Visa and residence permit

Use the Federal Foreign Office's Visa-Navigator to check whether you need a visa. If you do need one, it'll help you figure out which type of visa you need. 

Your visa should be applied for as early as possible because it often takes a while to be processed. Therefore, directly after getting your admission letter from HSB, the first thing you have to work on is your visa application for Germany.

Are you an Erasmus student, hold a non-European nationality and study at one of our European partner universities?

If you have a valid residence permit for another EU country - under certain conditions - you may enter Germany without a German visa and residence permit and study at HSB. The so-called REST directive applies here: you have to get registered at the "Bundesamt für Migration und Flüchtlinge" ("BAMF" - Federal Office for Migration and Refugees).

Here, you find a check list with information about the process and the required documents and the form Declaration-Livelihood with which you confirm by signature that you have sufficient financial means of currently 992€ per month and valid health insurance for your stay in Germany. Note: The dates entered in this form must match the dates of the planned arrival and departure dates!

You must submit ALL complete documents to us at least 6 weeks before your planned arrival in Germany.
If you fail to do so, or if you have difficulty providing the necessary documents, visa-free entry via the REST procedure is not possible. In this case, you must apply for a visa to enter Germany!

You are required to register as a resident if the duration of your stay exceeds three months. All residents of Germany are required to register their addresses within 14 days (after moving in at the permanent place of residence).
As soon as you have moved into your accommodation, you must register with the local Resident Registration Office. If you will be living in Bremen, you have to get registered with the Bürger Service Center (BSC) which will issue your confirmation of registration (Meldebestätigung).
If you will be living outside of Bremen, contact the relevant authority in your new place of residence. Your landlord can give you more information.

You need these forms:

• Registration form (in German),
• Fill in instructions,
• Landlord confirmation (in German),
• Copy of your ID/passport.

Book an appointment here.  Use these instructions.

No appointments available?

Use the open office hours and go directly to the BSC at Pelzerstraße 40, 28195 Bremen to submit the documents:

Monday from 13:00 to 18:00 hrs and Wednesday from 7:30 to 12:30 hrs. Be prepared for waiting times.

Check here in advance whether this offer is still current (click on the drop-down menu "Öffnungszeiten" (opening hours) and search for "offene Sprechzeit" (open office hours).

HSB’s International Office will send you all the relevant information shortly after your arrival to Germany.

Any person moving within their town or moving away from it must change their address or de-register. Please remember to notify all important authorities (HSB, health insurance, etc.) of your new address. 

You will need a residence permit, if you are a non-EEA citizen and if your stay in Germany is going to exceed three months.

Apply for a visa at the German Embassy in your home country and, when in Germany, apply for a residence permit at the Foreigners’ Registration Office (Ausländerbehörde / Migrationsamt) within your first three months in Germany.

Students who do not require a visa to enter Germany (i.e. citizens of Australia, Brazil, Canada, Israel, Japan, Republic of Korea, Switzerland, UK (incl. Northern Ireland), the USA must apply for a residence permit by three months after entry at the latest (recommendation: apply as early as possible!). 

Exception: If the visa was issued for the entire duration of the stay abroad, it is not necessary to apply for a residence permit.

If you live in Bremen, contact the BSU (Bremen Service University).
If you live outside of Bremen, contact the relevant authority in your new place of residence. Ask your landlord for more information.

No residence permit is required, if you are

• a student with citizenship of EU/EEA member states (List of EU and EEA countries):
  you only have to register in Bremen or the registration office responsible for their place of residence.
• a student without EU/EFTA citizenship who studies in an EU/EFTA member state with a valid residence permit for study purposes in that state:
  if HSB arranged the BAMF (REST) confirmation for you, you do not need to apply for a residence permit. 

A residence permit is required, if you are

• from Switzerland: as a Swiss citizen, you need to obtain a document of the type Aufenthaltserlaubnis-CH if you wish to stay in Germany for more than 90 days. This is a special type of residence permit for Swiss people living in Germany.
• from another country but you did not need a visa to enter Germany:
  if you are from a country that is not part of the EU, the EEA, or Switzerland, and if you arrived in Germany without needing a visa, then you definitely must obtain a residence permit if you wish to study in Germany. You should apply for one as soon as you arrive in Bremen.

Do not hesitate to ask HSB’s International Office for help.

If you live in Bremen, you need to fill in the form of de-registration.
The form is in German only. Therefore, please use these instructions.
Send the document and a copy of your passport or ID via email to: bscmitte@buergeramt.bremen.de.

Those, living outside Bremen, contact the responsible office in their locality.