Information for those in (or going to) Germany on a posting

The following information has been verified by various different sources, however should your experience be different to that written below, or you believe something to be incorrect, please contact the F&C specialist.

Latest News

New information - Children born overseas to parents in the armed forces. On January 13th 2010 changes to British nationality law, which were introduced by the Borders, Citizenship and Immigration Act 2009, came into force. One of these changes enables children born overseas to parents in the armed forces to register as a British Citizen. Click here for more information.

Checklist for this page

Knowledge of language and Life in the United Kingdom (KOL)/ Life in the UK test
Travelling to Germany on a posting from your country of origin
Travelling to Germany from the UK – private arrangements
We have just been posted to the UK from Germany – what visa do I need?
Can I extend my visa or apply for settlement whilst I am in Germany?
Applying for Citizenship from Germany
Citizenship for babies born to F&C families in Germany
Travelling in Europe or to the UK from Germany
Concessionary Families Travel
Driving in Germany
Working in Germany
Benefits
Further sources of information

Knowledge of language and Life in the United Kingdom (KOL)/ Life in the UK test

Before you make an application for British Citizenship or settlement, you need to have a knowledge of language and life in the United Kingdom. You can demonstrate your knowledge of language and of life in the United Kingdom in two ways.

• If you speak English to a reasonable standard, you will need to pass the Life in the UK test.
  
• If you are not an English speaker, you will need to take and pass a course in English and citizenship.

The Life in the UK test is currently not available in Germany but is on track to become available sometime next year (more specific dates are not yet known). Once more information is known, it will be posted here.

ESOL for Citizenship courses: CANCELLED
Due to cutbacks in funding, there is no longer a dedicated ESOL Co-ordinator running Citizenship courses in Germany. If you are unable to take the Life in the UK test because your level of English is not good enough, then it is important that you speak to someone at your local Education Centre about the possibility of an ESOL for Citizenship course.

Travelling to Germany on a posting from your country of origin

The recommended route for eligible Foreign & Commonwealth families to travel from their country of origin to join their serving soldier on an accompanied assignment in either Germany or Cyprus is by transiting via the UK, for which a UK visa may be required. You will no longer be able to get a SOFA (Status of Forces Agreement) stamp, which is required during your stay in Germany, unless you have had some form of UK immigration check. *Therefore, going to Germany directly from your Country of Origin with a Schengen visa if you are intending to join your serving soldier on a posting, is no longer an option. The Schengen visa is a visitor’s visa and not valid for entry to Germany to take up permanent residence.
*Dependants from Fiji may travel direct to Germany

To find out what type of visa to apply for, visit the AFF F&C webpage or go to www.ukvisas.gov.uk/en. 

The type of visa you will require will depend upon whether your soldier spouse is a British Citizen or a Commonwealth citizen. You do not need a visa whilst you are in Germany so if you do not think you will be returning to the UK regularly, then it may be cheaper for you just to get a visit visa to transit via the UK. You also need to bear in mind that it is not currently possible to apply for or renew visas whilst based in Germany, unless you have been posted back to the UK. Those who are from countries that do not require visit visas for less than six months, it will be necessary for the soldier’s unit to contact UKSC. UKSC will then ask the UK Border Agency to run an immigration check. 

A letter should accompany all applications for visas for travel to BFG via the UK from the sponsoring soldier’s unit UWO, stating the reasons for travel via the UK and verifying the details of the soldier including: the date of enlistment, final date of service and confirmation of entitlement to Service Families Accommodation (SFA).
 
The onward journey from the UK to Germany will normally be organised by the Unit through the Defence Passenger Reservations Centre (DPRC). It can take a few days or more to organise the onward journey but, whilst in the UK, you are responsible for your own accommodation arrangements.  

Problems with visas:  If your visa application is denied purely because your sponsoring soldier is based in Germany, the sponsoring soldier will need to refer back to his/her unit who should then inform the chain of command. AFF is aware of at least one case where this has happened, and it was thankfully overturned on appeal. There have also been recent cases of spouses applying for an Exempt Armed Forces Dependants visa (at a cost of ₤215) from their country of origin and only given 6 months. Both of the cases that AFF is aware of originate in Ghana, and the F&C Specialist was able to get refunds for the spouses. If this has happened to you, please contact the F&C Specialist.

Travelling to Germany from the UK – private arrangements

Following recent communication with the French Embassy, it seems that it is possible for a Commonwealth spouse to be issued with a Schengen visa in order to drive across Europe on a posting to Germany. You will need to get a temporary SOFA stamp issued by DPRC and will then need to complete the Schengen visa application form, click here for details. A letter from the soldier’s unit confirming the posting to Germany is also recommended. The serving soldier can get a NATO travel order but this does not cover the rest of the family.

We have just been posted to the UK from Germany, what visa do I need?

See ‘What visa do I need to complete to join my soldier spouse in the UK?’ on the main F&C page. The visa you require depends upon whether your soldier is a British Citizen or a Commonwealth Citizen. You will find information about which visa to apply for on this page. You can also find information about what documents you need to provide to support your application. This will include a letter from your UWO stating the date of the soldier’s enlistment, final date of service and confirmation that the soldier is entitled to SFA. The cost of a visa (required due to a posting) will be reimbursed by the unit.

All visa applications to the UK from Germany will be handled by the Düsseldorf Visa Application Centre run by Worldbridge. Visas need to be applied for online and an appointment will need to be made at the same time to attend the centre. You will need to bring with you a number of supporting documents as well as photographs. All information can be found on the following link https://www.visainfoservices.com/Pages/Content.aspx?Tag=HowDoIApply_PAGE 

If your sponsoring soldier is a British Citizen and you have been married for over four years, you may be eligible for Indefinite Leave to Enter. However, in order to qualify for this you would need to have completed a ‘Life in the UK’ test. This facility should be available in Education Centres in Hohne and Gütersloh by spring 2010.

If your sponsoring soldier is a Commonwealth Citizen and has completed more than five years in the Army, and you have been married for more than two years, you may qualify for Indefinite Leave to Enter under the new settlement rules. You will need to have taken the 'Life in the UK' test in order to qualify. If you haven’t taken the test, you will be given ‘Limited Leave to Enter’ for 27 months. Once you have taken the test in the UK, you will be able to apply for settlement.

Can I extend my visa or apply for settlement whilst I am in Germany?

The MOD has sought guidance from the UK Border Agency on routes to settlement or extensions for those on overseas postings. Currently it would seem that you have the following options depending on the status of the serving soldier and the visa you currently have. As soon as there is any updated information, it will be published here.

If your soldier spouse is NOT a British Citizen:

1. If your soldier spouse is NOT a British Citizen and has not served five years in the Army and your current visa is due to expire, it will not be possible for you to get an extension. Your only option will be to apply for a visitor’s visa whenever you wish to return to the UK. You will be able to apply for another visa when you are posted back to the UK (which will be reimbursed by the unit). Once your soldier spouse has completed five years and you have been married for two years, then category three will apply to you.
2. If your soldier spouse is NOT a British Citizen but he has completed five years in the Army and you have been married for more than two years, it is currently not possible to apply for the visa you require (SET(O)) from Germany. A spouse recently made an application and has had it refused. She is considering appealing the decision and AFF is waiting for UKBA to get back to MOD regarding this matter. The other option is perhaps to travel back to the UK to apply for settlement, but you won’t be able to do this if you have to get a visitor’s visa to enter the UK.

If your soldier spouse is a British Citizen:

• If your soldier spouse has become a British Citizen and you have not changed your visa accordingly, it is not possible to apply for the visa you require (FLR(M)) from Germany.  You have three options:
  1) If you still have a current visa (but not a visitor’s visa), you may be able to return to the UK to make the application, but until more information is known, it is not recommended that you try this route.
  2) If you have been married for more than three years, you might wish to consider applying for Citizenship yourself. You can do this without having ILR first if you use the Crown Service rules. See below for all information.
  3) You can wait until you are posted back to the UK at which point you can apply for a ‘settlement visa’. However, if you haven’t been married for four years and you haven’t taken your ‘Life in the Uk’ test then you will be issued with a two-year ‘probationary visa’. You will not be able to apply for ILR until the end of this two-year period.
• If your soldier spouse is a British Citizen and your two year ‘spouse visa’ is due to expire, it is not currently possible to apply for the visa your require (SET(M)) from Germany. You have three options:
  a. You can wait until you are posted back to the UK, but if you haven’t been married for four years and you haven’t taken the 'Life in the UK' test, you are likely to be given another two years leave to enter. 
  b. The other option is to return to the UK to apply for settlement.  You will need to make an appointment at a Public Enquiry Office and will need to ensure that you take all necessary supporting documents with you.  This is more expensive than a postal application but is the only way you can do it from Germany.  Guidance produced by UKBA states that it is possible to do this, click here for details. AFF is aware of one spouse who has successfully obtained settlement in this manner, if you have done the same please tell the F&C speclialist about it - email fc@aff.org.uk.
  c. You apply for Citizenship yourself using the Crown Service rules.  See below for all information.   

Applying for Citizenship from Germany

Serving Commonwealth soldiers: The requirements for applying for Citizenship from Germany if you are a serving soldier are the same as those when applying within the UK. The main requirements are that you have been resident in the UK (or on postings overseas) for five years and that you were physically present in the UK five years prior to your application being received by the Home Office. This last point is very important – many applications fail because the soldier was not in the UK at the start of the five-year period. Your UWO will also need to provide you with a letter confirming your length of service and that time spent out of the UK is attributable to Armed Forces employment.

The spouse of a serving British soldier may also be eligible to apply for Citizenship.  There are two ways of applying:

1. Normal route: you have ILR (Indefinite Leave to Remain) and you were physically in the UK on the date three years before your application being received by the Home Office and you meet the other requirements detailed in the guide AN  (see below)
2. Crown Service route:   If your visas have expired since you came to Germany and/or you are not going to be posted back to the UK for a while, you may be eligible to apply using the Crown Service Rules (unless you are the spouse of an ex-Gurkha). These are listed on page ten of the guide AN (see below). You should have been married for three years and you still need to meet the ‘good character’ and ‘sound mind’ requirements. A list of supporting documents can be found in the guidance notes that accompany the form AN. The most important document you will need to provide is a letter from the soldier’s Commanding Officer stating why it is in the best interests of the Unit/Army for you to become a British Citizen and confirmation of the soldier’s length of service.

Children:
Warning - it has recently come to our attention that for a spouse to apply under the Crown Service rules, the soldier must have been recruited in the UK. This means that spouses of Gurkhas who have transferred to the wider Army are not able to apply. AFF is doing all it can to highlight this problem and get it changed. In the meantime, it is not recommended that a spouse of an ex-Gurkha apply for Citizenship, as it is likely that the application will be refused.

All information and legal requirements can be found in the guide AN, which can be downloaded by clicking here. It is essential that you read the guide AN carefully before making an application and if you have any specific questions you should call the Nationality Helpline on 0845 010 5200.
 
Application forms need to be sent to the British Consulate-General, Yorckstrasse 19, 40476 Dusseldorf or though the BFPO mail system to British Consulate General, Dusseldorf, Box 2002, BFPO 105.  You are advised to find out the cost of your application by viewing the ukingermany.fco.gov.uk website - these fees are set at the start of each month and are valid for that month only.

Payments can be made by Visa / MasterCard by downloading the  Card Payment Authorisation Form (pdf format), from- ukingermany.fco.gov.uk/passport-fees

You will also have to demonstrate a Knowledge of Language and Life in the UK to be eligible to apply for Citizenship.  You can do this in one of two ways (depending upon your level of English),

• by taking the 'Life in the UK' test or
• completing an ESOL for Citizenship course. 

For more information, see the section 'Knowledge of language and Life in the United Kingdom (KOL)/ Life in the UK test' on this page.

Citizenship for babies born to Foreign & Commonwealth families in Germany

A child born outside the UK after 13 January 2010 can register as a British citizen if:

• they were born to a Foreign and Commonwealth member of the UK Armed Forces
• and that parent was serving outside the UK at the time of birth
• and both parents consent to the registration.

To apply you will need to complete form MN1, to download the form and the guide, click here 

In section 1, question 1.1 you are asked to indicate the section of the British Nationality Act 1981 under which you would like the application considered, you need to write ‘Section 4D’. As well as two passport photos, you will need to include the child’s full birth certificate, passports of both parents and a letter from the soldier’s unit to confirm that one of the parents is currently in Crown Service. The letter should also confirm the date and place of birth of the child (this will cross-reference with the data on the child's full birth certificate) and the date and place of recruitment of the soldier.

For information on how to apply for a Birth Certificate for your baby, download ‘A guide to registering births in BFG’. It currently costs £460 to register the child. For information on where to send the form and how to pay, click on the heading above. 

Travelling in Europe or to the UK from Germany

The Declatory Resident Permit (DRP) replaces the requirement for a Schengen visa for those who wish to travel within mainland Europe but require a visa to do so. All soldiers and dependants who require a visa to travel to other countries in Europe can apply for a DRP, which is now available wherever you are posted to in Germany. This allows free, unrestricted travel through the countries within Europe that are part of the Schengen agreement (currently 22 countries). The cost of the DRP, and how long it is valid for, depends on where you live in Germany. Contact your UWO for further details. UK is not part of the Schengen agreement so you cannot enter the UK on a DRP. This is a relatively new scheme in some areas so there may be teething problems; get in touch with AFF if you wish to report a problem – email fc@aff.org.uk.

Concessionary Families Travel

This is provided to allow travel for the immediate family of deployed personnel who are in receipt of the Operational Welfare Package (OWP).  Immediate family of F&C service Personnel who are based overseas, are now able to claim this allowance to offset the cost of travel back to the country of origin, up to the capped amount of UK travel which is currently £125.  Speak to your RAO for more information.

Driving in Germany

Many non-EU F&C soldiers (except those requiring a licence for work purposes) and dependants are only able to drive in Germany for six months using the licence issued in their Country of Origin. After that, you are required to obtain either a German or a UK driving licence if you wish to continue to drive. It is not possible to take the UK driving test in Germany (there has been research undertaken in the past few years looking at the possibility of offering UK driving tests in Germany, but it was considered to be too costly). Unfortunately, German driving licences are more costly and time consuming to obtain than English ones, requiring not only a theory and practical test but also hearing and first aid tests. Each garrison has links to German driving schools with English speaking instructors who will take you through the requirements.
 
One Commonwealth spouse who followed this route was Yvonne:
‘I already knew how to drive in Ghana but then when I got here, I found out that the Ghanaian driving licence wasn't recognised in Europe. I had to register with a driving school, which cost 125 Euros, and pay for materials, which cost 180 Euros. I also had to do an eye test, which cost 10 Euros, and first aid lessons, which cost 8 Euros. I then had to attend classes for the theory part of the test; it cost 35 Euros to do the test, which is organised by TUV (a department like DVLA). I did 14 lessons and after that, I had to practice the theory questions with my instructor until he was satisfied and then he booked me for the theory test. When I passed the theory test, he then assessed my driving skills and decided how many lessons I needed before I could take the practical test. I remember that even with my driving experience, I had to do 14 lessons (45 minutes each) with my instructor before he booked the test. I initially thought that was too much but it paid off because I passed first time. The practical lessons with the instructor from the driving school were 35 Euros each. I paid 89 EUROS for the practical test. If you fail the test and have to do another one, you pay another 89 EUROS to TUV and pay the driving school for the extra lessons you do until you pass the test. However, if you fail the driving theory, you just pay TUV for another theory test.  Of course if you don’t pass the test first time, that means more lessons and more money.'

If you would prefer to take the UK test, you are able to take the theory part of the test in Germany and then return to the UK to take the practical part. Speak to your BFG representative for more information.

Working in Germany

GLSU (Garrison Labour Support Unit) has an excellent website listing all the available jobs for dependents in Germany, organised by area. You can download the job descriptions and the application forms here:  http://lecsupport.bfgnet.de/.  Most jobs require some form of either security clearance, CRB checks if the job entails working with children, or CTC clearance (Counter Terrorism). For a CTC/CRB check, if you have not lived in the UK for the five years prior to applying for the job, you will need to get a ‘police certificate of good conduct’. The form is available from the RMPs who will also take your fingerprints. It will then be up to you to send off your form to a police station in the town from which you came to UK/Germany from. If you have never lived in the UK then you will be unable to do jobs, which require SC clearance. For more information, contact your local GLSU office. 

Benefits

Child Benefit/Child Tax Credit: Whilst stationed in Germany, families of F&C soldiers are eligible to apply for the same benefits that are available to them in the UK, usually Child Benefit and Child Tax Credit. Your UWO will usually have information on how to apply; you can also click here for more information.  
If you have ‘no recourse to public funds’ stamped on your passport then your soldier spouse will be able to make the application. You should also include your details on the form. If you do not have a National Insurance number then the Tax Credit Office are supposed to assign you a number as part of the application process. However, there have been some instances where this process has not taken place and the application has been delayed for a long time, if you are in this position please contact AFF – email fc@aff.org.uk

Health in Pregnancy Grant: If you are 25 weeks pregnant or more and have had appropriate health advice, you may also able to apply for the Health in Pregnancy Grant (HiPG), which is a one off payment of £190. Speak to your midwife for further information. This grant is not available to Commonwealth dependants who have ‘no recourse to public funds’ in the UK, but it is available if you are a dependant in Germany. If you do not have a National Insurance number, you can still send in your form and a NI number will be allocated to you. However, it will take longer to process your claim in this way. For more information on the HiPG, call 0845 366 7885 or click here.  Unfortunately non-British citizens who are also non-EU citizens assigned to Germany have no eligibility to German Kindergeld, which is a Germany form of Child Benefit only paid by the German authorities to eligible EU nationals.

Further sources of information

Have you heard of bfgnet? http://www.bfgnet.de/  This is the official site of the British Forces in Germany. Click on ‘so you’re posted to Germany’ for a guide with lots of useful information about living in Germany and how to go about setting up bank accounts, accessing health services, education etc.  

Also look at the AFF Germany webpage for lots of other information and guidance.  

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