and 66 more
- service.berlin.de
- mth-partner.de
- auswaertiges-amt.de
- ihk.de
- germany.info
- mth-partner.de
- bamf.de
- germany.info
- certifixlivescan.com
- china.diplo.de
- china.diplo.de
- china.diplo.de
- china.diplo.de
- china.diplo.de
- gesetze-im-internet.de
- auswaertiges-amt.de
- hcch.net
- hcch.net
- hcch.net
- deutsche-rentenversicherung.de
- dvka.de
- gesetze-im-internet.de
- bundesfinanzministerium.de
- kairo.diplo.de
- india.diplo.de
- india.diplo.de
- india.diplo.de
- india.diplo.de
- india.diplo.de
- india.diplo.de
- india.diplo.de
- india.diplo.de
- india.diplo.de
- india.diplo.de
- auswaertiges-amt.de
- digital.diplo.de
- gesetze-im-internet.de
- bmas.de
- deutsche-rentenversicherung.de
- rvrecht.deutsche-rentenversicherung.de
- bundesfinanzministerium.de
- anerkennung-in-deutschland.de
- brasil.diplo.de
- brasil.diplo.de
- brasil.diplo.de
- brasil.diplo.de
- brasil.diplo.de
- brasil.diplo.de
- brasil.diplo.de
- brasil.diplo.de
- auswaertiges-amt.de
- gesetze-im-internet.de
- gesetze-im-internet.de
- eur-lex.europa.eu
- home-affairs.ec.europa.eu
- atos.cnj.jus.br
- atos.cnj.jus.br
- cnj.jus.br
- bundesfinanzministerium.de
- bundesfinanzministerium.de
- deutsche-rentenversicherung.de
- deutsche-rentenversicherung.de
- normas.receita.fazenda.gov.br
- gov.br
- gov.br
- gov.br
Freiberufler (Freelance Visa)
Freelance visaGermany doesn't run a dedicated digital nomad visa. The Freiberufler (its freelance residence permit for the “liberal professions” like writing, software, design, and consulting) is the route most remote workers use instead. It predates the nomad-visa wave but does the same job: a proper residence permit you live and work on, with a path to permanent residency. Expect more documentation than a purpose-built nomad visa asks for.
What this visa gets you
Visa
Entry document
Temporary residency
3 years, renewable
Permanent residency
After 5 years
Citizenship
After 5 years of residence
- Income requirement
- No fixed minimum: you must show the freelance work sustainably covers your living costs (applicants over 45 also need adequate pension provision).
- Application fee
- €100
- Family allowed
- Yes
How do Chinese citizens apply for the Germany Freiberufler?
Can Chinese citizens apply from inside Germany?
Generally no: most applicants apply from outside Germany before they travel.
The "fly in on a tourist stamp and convert" route is a widespread misconception and does not work for this visa. If you already hold legal residence in Germany on another permit, different rules may apply, so confirm with the authorities.
How long does the Germany Freiberufler really take for Chinese citizens?
14–18 weeks (≈ 3–4 months)
- Police clearance (typical)3w
- Apostille (typical)1w
- Consular appointment (typical)4w
- Processing 8–12w official8w
- Post-arrival registration (typical)2w
Official processing: 8–12 weeks. The rest is doc gathering + waiting in a queue, none of which the consulate counts.
Avoid these
What do people get wrong about the Germany Freiberufler?
- The tourist-stamp convert myth. Flying to Germany on a tourist stamp and converting it into the residence visa from inside the country is not possible for Freiberufler. Almost every application story that goes badly starts with this misconception.
- Underestimating timing by a factor of 2–3. The "60-day processing" line is real, but it's only the consulate's processing window. The door-to-door reality includes police clearance, apostille, consular appointment lead, and post-arrival registration, so most applicants land between 4 and 7 months.
- Skipping or mis-formatting the apostille. Apostille is the single most cited rejection reason. Every supporting document from your home country needs an apostille from the right authority, and they expire. Don't apostille more than 4 months before submission.
Documents
What Chinese applicants typically submit
Documents needing an apostille (Chinese authorities):
- Chinese civil-status documents (Personenstandsurkunden), for example marriage and birth certificates, where submitted (in practice this means accompanying spouse or children under the separate family-reunification checklists)
- Any other Chinese official certificate (amtliche Bescheinigung) filed in support of the application
- Expressly NOT required: hukou extracts (户口簿), university certificates and school certificates, which the German missions in China exempt from the apostille rule
- Documents legalised before 30 November 2023 remain acceptable and do not need an additional apostille
Worth knowing: A Chinese passport is an Annex I passport, so there is no visa-free entry and no option to arrive and sort it out later. China is absent from the list in § 41 AufenthV (Australia, Israel, Japan, Canada, Republic of Korea, New Zealand, United Kingdom, United States, plus Andorra, Brazil, El Salvador, Honduras, Monaco and San Marino), which is the provision that lets Americans, Britons, Canadians and Australians enter and apply at the Ausländerbehörde. A Chinese applicant must obtain the national D visa at a German mission in China first, and the visa itself requires the consent of the competent Ausländerbehörde in Germany before it can be issued. The sharper problem is what the German missions in China actually publish: their only § 21 information sheet is the "selbständige Erwerbstätigkeit" checklist, and it is built around founding a company. It demands a notarial deed of incorporation, a notarial articles of association, a current commercial register extract, a managing-director contract, a shareholder list and a business plan in German covering market and competitor analysis, planned balance sheet, planned P&L and liquidity forecast. There is no Freiberufler-shaped checklist for China of the kind the Cairo mission publishes, and the Ertragsvorschau plus two client letters of intent that the § 21(5) liberal-profession route normally runs on appear nowhere on it. Apostille mechanics are the easy part: India was the only state to object to China's accession, Germany did not object, so the Convention has applied between China and Germany since 7 November 2023.
Tax
How is Freiberufler income taxed for Chinese citizens?
Freelancers become German tax residents and are taxed on worldwide income under progressive income tax (Einkommensteuer, roughly 14% to 45% plus solidarity surcharge where applicable). Freiberufler (liberal professions under § 18 EStG) are exempt from trade tax (Gewerbesteuer), unlike commercial self-employed (Gewerbetreibende). They must register with the local tax office (Finanzamt). There is no special expat or relocation tax regime in Germany; no flat-rate or time-limited reduced-tax scheme applies.
Money, roughly (sourced)
Regime: Ordinary progressive income tax (14%–42%/45%), no special nomad regime, about 25.5% effective tax on €60k/yr.
No expat/nomad flat regime exists in Germany. A Freiberufler resident is taxed on worldwide income at the ordinary progressive scale (2025: 0% to EUR 12,096; 14%–42% to EUR 68,429; 42% to EUR 277,825; 45% above). Solidarity surcharge (5.5% of income tax) only bites at higher incomes; church tax (8–9%) if a member. The big real-world cost driver is self-funded health insurance, not income tax alone.
Capital gains: 25%. Headline 25% flat withholding (Abgeltungsteuer) on financial-investment gains; 26.375% with solidarity surcharge. Real-property gains are tax-free after a 10-year holding period.
Living comfortably to well in Berlin runs about €2,400–€3,350/mo for one person, incl. rent. Roughly 76% more than the same living in Shanghai, which runs about ¥10,550/mo (≈ €1,365).
Estimate your take-home in the tax calculator →Worth a specialist's time. A short call before you commit usually pays for itself, especially for US citizens (FEIE/FATCA), existing UK ties, or unwinding SA tax residency.
Recommended for your move
- SafetyWingFlexible monthly cover
Health insurance built for nomads. Monthly subscription.
Get a quote - GenkiEU-regulated, long-term
EU-regulated health insurance for nomads and expats; long-term and resident cover.
See plans - WiseGetting paid abroad
Multi-currency account and low-cost transfers at the mid-market rate.
Open an account - RevolutEveryday spending
Multi-currency card with budgeting and fee-free transfers.
Open an account
FAQ
Germany Freiberufler: common questions
Can Chinese citizens get the Germany Freiberufler?
Yes. The Freiberufler is open to Chinese passport holders as non-EU nationals. This route has no fixed minimum income threshold.
Can I apply for the Germany Freiberufler from inside Germany?
Generally no. Chinese applicants normally apply at the Germany consulate responsible for their region before travelling. Note this is about converting a short tourist stay; if you already hold legal residence in Germany on another permit, different rules may apply, so confirm with the authorities.
How long does the Germany Freiberufler take for Chinese applicants?
Official processing is 8–12 weeks. Door-to-door, including police clearance, apostille, consular appointment lead time, and post-arrival registration, most Chinese applicants take about 8–12 weeks (roughly 2–3 months).
Do I need an apostille for the Germany Freiberufler?
Yes. Supporting documents issued in China (such as your police clearance) must be apostilled by the competent China authority before submission. Apostilles can expire, so don't obtain them more than a few months ahead of applying.
How much does the Germany Freiberufler cost?
The government application fee is about €100. The consular fee paid in China is approximately 75 EUR (the fee is set at 75 EUR; the mission's checklist states it is payable in cash in RMB at the equivalent rate). Budget separately for police clearance, apostille (if required), translations, and required health insurance.
Does the Germany Freiberufler lead to permanent residency?
Yes. Time on the Freiberufler counts toward permanent residency, for which you can typically apply after 5 years of legal residence.
Can I bring my family on the Germany Freiberufler?
Yes. Spouses and dependent children can generally be included as dependants, usually with a higher combined income requirement and their own supporting documents.
What's next
Keep going
See Germany side-by-side with similar programmes.
Every country ranked by what's left after tax and living costs.
Different answers may surface a programme you didn't consider.
Every dated change we've logged for Germany: income thresholds, fees, consular policy.
Expatlas provides information for orientation only and is not legal advice. Always verify current requirements with official government sources and consult an immigration lawyer for your specific case.