Ausbildung requirements in Germany: what you really need

This page is for applicants from outside the EU, the EEA and Switzerland. If you are an EU citizen, you do not need a visa and only the company's requirements apply to you.

Overview: requirements at a glance

School-leaving certificate

This surprises many people: for a company-based Ausbildung, German law does not require any particular school certificate. According to the official portal Make it in Germany, each company decides for itself what it expects from applicants. In practice, most companies expect a completed secondary education, and popular or demanding professions may ask for more.

There are two cases where things are stricter:

• School-based vocational training, which exists for some professions, requires a school certificate that has been officially recognised in Germany.
• Dual study programmes, which combine a university degree with an Ausbildung, require a university entrance qualification.

In Germany, school certificates are recognised by the certificate recognition offices of the 16 federal states. For a normal company-based Ausbildung you usually only need recognition if the company asks for it. Have your certificates translated by a sworn translator in any case, because the embassy and the company will want to read them.

German language

For the visa you normally need German at level B1 of the Common European Framework of Reference. This applies if the training company has not tested your German itself and you have not already completed a preparatory German course. Your certificate should cover all four skills: listening, reading, writing and speaking.

Recognised providers include the Goethe-Institut, telc and ÖSD. Some embassies and companies prefer certificates that are not too old, so time your exam so that it is recent when you apply.

Is B1 enough?

For the visa, yes. For the Ausbildung itself, it is the minimum. At vocational school you will learn technical terms, write tests and later sit a written and practical final exam, all in German. Companies with technical professions often prefer B2 for this reason.

In our experience, the interview matters more than the certificate. If you can talk calmly about yourself, your school and your reasons for choosing the profession, companies notice. If you have a B1 certificate but cannot follow a simple conversation, they notice that too. Our article Can you do an Ausbildung in English? explains how long it realistically takes to reach B1.

Age

There is no upper age limit for an Ausbildung. Most apprentices in Germany are young, but companies also train people in their late twenties or thirties, and people with previous work experience or even a university degree.

Two visa rules depend on age:

• The visa for seeking a training place (Section 17 of the Residence Act), which lets you come to Germany first and look for a place there, is only available to people under 35.
• If you are over 45, the visa requires a minimum salary or proof of adequate retirement provision. Training pay is usually below the salary threshold.

Money to live on

The embassy has to be convinced that you can support yourself for the whole stay. For a company-based Ausbildung, your training pay counts as proof. According to Make it in Germany, your livelihood is considered secure in 2026 if your training pay is at least 1,048 euros gross or 822 euros net a month.

If your pay is lower, you can make up the difference with a blocked account (Sperrkonto) or a formal declaration of commitment (Verpflichtungserklärung), in which a person in Germany agrees to cover your costs. The legal minimum training pay for 2026 is 724 euros in the first year, so this situation is more common than many applicants expect.

Separately from the visa rules, you need cash for the first weeks: rent deposit, first rent, food and transport before your first pay arrives. We explain this with a sample budget in our salary guide.

Health insurance

Health insurance is compulsory in Germany. For the visa and the first days after arrival you usually need private travel or incoming health insurance. Once your Ausbildung starts, you become a member of the statutory health insurance, and your contribution is deducted directly from your training pay.

Documents for the visa

Each German embassy publishes its own checklist, and the details differ from country to country. Always use the checklist of the embassy responsible for you. Most of them ask for:

• Completed application form and biometric passport photos
• Valid passport with copies of the data pages
• Signed training contract
• Approval or pre-approval of the Federal Employment Agency, if the company has already obtained it
• German language certificate
• School certificates with certified translations
• CV in tabular form, ideally in German
• Proof of financial means, if your training pay is below the threshold
• Health insurance for the time until the training starts
• Visa fee, currently 75 euros for a national visa

Incomplete applications are one of the most common reasons for long delays. Check every document twice, and keep copies of everything you submit. The whole procedure is explained in our visa guide.

What companies look for beyond the paperwork

Papers get you to the interview. What happens there decides whether you get the place. These are the things German companies ask us about most often when they consider an applicant from abroad:

• A real reason for the profession. Can you explain what the job involves and why you want to do it for the next thirty years?
• Reliability. Being on time, answering messages, keeping appointments. In Germany these small things are taken very seriously.
• Basic maths and technical understanding for industrial and technical professions. Percentages, units and simple formulas come up at vocational school from the first week.
• Realistic expectations. Shift work, physical work, a small town, a modest salary in the first years. Companies prefer an applicant who knows this and still wants the job.
• Staying power. An Ausbildung takes three years, and the first winter far from home is hard. Companies want to see that you have thought about this.

Questions about the requirements

Sources: Make it in Germany (Federal Government portal), German Residence Act (Sections 16a and 17). Figures as of September 2026. This page is general information, not legal advice.