Your business in Germany
Hi! We at Impact Hub Germany thrive to create safe and diverse spaces and opportunities to any- and everyone who aligns with our values of trust, courage and collaboration, in particular during trying times. We believe in sustainable change through entrepreneurship in Germany and across borders and would therefore like to supply you with some information on how you can work and start your business in Germany, maybe even at one of our Impact Hubs. Wether you are already in Germany or not and whatever your residency status is: we hope we can help you find the necessary information on how to resettle to Germany and start your business here more easily with the ressources and links below. Please let us know, if we are missing anything, we will work on developing this page further on a longterm basis.
Working in Germany
... as an Asylum Seeker
- Here some initial information about the financial support offered to asylum seekers:
- Asylum seekers in Germany who cannot support themselves receive state assistance. As an example: During the asylum process, the federal state of Berlin will pay for your accommodation and food. You will live in an initial reception center or an emergency shelter at the beginning. There you will receive three meals a day.
- Please find here more information on the possibility to work in Germany as a refugee/ asylum seeker:
- Before the 2020 amendment of the Asylum Act, asylum seekers were not allowed to work on a self-employed basis for the whole duration of their asylum procedure, since the permission to pursue self-employment requires a regular residence permit. The asylum seeker's permission to stay (Aufenthaltsgestattung) does not qualify as such. However, the new Section 4a(4) Residence Act now provides that it is at the discretion of the responsible authorities to permit any economic activity including self-employment for those with a permission to stay (Aufenthaltsgestattung) or tolerated stay (Duldung). This only applies to those living outside of initial reception centres, though.
Setting up your business in Germany...
... as a citizen from a non EU country
- Here is a How-To Guide to register a foreign company in Germany.
- For immediate consulting on how to set up your business as a citizen (non-refugee) from a non-EU country, follow this link and get in touch with the "Fachstelle Migrantenökonomie".
- Here is a link to the Ukrainian contact.
... as a refugee
- For immediate consulting on how to set up your business as a refugee, scroll to the bottom of this page and select a language in the status which applies to you. You will the be forwarded to
... as a refugee without a residence permit
Refugees in the process of applying for residency or with a suspension of deportation ("Duldung")
If you are currently in the process of applying for asylum and have a temporary residence permit in line with § 55 of the Asylum Procedure Act (AsylVfG), or if your asylum application was refused and you have a suspension of deportation in line with § 60a of the German Residence Act (AufenthG) then you are not permitted to become self-employed. You can, under certain conditions, pursue paid employment; however you are strictly forbidden from becoming self-employed.
Travelling to and Seeking Asylum and/or Visa in Germany
- Please find here the Travelling to and Seeking Asylum in Germany FAQ set up by the German government in German, Ukrainian and Russian.
- Also you can find a film with information on German Asylum Requirements here. It's available in German, English, French, Albanian, Arabic and Albanian. Or download this PDF with the same information in the same languages here.
- There are certain documents needed to apply for Asylum in Germany. You can download the overview via this link.
- Learn about general life, work and visa requirements in Germany: https://www.make-it-
in-germany.com/en/