VISA INFORMATION FOR EXCHANGE STUDENTS, January 2012

VISA VISA VISA INFORMATION INFORMATION INFORMATION FOR FOR FOR EXCHANGE EXCHANGE STUDENTS
STUDENTS
All non-EU students must obtain a visa either before coming to Germany or once they are in Hamburg,
depending on their citizenship.
1. Citizens of EU counties do not need a visa to study in Germany. Instead, you will automatically receive
a certificate to prove your right to free mobility. If you are an EU citizen, we will simply collect your
passport or European identity card (NOT your driver’s license) during the Orientation Program in order
for you to obtain this certificate.
2. If you are a citizen of Australia, Canada, Israel, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, Switzerland or the
U.S., you can travel to Germany as a tourist. You do not need to apply for a visa ahead of time, but will
need to obtain a student visa once you are in Hamburg.
3. If you are a citizen of a country other than those listed above, please contact your local German
consulate or embassy to determine whether an entrance visa is required for you as a student in
Germany. If this is the case, you must apply for an entrance visa in your home country before coming to
Germany. Bucerius will provide the proof of admission required by the German authorities, but it is your
responsibility to obtain an entrance visa in a timely manner. This process usually takes about 6 weeks.
The entrance visa is typically valid for 90 days only and must be extended once you are in Hamburg;
however, please ask the embassy or consulate to issue it through the month of December, which they
may or may not be willing to do. Please be sure to make copies of all of the documents you submit to
the embassy (e.g. the financial statement), as you will need these later to apply for your visa extension.
If you fall under the second category (citizen of the U.S., Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Israel, Japan or
Switzerland), the International Office will help you obtain a student visa upon your arrival in Hamburg. If
you fall under the third category (citizen of another country other than those listed above), the
International Office will assist you in applying for a visa extension during the Orientation Program, but
not with the application for an entrance visa in your home country.
In both cases, you must post certain documentation to the International Office by July 15, 2012 (as
described below) and will then complete the remaining supporting documents after your arrival in
Hamburg during the Orientation Program. Students who fail to submit the required documents by July 15
will have to apply for their visa / extension on their own. EU citizens do not need to submit any
documents prior to your arrival.
1

A complete visa or extension application consists of the following:
1. Financial statement (due by July 15, 2012; see below for details)
2. Proof of health insurance covering you in Germany during your entire stay (due by July 15, 2012;
see below for details)
3. One biometric photo (due by July 15, 2012; see below for details)
4. Visa application form (to be filled out with our assistance during the Orientation Program)
5. City registration form (to be filled out with our assistance during the Orientation Program)
6. Move-in confirmation (to be filled out with our assistance during the Orientation Program)
7. A passport valid for the duration of your stay (to submit upon arrival).
As mentioned above, you will need to complete a city registration (“Anmeldung”) form, which we will
assist you with during the Orientation Program. Please note that in order to complete this form, you will
need to know your address in Germany, as well as your landlord’s name and where s/he is registered
(“angemeldet”).
Please send the financial statement, proof of health insurance and biometric photo by July 15, 2012 to:
Ms. Chipley Bader
Clifford Chance International Office
Bucerius Law School
Jungiusstr. 6
20355 Hamburg
Germany
As of September 1, 2011, all students must apply for an electronic residency permit (eAT), a credit-card
type of id that will have your biometric data stored in its chip. Once you are in Hamburg, we will arrange
a time and date for you to appear in person at the Immigration Office to submit your application in full
and to have your fingerprints scanned. At the time of your appointment, non-EU members will have to
pay EUR EUR 100 100 100 in cash or with an EC-card for the student visa (residency permit) or extension and EUR 10
for the city registration. EU citizens will not have to appear in person nor pay for the certificate of free
mobility, but will also be charged EUR 10 for the city registration.
You will be able to keep your passport after your appointment; however, issuance of your eAT can take
6 – 8 weeks. In the unlikely event that your entrance visa expires before your eAT is issued, you will
receive a temporary certificate acknowledging your right to be in the country (“Fiktionsbescheinigung”).
Detailed information on the eAT is available in English here:
http://www.bamf.de/SharedDocs/Anlagen/DE/Publikationen/Broschueren/Broschuere-eAT-
en.pdf?__blob=publicationFile
2

Financial Financial Financial Statement
Statement
Statement
The Immigration Office requires that you submit a financial statement as proof that you have sufficient
funds to meet your educational needs and the cost of living during your stay in Hamburg. In compliance
with this regulation, the following sources of subsistence are acceptable: personal savings OR family
support OR financial aid / a scholarship from another institution. In each case, you need to provide one
one
of the following three forms of supporting documentation in English:
1. Personal Savings: Please submit an official, original statement stamped and signed by your bank
certifying that you have at least EUR 3000 to cover your living expenses in Germany.
2. Family Support: If a family member (e.g. a parent or spouse) is financing your stay in Hamburg, s/he
will need to complete and sign a “Formal Obligation Form” in the German embassy or consulate nearest
you. S/he will also need to submit proof of possessing at least EUR 3000 to finance your studies (e.g. a
bank statement, salary statement or tax declaration). The embassy or consulate will keep the originals of
both of these documents, so please be sure to make copies for your own records, as you will need to
submit these to the International Office in July.
3. Financial Aid / Scholarship from your home university, a government agency, private foundation,
bank, etc.: Please submit an official, original letter specifying the amount and availability of funds of your
financial aid or scholarship.
NB: Once again, you only need to submit one of the above-listed financial statements.
Health ealth Insurance nsurance
In compliance with the regulations of the Immigration Office, all non-EU citizens must prove that you
have health insurance covering you in the Schengen area for the duration of your stay for up to EUR
30,000. To satisfy this requirement, you can purchase health insurance in your home country, ask
whether your current policy covers you during your stay abroad or purchase an affordable German
insurance policy through the help of Bucerius.
The policy provided through Bucerius satisfies the German requirements for the visa. Coverage costs
approximately EUR 30 per month and begins when you arrive in Germany. The company reimburses
expenses in the event of acute and unforeseen illness and accidents, and will cover medical treatment,
drugs and dressing materials prescribed by a doctor for non pre-existing conditions. Appliances required
as a result of medical treatment in order to fix an injured part of the body are also covered. Simple
dental fillings, including extractions in order to alleviate acute pain, and simple repairs of dental
prosthesis are covered as well. The insurance will not provide benefits for medical treatment of diseases
that were already known and / or treated before coming to Germany, costs for psychoanalytic and
3

psychotherapeutic treatment, regular check-ups, injuries resulting from suicide attempts, or pregnancy,
deliveries and consequences thereof, even if these were caused by an accident.
If you choose to purchase health insurance through Bucerius, you will either need to register to open a
German bank account with us or already have a German bank account. This is important for any
reimbursements that could take place during the Exchange Program.
NB: If you plan to purchase your health insurance through Bucerius, you do NOT need to send us any
other proof of health insurance by July 15, 2012. The health insurance will be issued and billed to you
during the Orientation Program.
Biometrical iometrical Photo
For your visa application, you also need to submit one biometric photo that meets the following
requirements:
1. The photograph must not be older than six months.
2. The photograph must measure 35 mm x 45 mm.
3. The photograph must be a full-face photo. The applicant must face the camera directly, with
both ears visible. The photograph of the applicant’s head must be between 25 mm and 35 mm
when measured vertically. The applicant should not be looking down or to either side, should
not smile and his or her face should cover about 70 - 80 % of the area of the photo. The
applicant’s head, including both face and hair, should be shown from the crown of the head to
tip of the chin on top and bottom and from hair line side-to-side. It is preferable that the ears are
exposed.
4. The photograph must have a bright, unicolored background and should be printed without
borders.
5. Head coverings and hats are only acceptable due to religious beliefs, and even then, may not
obscure any portion of the applicant’s face. Sunglasses or other accessories detracting from the
face as defined above are not acceptable unless required for medical reasons (an eye patch, for
example). Photos of military, airline or other personnel wearing hats are not acceptable.
We recommend printing these guidelines and taking them with you to the photographer.
Please Please note note that that since since since the the visa visa application application process process has has recently recently changed, changed, there there may may be be additional
additional
updates updates and and and / / or or changes changes to to to the the information provided in this this document
document, document which we will provide as soon
as possible. If you have any questions regarding visa issues, please do not hesitate to contact us:
chipley.bader@law-school.de.
(Updated: December 2011)
4