Welcome
Recognition Partnership
With this visa, you can already work as a skilled worker while your employer supports you through the recognition process.
Important information
Please submit this application online via Consular Services Portal. This provides you with preliminary feedback on whether your documents are complete. Your appointment will then proceed quickly and efficiently.
General Information
All information regarding the scheduling of appointments can be found here .
| Visa Category | |
| National Visa | Fee |
| Regular | 75,- € |
| Reduced | 37,50,- € |
Visa fees must be paid either by international credit card (Visa / Mastercard) or in cash in RWF at the current exchange rate.
The duration of the entire visa process varies significantly: it can take from a few working days to several months. We cannot guarantee a specific processing time, as domestic German authorities must be involved during the process, and the German Embass in Kigali has no influence over their processing times. The final review and decision by the German Embassy can only take place after the feedback from Germany has been received. Please plan for a processing time of approximately three months. In individual cases, it may take longer.
The Embassy in Kigali reviews and decides on your application. In doing so, the legal requirements are always examined on a case-by-case basis based on the submitted application documents. Depending on the purpose of the stay, this review may take from a few working days to several months. The processing time increases if documents require more intensive scrutiny or if further research regarding the applicant or the actual purpose of the stay is necessary.
Regarding inquiries: For data protection reasons, detailed information can only be provided to the applicant, their legal representative, or a representative with written power of attorney. Other inquiries from third parties unfortunately cannot be answered. We ask for your understanding that the visa section is not reachable by telephone due to capacity constraints. However, you may send us a message at visa@kiga.diplo.de.
Exception: For applicants participating in the accelerated procedure for skilled workers, the processing time is generally three weeks after the application has been submitted. The processing time may be extended if additional documents are requested or if further questions must be clarified.
As a general rule, you must collect your passport in person.
Once a decision has been made on your application, you will be informed about the collection either via an email through the Consular Services Portal or by telephone.
Please check the website for information regarding public holidays on which the Embassy is closed.
Upon receiving your passport, please check that all details on the visa label are correct. Please notify us immediately of any errors so that we can issue a new visa. With a national visa, you may travel within the Schengen area. Everyone residing in Germany must be registered. You should do this at the residents' registration office (Einwohnermeldeamt) or citizens' office (Bürgeramt) no later than two weeks after moving in. Please contact the immigration office (Ausländerbehörde) in your place of residence in Germany well before your visa expires to apply for your residence permit.
If your visa application has been rejected, this may be for various reasons. These reasons will be stated in the notice of refusal.
Your guide to arriving in Germany: Make it in Germany
The overview of required documents indicates whether you must provide a language certificate. Currently recognized providers of language certificates are:
- Language certificates from the Goethe-Institut e.V.
- Language certificates from telc Gmbh
- Language certificates from the Austrian Language Diploma (ÖSD)
- “TestDaF” from the TestDaF-Institut e.V. (Institute of the FernUniversität in Hagen and the Ruhr-University Bochum, examination level from B2 CEFR onwards)
- Language certificates from the ECL Examination Centre
The certificate must not be older than 12 months at the time of application. If you have taken the examination in various modules/partial exams, all modules must have been completed with the same provider. Evidence of different exam parts from different providers is not sufficient.
The Embassy is aware of cases where language certificates have been issued or obtained fraudulently. The Embassy reserves the right to verify your German language skills. Insufficient German language proficiency may be a ground for the refusal of a visa application.
Information on this Visa Category
In order to take up qualified employment in Germany, your qualification must be recognized or assessed as comparable to a German qualification. Employment is considered “qualified” if the skills, knowledge, and abilities required to perform it are acquired through a degree program or qualified vocational training.
With a visa for a recognition partnership, you do not have to complete the recognition process before entry; instead, you can do so with the support of your employer in Germany. The prerequisite for this is that you hold a university degree or have completed vocational training of at least two years, which is state-recognized in Rwanda (or in the country where it was completed).
Under a recognition partnership, you can engage in qualified employment for your employer immediately upon entry. The employer assists you in undergoing the recognition process in Germany. If the process determines that your training has significant differences compared to a German qualification and you need further training in certain areas, your employer enables you to participate in corresponding qualification measures.
Upon completion of these measures and full recognition of your qualification, your employer can employ you as a skilled worker, and you can apply for permanent residence in Germany. Please note that some foreign university degrees are evaluated as vocational training in Germany.
Information on the recognition process can be found here. For more in-depth advice and support during the recognition process, please contact the Central Service Point for Recognition of Professional Qualifications (Zentrale Servicestelle Berufsanerkennung (ZSBA).)
- Note: You can also have your qualifications checked from Rwanda. After a successful check, you can either apply directly for a visa for skilled workers with vocational training if the equivalence of your training has been established, or apply for a visa for a qualification measure to become a skilled worker if the check reveals significant differences compared to German training.
| Application | Required Financial Means |
| Students | 11.904,- € / monthly payment: 992,- € |
| Applicants for studies | 9.819,- € / monthly payment: 1.091,- € |
| Vocational training | 1.048,- € (per month / gross) |
| EU Blue Card | |
| Academics with professional experience | 50.700,- € (per year) |
| Shortage occupations | 45.934,20 € (per year) |
| Recent graduates (within 3 years of university graduation) | 45.934,20 € (per year) |
| IT specialists | 45.934,20 € (per year) |
| Applicants over 45 years of age | |
| Skilled workers who do not meet the requirements for an EU Blue Card and have reached the age of 45 at the time of application must either prove a gross annual salary of at least 55% of the annual contribution assessment ceiling for the general pension insurance. Alternatively, adequate old-age provision must be proven (e.g., real estate, securities, insurance, etc.), unless a justified exceptional case exists. | 55.770,- € (per year) |
| Scientists and Researchers | |
| If your minimum salary for a 40-hour work week reaches this amount, your livelihood is considered secured. In this case, no further evidence is required. | 2.410,- € (per month, gross) |
| If remuneration of this amount is not available, the security of the livelihood must be proven by appropriate evidence, e.g., a scholarship or a blocked account. | 1.091,- € (per month, net) |
| IT specialists without formally recognized qualifications | |
| The gross annual salary must exceed this amount. Exception: Your employer is bound by a collective agreement and employs you according to the applicable collective bargaining conditions. | 45.630,- € (per year) |
| Au Pair | |
| The livelihood is considered secured if the au pair has this amount available, plus free health and long-term care insurance. This amount consists of pocket money (280 EUR per month) and a subsidy for a German language course (at least 70 EUR per month). | 350,- € (per month) |
| Voluntary Service | |
| The livelihood is considered secured if the volunteer has this amount available, plus free health and long-term care insurance. This amount consists of 380 EUR for housing costs, 173 EUR for meals, and 302 EUR for pocket money. A combination of cash and benefits in kind (e.g., free accommodation) is possible. | 855,- € (per month) |
| Internship | 992.- € (per month) |
| Language Course | 1.091.- € (per month) |
Required Documents
Please submit all necessary documents (see below). Where an original exists, it must be presented in addition to the required simple copy. Originals will be returned to you upon completion of the process. All documents not issued in German, English, or French must be submitted together with a translation. Missing documents or evidence may lead to the rejection of the application.
In your application form, please provide all information regarding your entry into and stay in Germany. Please complete this form in full, print it, and sign it yourself.
Link to the “VIDEX” form.
Two current biometric passport photos (45mm x 35mm). Information on biometric passport photos can be found here.
Please paste only one passport photo onto the application form and attach the second one separately.
The document must have at least two blank pages (in the event of a positive decision, your visa will be pasted here).
Proof of sufficient health insurance coverage for entry, valid from the requested date of entry and for a duration of at least three months.
If you are subject to compulsory statutory health insurance as an employee, please note that this only takes effect upon establishing residence in Germany and commencing employment. Since this does not apply immediately upon entry, additional private health insurance must be taken out until the employment begins and enrollment in the statutory health insurance is possible. Travel health insurance policies may exclude coverage in their terms and conditions if a long-term or permanent stay is planned. So-called “incoming insurance” may also contain such exclusions.
Tabular and complete CV, specifically detailing previous education and, if applicable professional experience.
This must indicate where and in which subject or profession you completed your studies or training, and the duration of the training.
To prove that your qualification is state-recognized, please submit a corresponding decision from the ZAB (Zentralstelle für das Auslandsbildungswesen))
An agreement with your employer stating that the recognition process will be undergone after entry. The agreement must also specify that any identified deficits will be compensated for within a maximum of three years.
The declaration of employment is only necessary if the visa application is not submitted via the accelerated procedure for skilled workers. In the accelerated procedure, the approval of the Federal Employment Agency is obtained by the competent immigration authority.
The “Declaration of Employment” form (Erklärung zum Beschäftigungsverhältnis) including Supplementary Sheet A, must be fully completed by the employer. The position must be a qualified employment.
Exception: If the intended employment after recognition is a so-called regulated profession (primarily medical professions), non-qualified employment may be performed during the recognition process. In these cases, the employer must provide information on whether there is a collective agreement, whether church labor law applies, or whether it is a care facility licensed under § 72 SGB XI. Furthermore, the information must show that the employment leads toward the intended target profession.
You must prove that you have sufficient German language skills for the planned measure, usually at level A2. For qualification measures in the healthcare sector, at least level B1 is generally required. The specific language level required in individual cases should be evident from the information provided by the educational institution. To this end, please submit a language certificate from a recognized examination provider. An overview of the providers can be found in the general notes of the respective visa category.
Proof of sufficient health insurance coverage for entry, valid from the requested date of entry and for a duration of at least three months.