Asylum Procedure

If you left your country due to war or persecution, in Germany you have the right for asylum.

You have to apply for asylum. The Federal Office for Migration and Refugees in German Bundesamt für Migration und Flüchtlinge, known as BAMF, will decide about your application.

In this video you get short information about the right for asylum in Germany in different languages:

If you have applied for asylum, you will receive a “Aufenthalts-Gestattung”, a temporary residence permit (also known as an “Ausweis”).

Hearing / interview

If Germany is responsible for your asylum application, the hearing or also called interview will take place at the BAMF. This is your chance to reason your request for asylum.

The hearing is a very important and decisive appointment.

Please be well prepared for your interview. It is very important! You can write down your experiences in a chronological order and bring also some proofs, if you have some. You can also ask for a preparation meeting in a refugee consultation center.

Here you find more detailed information in different languages on the asylum procedure, your rights, the hearing and your access to education and work:

Accomodation

At the beginning of your asylum procedure, you will live in reception center, called “Erstaufname”. It is possible that you stay there until a decision has been made about your application, or you will be moved to another accommodation.

Unfortunately you cannot decide where you want to live in Germany. You will be sent to a specific city or village and have to live there in an apartment or another camp. You can apply for a transfer from Erstaufnahmecamp into another accomodation. You can also apply for a transfer from one city to another city. There are only limited reasons when you have the right to move.

Here you find more information in german and english how to get a transfer from Erstaufnahme-Camp:

Reasons for your application might be:

• a job that you can start in another city
• Family members with whom you would like to live in another city
• practicing your religion
• caring for family members
• start a course of study or education

Remember that you have to prove everything and explain it well.

Letters

If you move, you must give your new address to the BAMF, the immigration authority, and possibly to the court. This is very important because letters will always be sent to the last address that you told the authorities. Please find help in understanding letters from authorities very soon, because there are important information in it and short deadlines for you to react.

Documents

To prove your identity to the authorities in Germany, it is better to present any official document you have. Your passport is the best document. The law states that you must give it to the immigration office if you have it. Unfortunately, passports are often lost or stolen when fleeing. You can explain this to the BAMF or the immigration office. A passport also makes deportation easier. However, the authorities usually need a passport for a residence permit and a work permit.