The EU Blue Card, like all longer-term residence permits, is issued exclusively by the relevant Aliens Authority in Germany. You must apply for the national visa, which is required in advance, from the Embassy / the Consualte General. Applications take about two weeks to be processed.

To be eligible for an EU Blue Card your gross salary in Germany must add up to at least 58.400 EUR per year (4.866,67 EUR per month) (for scientists/mathematicians/engineers/doctors/IT-specialists the minimum is 45.552 EUR (per month 3.796 EUR))

General information on the EU Blue Card is available from the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees Website  and from the portal for qualified professionals. 

A visa in order to live in Germany is a national visa and does also entitle you to enter the other Schengen countries for the duration for up to 90 days for tourist purposes.

 Upon submission of all the required documents, the application will be forwarded to the competent German authorities. After the application has been approved, the German Embassy / the Consualte General will issue a residence permit in the form of a visa with the duration for up to six months. The final EU Blue Card will be granted in Germany by the relevant Aliens Authority.

Required documents:

Please prepare two identical application sets with all of the following documents in the given order. Incomplete documentation may result in the rejection of your application.

• "Employment in Germany"
• Valid national passport with at least two blank visa-pages and two copies
• Application form fully completed including declaration Section 54 (2) 8, duly signed

• If you wish to receive your Passport with your Visa by mail:
  • Applicant at the Embassy in Tokyo: a self-addressed LetterPack 520
  • Applicant at the General Consulate in Osaka: a self-addressed DIN A4 envelop
  

• Two passport photographs, not older than three months with a bright background and frontal view of the face
• Copy of your passport’s data page
• Copy of your Japanese residence card – if applicable
• Curriculum vitae of professional career, including certificates, diplomas, etc.
• Contract/binding job offer from your future employer in Germany (containing gross annual salary, working hours, workplace, duration of work)
• Certificate of university graduation (German university degree or recognised foreign degree comparable to a German degree)
• Visa fee (75 EUR, payable by cash or credit card in Japanese Yen according to the official exchange rate on the date of application)

AFTER YOUR APPLICATION HAS BEEN APPROVED

• Flight reservation/itinerary (including your name) to Germany
• Proof of travel health insurance, for up to one year in Germany with a minimum coverage of 30.000,00 EUR, including the following details: name of insured person, length of coverage, insurance sum and repatriation coverage

Please note: In individual cases, you may be required to provide additional documents.

You can check whether your foreign university degree is recognised or comparable by consulting the ANABIN database. If your foreign university degree is not listed yet, please proceed as described on the website to establish its listing.

Please note that the German Embassy Tokyo / the Consulate General Osaka-Kobe reserves the right to ask for additional documents at any time during processing. Submission of the above mentioned documents does not guarantee that a visa is granted.

Additional information:

This page has been prepared with utmost care. It is intended to provide a point of reference to our clients but may not be fully applicable to every individual case. If you have further, more specific questions which are not answered by the information contained here nor on our website, please contact the German Embassy / the Consulate General serving your prefecture. The German missions in Japan cannot accept any responsibility for inaccuracies contained in this page.