 5 Nr. 7 AufenthG limits the fee to no more than half, i.e. €54.50; § 50 Abs. 1 AufenthV, which expressly orders the halving for other fees, does not, however, mention § 44a AufenthV. Turkish nationals with rights under the Association Agreement pay, under § 52a AufenthV, only the rates linked to the identity card fee: €46.00, or €27.60 for persons under 24, valid since 7 February 2026. In addition, § 52 AufenthV provides for full fee exemptions for certain groups of persons – ask about this explicitly, as the authority does not always check it of its own accord.

A refusal also costs money. Under § 49 Abs. 1 AufenthV, a fee of half the issuing fee is already charged for processing the application – here, €54.50. Under § 69 Abs. 7 AufenthG, it is credited against the issuing fee, but it is not refunded if the application is refused or withdrawn. Under § 49 Abs. 3 AufenthV, it is only waived if the application is refused solely because the authority lacks jurisdiction or the applicant lacks capacity to act, or if it is withdrawn before substantive processing begins. It is therefore worth clarifying the questions of how periods count and of exclusion under §§ 9a Abs. 3, 9b AufenthG before the submission of the application, instead of submitting the application “on the off chance”.

Good to know

Important notes

Onward migration within the EU – how it really works. The title implements Richtlinie 2003/109/EG, the EU directive concerning the status of third-country nationals who are long-term residents. It does not allow you simply to stay in another member state, but gives you the right to apply for a residence title of your own there – no later than three months after entry. The destination state examines its own requirements, such as employment, studies, sufficient resources and health insurance, and can refuse the application; in some cases, a labour market test is also permitted. Denmark and Ireland do not apply the directive, so onward migration does not apply there.

Lapse: three deadlines, not just one. Under § 51 Abs. 9 AufenthG, the EU long-term residence permit lapses if you stay for twelve consecutive months outside the territory in which you acquired the legal status. For former holders of an EU Blue Card and their family members, this deadline is extended to 24 consecutive months. Irrespective of this, the title lapses if you stay outside the federal territory for six years. The lapse occurs by operation of law – you do not receive an official notice (Bescheid) and often only notice it on re-entry.

Differences from the settlement permit: old-age provision and income. The requirements are not “almost identical”: for the settlement permit, § 9 Abs. 2 Satz 1 Nr. 3 AufenthG requires, as a separate requirement, at least 60 months of compulsory or voluntary contributions to the statutory pension insurance scheme or comparable expenses. For the EU long-term residence permit, by contrast, § 9c Satz 1 Nr. 2 AufenthG as a rule requires contributions or expenses for adequate old-age provision, which may expressly also have been made abroad; under § 9c Satz 3 AufenthG, no more may be required than for the settlement permit. On the other hand, § 9a is stricter in requiring that subsistence be secured by fixed and regular income; what this includes is specified in § 9c AufenthG, among other things fulfilled tax obligations and permanent health and long-term care insurance cover. Beyond that, there are no additional “EU-specific requirements” – § 9a Abs. 3 AufenthG merely contains grounds for exclusion.

Grounds for exclusion under § 9a Abs. 3 AufenthG. The most common reason for refusal is not found in the requirements but in subsection 3: certain purposes of residence do not lead to the EU long-term residence permit from the outset. These include, among others, stays for the purpose of studies or vocational training, titles granted on grounds of international law or on humanitarian or political grounds, an asylum procedure that has not yet been concluded, and stays that are by nature only temporary. If you only hold such titles, you should first switch to a different purpose of residence. Not excluded, on the other hand, are holders of titles under § 23 Abs. 2 AufenthG and recognised persons entitled to international protection, i.e. persons with refugee protection or subsidiary protection; for the latter, under § 9b Abs. 1 Satz 1 Nr. 5 AufenthG, even the period between the asylum application and the grant of the residence title counts.

Counting the five years under § 9b AufenthG. Not every absence resets the period: stays abroad do not count against you as long as they do not exceed six consecutive months or a total of ten months within the five-year period. Only half of any period of residence for the purpose of studies or vocational training is counted – two years of study therefore count as one year. Holders of an EU Blue Card can additionally count periods of residence in other EU member states.

Permanent title, card with a limited validity. The EU long-term residence permit is permanent and entitles you to pursue gainful employment; separate access to the labour market does not have to be applied for. The electronic residence title as a chip card, on the other hand, technically expires after ten years at most. This does not end your right of residence, but it makes issuing a new document necessary, which costs €67.00 under § 45c AufenthV. Plan your appointment a few months before the card expires so that you always have a valid document for employers and travel.

A digital photograph is mandatory. Since 1 May 2025, passport photos submitted on paper may no longer be used for official identity documents; the transition period ended on 31 July 2025. The photograph for the electronic residence title must therefore be available digitally – either taken at the self-service terminal of the authority for €6.00 or by a certified photographer who transmits it to the authority in encrypted form. Bringing a paper photo means that the appointment ends without a result.

Exceptions for proof of language skills and knowledge. § 9a Abs. 2 Satz 2 AufenthG declares the waiver rules of § 9 Abs. 2 Sätze 2 to 5 AufenthG to apply accordingly. The requirements regarding knowledge of German and basic knowledge of the legal and social order can therefore be waived, among other things, in the case of illness, disability or age-related impairment. Submit the relevant medical certificates as proof together with the application and ask for the decision in writing.

Applying in good time protects your previous title. If you apply for the EU long-term residence permit before the expiry of your previous fixed-term residence title, that title is deemed to continue under § 81 Abs. 4 AufenthG from the time of its expiry until the decision of the Ausländerbehörde. Because this is not visible in your passport, you should have a Fiktionsbescheinigung issued – otherwise employers, banks and border authorities will not recognise that your title continues.

Avoid these mistakes

Common mistakes

Under § 49 AufenthV, a refused application costs half the fee – €54.50 – and, in the worst case, years. These are the mistakes that most often lead to this in practice.

Considering old-age provision to be irrelevant. Although § 9a AufenthG does not specify a fixed number of 60 contribution months, under § 9c Satz 1 Nr. 2 AufenthG fixed and regular income as a rule requires contributions or expenses for adequate old-age provision. Consequence: If you go to the appointment without a Versicherungsverlauf or proof of private provision, you must expect a request for further documents or a refusal – and the processing fee of €54.50 under § 49 Abs. 1 AufenthV is not refunded.

Wanting to submit the application to the BAMF. The Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (Bundesamt für Migration und Flüchtlinge) is responsible for integration courses and asylum procedures, not for granting residence titles. Consequence: Weeks of waiting time are lost before the application even reaches the locally competent Ausländerbehörde – and during this time your previous title may expire.

Counting periods of study and training in full. Under § 9b AufenthG, only half of any period of residence for the purpose of studies or vocational training is counted. Consequence: If you calculate on the basis of four years of study and two years of work, you arrive at four creditable years instead of six – the application is refused and the half fee of €54.50 under § 49 AufenthV is lost.

Underestimating longer stays abroad during the five-year period. Under § 9b AufenthG, only absences of up to six consecutive months or a total of ten months in the five-year period do not count against you. Consequence: An eight-month stay in your home country, for example to care for relatives, can shorten the creditable period so much that you effectively start from scratch.

Regarding fixed-term or topped-up income as “secured”. § 9a Abs. 2 Satz 1 Nr. 2 AufenthG expressly requires fixed and regular income for you and your dependants entitled to maintenance. Consequence: A short fixed-term contract, strongly fluctuating freelance fees or supplementary benefits lead to refusal, even though the current income in the month of the submission of the application would be sufficient.

Only submitting the application after the expiry of your previous title. The continuation effect of § 81 Abs. 4 AufenthG only applies if you apply before the expiry. Consequence: After that, your residence is no longer covered by a title – with consequences for your employment relationship, travel and residence status that are difficult to remedy afterwards.

Staying abroad too long after the title has been granted. § 51 Abs. 9 AufenthG has three deadlines: twelve consecutive months outside the territory in which the legal status was acquired, 24 months for former holders of an EU Blue Card and their family members, and six years outside the federal territory. Consequence: The title lapses by operation of law, without a Bescheid and without warning – this is usually only noticed on re-entry.

Considering onward migration to be automatic. The Long-Term Residents Directive (Richtlinie 2003/109/EG) requires you to apply for a residence title of your own in the second member state no later than three months after entry, and leaves the destination state its own rights of examination. Consequence: If you simply move and do not submit an application, you are staying there without a right of residence; at the same time, the twelve-month deadline of § 51 Abs. 9 AufenthG continues to run in Germany.

Bringing a passport photo on paper. Since 1 May 2025, paper photographs have not been permitted for official identity documents; the transition period ended on 31 July 2025. Consequence: The appointment cannot be completed and you need a new one – and at authorities with long lead times, this costs several weeks.

Frequently asked questions

Questions and answers

How much does the EU long-term residence permit cost?

Under § 44a AufenthV, the fee is a uniform €109.00; this is a fixed amount and not a minimum amount. For minors, under § 69 Abs. 5 Nr. 7 AufenthG it may be no more than half, i.e. €54.50. The frequently quoted amount of €113.00 belongs to the settlement permit under § 44 AufenthV and does not apply here.

Do I need 60 months of pension insurance contributions?

Not as a fixed statutory minimum, but in practice often yes. Under § 9c Satz 1 Nr. 2 AufenthG, fixed and regular income as a rule only exists if you or your spouse living with you as a family unit have paid contributions or incurred expenses for adequate old-age provision in Germany or abroad. Under § 9c Satz 3 AufenthG, the authority must not demand more than the 60 months of compulsory or voluntary contributions or the comparable expenses that § 9 Abs. 2 Satz 1 Nr. 3 AufenthG requires for the settlement permit. Large Ausländerbehörde offices such as those in Berlin, Hamburg and Munich as a rule require proof of 60 contribution months or five years of old-age provision; what is sufficient in an individual case depends on the competent Ausländerbehörde.

What is the difference from the settlement permit?

Both titles are permanent but differ in three respects: instead of a rigid requirement of 60 contribution months, the EU long-term residence permit as a rule requires adequate old-age provision (§ 9c Satz 1 Nr. 2 AufenthG), it expressly requires fixed and regular income, and it opens up onward migration to other EU member states. In addition, under § 51 Abs. 9 AufenthG it only lapses after twelve months of absence instead of six months.

Can I live in any EU country with this title?

Not automatically. The title is based on the EU Long-Term Residents Directive (Richtlinie 2003/109/EG) and gives you the right to apply for a residence title of your own in the destination state – no later than three months after entry. The second member state examines its own requirements, such as employment, studies, sufficient resources and health insurance, and can refuse the application; Denmark and Ireland do not apply the directive.

When does the EU long-term residence permit lapse?

Under § 51 Abs. 9 AufenthG, it lapses after a stay of twelve consecutive months outside the territory in which the legal status was acquired. For former holders of an EU Blue Card and their family members, this deadline is 24 consecutive months. In addition, the title lapses after a stay of six years outside the federal territory, and it does so by operation of law, without an official notice (Bescheid) being issued.

How long does processing take?

Neither the Residence Act nor the Ordinance Governing Residence prescribes a processing deadline; the duration depends solely on the competent Ausländerbehörde and on whether your documents are complete. Therefore, ask about the specific processing time at your appointment. If you applied in good time before the expiry of your previous title, that title is deemed to continue until the decision under § 81 Abs. 4 AufenthG.

Which periods of residence count towards the five years?

§ 9b AufenthG governs how periods are counted: stays abroad count as long as they do not exceed six consecutive months or a total of ten months within the five-year period. Only half of any period of residence for the purpose of studies or vocational training is counted. Holders of an EU Blue Card can also count periods of residence in other EU member states.

Which purposes of residence are excluded?

§ 9a Abs. 3 AufenthG lists the grounds for exclusion. These include, among others, stays for the purpose of studies or vocational training, stays on grounds of international law or on humanitarian or political grounds (except for titles under § 23 Abs. 2 AufenthG and for recognised persons entitled to international protection), an asylum procedure that has not yet been concluded, and stays that are by nature only temporary. If, at the time of the submission of the application, you only hold such a title, the application is refused – in practice, this is the most common reason for refusal.

Related official procedures

Settlement permit (Niederlassungserlaubnis)
Permanent, but without EU mobility
€113 (§ 44 AufenthV; €124 for self-employment, €147 for highly qualified persons)
Naturalisation
German citizenship
€255 under § 38 of the Nationality Act (Staatsangehörigkeitsgesetz, StAG); €51 per child naturalised with you who has no income of their own
EU Blue Card
Preliminary step, with a 24-month deadline before the title lapses
Periods of residence in other EU states can be counted

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