Ways to work in Germany

Skilled-worker visa, EU Blue Card, Opportunity Card, Ausbildung, nursing programme.

Skilled worker (recognised qualification)

For people with a recognised vocational or university qualification and a job offer. Recognition of your Indonesian degree is the key step; see Recognition. The accelerated skilled-worker procedure (§ 81a AufenthG) lets your future employer start the process in Germany: fee €411 plus €75 visa fee, target duration up to 4 months and embassy appointment within about 3 weeks (target values from Federal Foreign Office guidance, not set in the statute).

EU Blue Card (university degree)

Minimum gross annual salary 2026: €50,700; €45,934.20 for shortage occupations, career starters and IT specialists (with approval of the Federal Employment Agency). See Costs and salary limits.

Opportunity Card (Chancenkarte, § 20a)

For job search in Germany. Needs at least 6 points from a points system, German A1 or English B2, and proof of living costs (guideline about €1,091 per month). Secondary sources only; check the current rules on the Federal Foreign Office site before applying.

Qualification measures (§ 16d)

Coming to Germany to complete recognition (for example an adaptation course). Requirement per Embassy Jakarta: living costs of €1,200 gross per month (about €941 net); a blocked account covers any shortfall; visa fee €75; processing time up to twelve weeks.

Nursing: Triple Win programme

Government-to-government programme between Indonesia (BP2MI/KP2MI) and Germany (Federal Employment Agency ZAV and GIZ), since 2021. German course is free; B1 German before departure; recognition of the nursing degree happens after arrival. Programme page.

Vocational training (Ausbildung)

A popular route, but also where most scams occur. The German Embassy does not work with agencies (see Scams). We found no reliable statistics on the number of Indonesian trainees in Germany.