Legal requirements

Citizens of the European Union, Norway, Iceland, Lichtenstein and Switzerland along with their family members do not require any visa. They just need a valid passport or identity card to enter Germany.

Other nationalities can check for the visa requirement details on the website of the Federal Foreign Office. This can be checked using the visa navigator tool on the same website.

Visa application to Germany must be applied via the German mission abroad (embassy or consulate general) in country of origin. For information regarding the requirements and duration of the visa application, please have a look on the official website of the German embassy in your country.

An overview of the German missions abroad can be found on the homepage of the Federal Foreign Office.

Upon arrival to Hannover, registration at the Bürgerämter in Hannover must be completed within two weeks at any of the eight offices in the city. Further information can be found on the homepage of the city of Hannover. It is advised to book an appointment in advance. The appointment can be booked at the office of your choice using the same listed website. It could be beneficial to be accompanied by a German native speaker because the conversations are usually in German.

If your primary residence is abroad and you are staying in Germany for less than three months, you are exempt from the registration requirement.

After entering Germany with visa you have to apply for a residence permit. This is essential for staying for a long period of time in Germany. This process is handled by the Foreigners’ Registration Office (Ausländerbehörde) and has to be initiated while your visa is still valid. Necessary documents can be found on the official website of the Ausländerbehörde. Please make sure to prepare the documents in advance. Please also note that the average time to get an appointment is between 3 to 6 month so try to arrange for the appointment as soon as possible.

If you are hired at Hannover Medical School (MHH) or at the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI), you will be contacted by the Human Resources Management. The team will provide you information on the required documents. Among other things, this will be: a certificate of good conduct (only at MHH, see next paragraph), proof of health insurance, bank details, copies of the children’s birth certificates, if applicable.

For your start at Hannover Medical School, you will need, among many other documents, a certificate of good conduct. It certifies that you have no criminal record. If, in addition to or instead of German nationality, you are a national of one or more other member states of the European Union or of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, you must have an European certificate of good conduct. In addition to the German certificate of good conduct, it contains the notification of entries in the criminal record of your member state of origin, provided that the member state of origin provides for transmission according to its law.

The certificate of good conduct can be applied for, preferably in advance, via the official online portal of the Federal Office of Justice (BfJ).