7 Insider Tips for Your German Freelance Visa Application

German freelance visa application tips

Tried & True Insights For a Successful German Freelance Visa Application

Have you ever thought about living and working in Berlin or Germany as a freelancer?

I won’t lie, applying for a freelancer’s visa in Berlin is a doozy. It’s impossible for me to say whether getting a freelancer’s visa is “easy” or “hard” since every person’s application will look different based on their income, job description, and so on.

However, I will say this: completing a German freelance visa application requires some intense preparation and lots of paperwork. 

The fact that you’re reading this blog post is a good sign, though. It shows that you’re doing your research and are already working to prepare your application. That’s the first step! 

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German freelance visa application
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In this blog post, I’ll be sharing my top tips for applying for a freelancer’s visa in Berlin. There are quite a few “unspoken rules” you have to deal with during the application process, and you definitely don’t want any surprises during your visa appointment! 

Disclaimer: This blog post is not legal advice. The following are simply tips I gleaned after going through the visa application process myself. 

German freelance visa application tips
Claire shares her top German freelance visa application tips with us after having successfully gone through the process herself.

The Freelancer Behind This Blog Post 

Before diving into the tips for the visa application process, I wanted to briefly introduce myself so you know who I am and why I’m qualified to write this post in the first place. 

I’m Claire, a freelance writer from the USA and the blogger behind Tall Girl Big World. I moved to Berlin in May 2019 and received my freelancer’s visa in August 2019. 

Prior to my transatlantic move, I worked a full-time editorial job in NYC. After nearly three years at that company, my entire team was laid off due to budget cuts. From there, I spent almost a full year working to grow my freelance business in preparation for my move to Berlin. 

Now, enough about me. Here are my top  7 German freelance visa application tips. 

Tip #1: Meet with a Relocation Specialist 

If there’s one thing you take away from this blog post, let it be this tip. Even if you think you fully understand the requirements for the freelancer’s visa … you probably don’t. Hence my reason for writing this blog post in the first place! 

Yes, the Berlin government has a checklist of required materials for the freelancer’s visa application. However, there are many unspoken do’s and don’ts when it comes to applying for a freelancer’s visa. 

As such, I highly recommend meeting with an immigration lawyer or a relocation specialist. I had an hour-long appointment with a relocation specialist at Expath and considered it money well spent. I met with Expath at the beginning of my first 90 days in Berlin, which gave me plenty of time to drum up the materials for my application. 

3 thoughts on “7 Insider Tips for Your German Freelance Visa Application

  1. Thank you for writing and sharing this informative article.After reading this article i get to know information about freelance visa policy.

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