Stay of international researchers

Before planning your stay in Germany, you should find out whether you need a visa.

In general, foreigners need a visa to enter Germany if they want to research and teach here. Exemptions and waivers from this requirement apply to citizens from EU or EEA countries and citizens of countries with which the European Union or Germany has concluded special agreements. You can find a list of countries and detailed information on the German Foreign Ministry’s homepage.

The visa is for entry and must be replaced by a residence permit by the responsible Foreigner’s Office (Ausländerbehörde). Depending on the duration and purpose of your stay, you will need a Schengen visa (research stays for up to three months), a national visa (stay for over three months, allows you to work), or a researcher visa (researchers from non-EU countries).

Please note that Germany has a requirement to register with your local authorities. This means that you need to register with the Bürgerbüro (citizens services) within 14 days of entering the country. This also applies for family members travelling with you. You can download the registration form from our website.
To register, besides the form you will also need your personal ID card / passport and a confirmation from your landlord. This must be filled out and signed by the landlord. If you have booked a room in one of our guest houses, then the Welcome Center will issue this confirmation. With the signature, the landlord confirms that you actually live at the address you have given.

Entry with a visa

If you need a visa to travel to Germany, then you need to submit an application to the German embassy or a consulate in your home country as soon as possible.

• Addresses for German embassies and consulates abroad

It can take between six to eight weeks to issue a visa. Each person travelling will need their own visa. If you want to travel to other EU countries during your stay (e.g. to a conference), then you will need to apply for a visa for that country, as well. 

Entry without a visa

If you will stay for longer than 3 months, you will either need a freedom of movement certificate (EU citizens) or you must apply for a residency permit (Switzerland, Australia, Israel, Japan, Canada, South Korea, New Zealand, USA) in Germany with the Foreigners’s Office (Ausländerbehörde) responsible for your place of residence.

Germany has a comprehensive social security system. It is based on the principle of solidarity. Social benefits include health, long-term care, unemployment, and accident insurance.

Each employee with an employment contract must make contributions to the social security system. The contributions are deducted directly from the salary. Scholarship holders are waived from the requirement to make social security contributions with the exception of health insurance. You can find detailed information on social benefits on the Euraxess homepage.

Besides health insurance, we also recommend you purchase liability insurance.

Staying in Germany with an employment contract

When staying with an employment contract from the University of Hohenheim, you will need to make set contributions into the social security fund.

As soon as you start your work, the host institute will take the steps required to register you for social security benefits. You will be registered with the statutory health insurance provider you choose, who will give you information about the other social security providers.

After completing the registration process, you will receive an insurance number and insurance booklet from the statutory pension insurance provider. You will need to give this number and booklet to your host institute.

The employer is responsible for paying the contributions and will withhold the amount from your paycheck. To get private insurance, your annual gross salary must exceed €60,750.00 (insurance threshold 2019).

If you only have a fixed-term employment contract, you can get a waiver from certain mandatory insurance benefits. Information on getting waivers for mandatory insurance

Staying in Germany with a scholarship/fellowship

If you have a scholarship or fellowship, you will need to purchase private insurance. You can do so either in Germany or in your home country.

Often the scholarship organization will provide health insurance for your stay in Germany. 

In Germany, you generally have to pay taxes on your global income and assets.

If your research stay is being funded with a scholarship or fellowship, then under certain conditions your requirement to pay taxes may be waived.

Staying in Germany with an employment contract

If you have an employment contract with the University of Hohenheim for a period of more than six months, then taxes are withheld from your salary on a monthly basis. This includes income tax, the solidarity surcharge, and church tax.

These are withheld from your gross income by your employer and transferred to the Tax Office.

The amount of taxes depends on your income tax class. The income tax class is determined by the Tax Office and depends on your salary and family situation (spouse, children, etc.).

You must request your income tax card from the Tax Office responsible for your place of residence.

• Tax Office Stuttgart
• Tax Office Filderstadt / Leinfelden-Echterdingen
• Tax Office Esslingen

You can find additional information on the EURAXESS website.

At the end of a calendar year, you have the possibility of submitting a request for a refund to your Tax Office. With this request, you may get part of the taxes you paid refunded. The documents you need are available from your local Tax Office or City Hall.

In many cases, it is worth paying a tax consultant to help you complete your tax return.

Tax Exemption for Scholarships

The following conditions must be fulfilled:

• The scholarship or fellowship comes from public funds or a public or non-profit organization
• The scholarship or fellowship is meant to support scientific or artistic education or continuing education
• The amount is no more than necessary to fulfill the research task or pay for the costs of living and education
• The recipient is given the scholarship or fellowship without any required consideration or activity as an employee according to the guidelines of the funding organization