moving to Germany
 

Hi there,

we are planning to move to Germany in spring 2016. The reason is quite clear as I am german ;) but my husband is not. And here the problem starts. His language knowledge is not even basic yet :blink: We thought about that I'll go back to work and he'll look after the kids and visits a german course. Ok, that sounds not to bad to me :nod: But he'll also have to go back to work after a while (we wanted to give it 6 months time to study the language). My husband studied carpentry here in London ages ago and works since then as a carpenter self employed. Now we are wondering how will his chances be in GER to find a job with his profession?
We still didn't decide where exactly to go - just think that the northern part would be ideal, as it's close to Netherlands where he could have better job chances.
Are there any experiences from carpenters in this forum?:wave:

Re: moving to Germany
 

If your husband is a non EEA citizen, maybe it would be better for the whole family to settle in the Netherlands first and then move back to Germany under the Surinder Singh route -

https://www.gov.uk/family-permit/surinder-singh

Re: moving to Germany
 

oh wow! what a great hint!!! :eek: will study it now, thanks a lot :goodpost:

Re: moving to Germany
 

Not necessary. Foreign spouses of German nationals living in Germany are routinely issued with a three-year German residence permit (and subsequently with a permanent residence permit):

§ 28 AufenthG Familiennachzug zu Deutschen - dejure.org

(If the spouse is an EU national, they don't of course even need a residence permit.)

Re: moving to Germany
 

Oh but for this visa you need language knowledge as far as I know(?). That is what he can't offer at the moment :blink: But anyway I'll have to get in touch with the embassy and will ask for it. I'll have to find out what is easier for us/makes more sense.
But also thanks to you :thumbup:

Re: moving to Germany
 

There is no "language test" for a spousal visa.

But even though the vast majority of Germans are rather fluent in English, German fluency will broaden his chances of becoming gainfully employed by many orders of magnitude. Even as a selbständig Schreiner, German fluency will be key (people prefer clarity particularly with bespoke work), unless he limits his clients to native English-speakers.

For a more active dialogue about this in English, you both may benefit from toytown, Germany's largest and most popular English-language expat forum.

Re: moving to Germany
 

:eek: oh you see - we are still at the beginning of our journey. thank you for letting us know about that fact.
the rest is totally clear and I hope we will get there - soon :fingerscrossed:

Re: moving to Germany
 

so, I had a bit of time to do some research and I am wondering now from where you have the information that no language knowledge is required?

Re: moving to Germany
 

Lived in Germany for nearly 2 decades. Friends, neighbours, acquaintances from all over the world living in Germany on spousal visas, never submitting to any such "language test". You do, however, have to provide valid proof of marriage.

You don't have to prove language fluency though. That is completely irrelevant to your status as a spouse. A person is still married regardless of which languages they speak, and under German and EU law, legitimate spouses of German/EU nationals are entitled to a residence visa.

But again, language is as a practical matter, extremely important in day-to-day life, wherever you live.

Re: moving to Germany
 

so it's ages ago :p the german law requires since 2007 at least a basic language knowledge from a spouse visa applicant (but it suppose to be very basic ;) . However, will contact the embassy today to find out what to do next.

Thanks again

Re: moving to Germany
 

Well, that's a new one on me.

Nonetheless, I suspect that amongst the various challenges of getting your marriage cert legally translated, along with all other required bureaucracy, in the end, being able to say "ja, das ist mein Deutsch sehr gut" will likely be sufficient to compel the proper stamp to meet paper without hesitation. So its probably worth a little practice. He'll need it anyway.

Good luck with all that. Germany can be a great place to live - not without warts, but certainly a good standard of living.

Re: moving to Germany
 

AHEAD is correct:

BAMF - Bundesamt für Migration und Flüchtlinge - Ehepartner/Familie nachholen

However, there are a number of exceptions, e.g.:

Ihr Ehegatte Deutscher ist und er zuvor durch einen längeren Aufenthalt in einem anderen EU-Mitgliedstaat von seinem europäischen Freizügigkeitsrecht Gebrauch gemacht hat

"Ihr Ehegatte" in this case is AHEAD, who has been in the UK for some time, correct?

Apart from that, what amideislas said. AHEAD's husband is going to need German anyway – it's not just a formality for getting a visa. So head down and learn as much and as fast as possible.

Re: moving to Germany
 

Living inb Germany without a working knowledge of the language is to condemn yourself to perpetual childhood. When you want something you will have to find someone who can help you out in English.

Not every German is fluent or even competent in English. Many would take exception to your expectation that you can get things done using English. I certainly would.

Glueck auf !

Re: moving to Germany
 

There seems to be an obsession with Germany these days (maybe because of media) and there are more and more people wanting to move without speaking a word of German. The 800.000 Flüchtlinge wanting to come to Germany this year is a different story, but in this case the OP is German and apart from that what are the reasons of moving? If you're financially secure and don't really need a job it can certainly work, because it's no different than being on holiday. If you need work to survive and depending on age, current quality of life, I would really rethink a move to Germany these days.

Re: moving to Germany
 

well I get your point ;) but as we have 2 little kids we better move now than later. financially we are definitely on the safe site and don't need to worry for while - but will have to find work one day.