Red Tape Translation has been reading a lot of blog posts lately written by Berlin expats who obtained their freelance artist visas and want to share their knowledge with the world. Most of them are incredibly helpful and well-meaning, but there is one discrepancy which might cause a bit of confusion on the Berlin freelance scene, and we’d like to help clear it up.
The term “freelance” is not quite the same thing in German as it is in English. Do you work for yourself? Make your own hours? Have more than one client and bill them? In Germany, you are self-employed, and you may or may not be further defined as freiberuflich (freelance) as well. Some types of work are considered trades (gewerblich) and require a business registration “Gewerbeanmeldung” and the payment of trade tax (Gewerbesteuer). Others are “freelance” professions, activities or services of a “higher art” that sometimes require a higher level of education.
Within this “freelance” category, there are professions in the industries that you’d typically get an artist’s visa for. An artists visa looks just like the normal self-employment work permit, but certain professions have been pre-approved for fast processing, which makes it easier to get. If you actually are an artist, your permit will say “freelance work as an artist permitted.” There are other fields of work for which you can usually get a permit on the spot. The most common ones that Red Tape Translation sees every day are: artists, musicians, actors, graphic designers (sometimes), film-makers, and language teachers. It seems that in Berlin, applicants working in these fields get to bypass a spot of bureaucracy and, should all your ducks be in a row and they are satisfied with your application, you get your permit on the spot at your first appointment. The word “artist” won’t appear anywhere on your permit. It’s just a freelance permit.
However, if you’re a “freelance software developer” or “freelance IT analyst” by your own definition, you probably won’t get your permit on the spot. You could get a work permit for self-employment (call it a freelance work permit if you like), but your application won’t be approved instantly, instead, it will be sent away to another department first. They’ll check that Germany has an economic interest in your field. They’ll make sure you can support yourself. They’ll see that all your ducks are in a row, that you’ve got the right type of health insurance, a financial plan, some capital, some offers on the table, etc. The whole process can take 6-8 weeks.
One very common question is this: I now have an artist’s visa or freelance work permit, but what kind of work am I actually permitted to do? Can I stretch the boundaries? You’re permitted to do exactly what is listed on your work permit. So if you are a part-time clown, part-time English teacher, and part time app developer, make sure it all gets written on your work permit. You might also need two job offers and suitable work experience and references for EACH of these fields of work. If that works out for you, then you can have fun explaining your activities to the Finanzamt.
Do you want some help preparing for your appointment?
As an opera singer, English teacher and translator, this is really useful! Thank you for posting – I’ll definitely make sure to include all of them on my application!
Be careful though – you might need to show qualifications, work experience and job offers that support all of your different activities. Make sure you have a strong case for doing all of your different activities.
Hi, I have a question that I can’t seem to find an answer to as of yet. My husband and I are moving to Germany in May. He is a graphic designer and owns his own business. I work with him (doing books, project management, and creative direction) and am therefore his only one employee. We have american clients that we are keeping and will be paid as we normally are here in the states (aka we are not looking for work in Germany. Just to move to Germany and work from there). My question is this: Do we both have to apply for an artist freelance visa? Or since we are married and work for the same company (his company), can we apply for one together?
Thanks so much!
What happens if you do end up needing to do work outside of what your visa states, because you aren’t making ends meet with your permitted jobs?
Hi Liz, yes, this happens all the time! You’re supposed to go to the Ausländerbehörde with your job offers and the qualifications and work experienced to back it up and ask them to grant you permission to do those work contracts. If they agree, they’ll add the job descriptions to your permit. Plenty of freelancers don’t bother doing this – some get away with it, some run into problems when they go to renew.
Hello. I have am in the first year of a 2 year freelance visa in Germany and am planning a trip abroad over the winter. I know there are limits on how many days I can stay out of the country without having my visa revoked, but can’t find a definitive answer. Would have any advice how I can be sure? Also would I have to abmeldung from my residence if I am away for a period of 2-3 months? Many thanks!