Niederlassungserlaubnis with ALG1

Question

Hello All,

I am facing an unfortunate situation and need some advise. I am working on Blue Card visa since Nov 2021 with the same company. That means I have paid 39 months of Rente and also have A1 and Einburgerungstest and was planning to apply for Niederlassungserlaubnis. (Was too lazy to do it earlier)

Leider, my boss informed us last week that company is filling for insolvency. We will get 3 months of insolvency money and then I will be eligible for 12 months of ALG1. My current blue card is valid until 2026 March.

I was planning to apply for  Niederlassungserlaubnis already but now everything seems hard. Can I still apply for it and get through any legal way, like by involving a lawyer etc. For sure in worst case, I can still sustain myself for at least 15 months (3+12 months alg1). Please guide what should be done next?

Thank you

Answer 1

Hi @anglo23

I’m sorry to read of your job loss. The immigration office (Ausländerbehörde) will give you some time to find a new job. Just because you can financially support yourself for 15 months, however, does not mean you will be given 15 months to stay without work.

Unfortunately, the issue of the Niederlassungserlaubnis in your situation is not so clear. The section of the law that covers Niederlassungserlaubnis for skilled workers is 18c:

https://***.gesetze-im-internet.de/aufenthg_2004/__18c.html

You’ll see in section 1 that five key requirements are listed. Number 2 states that the person must have a job and so you would not fulfil these conditions.

However, in section 2 it details special rules for people with a Blue Card. It differs from the requirements in section 1 by not making an explicit reference to the person having a job. It only states the person must have worked for 27 months, have paid into the pension system for these months and speak A1 level of German. In my view, you fulfil these conditions.

The other general requirement for a Niederlassungserlaubnis is that you are financially secure (Lebensunterhaltsicherung). While you can show you are able to sustain yourself currently and in the near future, the immigration office wants to see that this will remain the case longer-term. They make a decision called a ‘Prognoseentscheidung’ on how likely it is a person will remain financially secure.

Generally, being unemployed rules a person out for a Niederlassungserlaubnis. As a have a Blue Card, you could argue that based on your education, skills, work experience in your home country and Germany, and the job market for people in your profession, that it is highly likely that after this period of unemployment you will continue to be financially secure. You would need to make a very strong argument for this to work and a lawyer may be able to assist in offering a more thorough assessment of your situation and advising you on an application if you make one. We cannot provide legal advice here, just information on the immigration law.

Best,

Éanna