Prior to 1 September 2011, residence permits and additional provisions were affixed to pages inside the passport in sticker form. Today, residence permits are issued as ID-1 (credit card size) plastic cards and the additional provisions are printed on a separate sheet of paper, so that residents have to possess, but not carry around, up to three different documents: a passport from their country of citizenship, their residence permit, and the supplementary sheet if applicable. Carrying passports and residence cards is only compulsory when crossing borders. Within Germany, it is sufficient to know where they are and to show them to the police within a reasonable amount of time, when requested.
Legal aspects
Types of residence permits
Limited residence permit
A limited residence permit (Aufenthaltserlaubnis, lit.residence permit) is valid for a certain period of time and is issued for a certain purpose:
residence for educational purposes
residence for the purpose of economic activity
residence under international law or on humanitarian or political grounds
residence for family reasons
The Aufenthaltserlaubnis does not automatically grant the right to work; instead the permission to work must be explicitly mentioned in the document.
Unlimited residence permit
An unlimited residence permit (Niederlassungserlaubnis, lit.settlement permit) is a permanent residence permit. It grants the right to live and work in Germany under EU law. A foreigner receives a settlement permit if:
they have held a residence permit for five years
their livelihood is secure
they are permitted to work
they possess sufficient living space for themself and the members of their family forming part of their household
Additional provisions
Additional provisions (e.g. whether the resident is allowed to work) are stored on the chip and are printed on a supplementary sheet which must be kept together with the residence permit.
Physical appearance
Since 1 September 2011, the residence permit is issued as ID-1 (credit card size) plastic cards with an embedded RFID chip. It is covered with multi-colour guillochés and appears pink-blue from the distance. All information on it is given only in German, except for the English words residence permit.
The residence permit contains a RFID chip. The chip stores the information given on the document (like name or date of birth), the holder's picture and, if the holder is at least 12 years old, also his/her fingerprints. The additional provisions are also stored on the chip. In addition, the new ID card can be used for online authentification (e.g. for age verification or for e-government applications). An electronic signature, provided by a private company, can also be stored on the chip.
The document number, the photo and the fingerprints can be read only by law enforcement agencies and some other authorities.
To use the online authentification function, the holder needs a six-digit decimalPIN. If the holder types in the wrong PIN, he has to type in the six-digit decimal access code given on the document to prove he/she really possesses the document. If the wrong PIN is used three times, a PUK must be used to unlock the chip. The data on the chip are protected by Basic Access Control and Extended Access Control.
Security features
The residence permit contains the following security features:
UV overprint: stars, lines, and EU luminesce in various colors under UV light
randomly distributed fluorescent fibres which luminesce under UV light
tactile features:
access number for RFID chip is tactile
surface embossing: map of Germany and microlettering
security thread: colour changes when viewed under different angles; is personalized: NNNNNNNNNN<<SURNAME<<GIVEN<NAMES<<<<<<<<<< (NNNNNNNNNN is the document number including a check digit; a total of 42 digits can be found on the thread))
changeable laser image: shows either the date of expire or the holder's portrait depending on angle
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