Germany · Employment
EU Blue Card
Open
Last verified July 2026
Open. Thresholds rose on 1 January 2026.
Permanent residence in 21 months is exceptional by European standards, and the spouse is exempt from the German language requirement that burdens other family reunification routes. For a senior executive taking a German role, the Blue Card is strictly better than any other permit they might be offered.
The facts
- Qualifying figure
- €50.7k
- Total landed cost
- Around EUR 100 in permit fees; the requirement is a qualifying salary, not capital
- Timeline
- 1–4 months — Faster where the employer uses the accelerated skilled worker procedure
- Physical presence
- Genuine employment and residence in Germany
- Family
- spouse with no German language requirement — a real advantage over other German routesminor children
- Permanent residency
- 21 months with B1 German, or 27 months with A1 — the fastest permanent residence route in Germany
- Citizenship
- 5 years
- Language test
- B1 German for naturalisation
- Dual citizenship
- Permitted
- Requirements
- recognised university degree, or for IT specialists 3 years of relevant experience at academic level obtained within the last 7 yearsbinding German job offer or contract matching the qualificationgross salary of at least EUR 50,700 (2026), or EUR 45,934.20 for shortage occupations, recent graduates and qualifying IT specialists
What can go wrong
- Thresholds rise annually. For 2026: EUR 50,700 gross standard, EUR 45,934.20 for shortage occupations, recent graduates (qualification within the past 3 years) and qualifying IT specialists without a degree.
- The card is tied to the employment. Losing the job jeopardises the permit and the permanent residence clock.
- Foreign degrees must be recognised as equivalent, which can take months and should be started before the job offer, not after.
- It is an employment route: it does not help a family whose income is investment returns rather than salary.