Basic information

• Only the visa office of the Embassy in Warsaw is responsible for visa applications. The Consulates General of the Federal Republic of Germany in Krakow, Wroclaw and Gdansk do not issue visas and do not provide information on visa applications.
• Please note that you must come to the embassy in person with all the necessary documents to submit your application. Please make an appointment via our appointment system on the Internet. Please plan that the processing time after application is usually several weeks.
• Your application can only be accepted if the documents are complete. The documents must be submitted in the original with one copy of each. Documents in foreign languages (with the exception of English) must be submitted with an official German translation, if indicated below.
• No fee is charged for processing this kind of visa application.

General information

The processing time is usually at least one (1) week, but may increase to several weeks in individual cases. As soon as a decision has been reached, the applicant will be informed immediately by the Embassy. In order to relieve the visa office, it is urgently requested that applicants refrain from making status inquiries, as this delays the general processing of visa applications. Status requests will therefore not be answered!

After a positive decision on the application, you will be asked to provide proof of existing travel insurance coverage for the validity period of the visa before the visa can be issued. Please note that you will need to collect your visa in person.

Please make sure that you submit complete application documents! Incomplete applications may result in rejection of the visa application.

The Embassy reserves the right to request additional documentation.

The following list allows you to check whether your application documents are complete. All documents listed here must be submitted in the requested form and order.

Checklist

• One (1) application form including instructions according to § 54 AufenthG, completely filled out and signed
• One (1) recent biometric passport photo (format: see photo sample board)
• Valid passport (signed by hand and with at least two (2) completely free pages)
• One (1) plain copy of the data page of your valid passport
• Proof of habitual and legal residence in Poland by Polish residence permit (e.g. visa/residence card), valid since at least 3 months , with one (1) copy.
  In individual cases, further proof of habitual residence (e.g. bank statements, ZUS statements, rental contracts, etc.) may be necessary.
  
• Last registration certificate in Poland („zaświadczenie o zameldowaniu“, which is obtained at the city office or town hall appropriate for the place of residence), with one (1) copy
• Proof of admission to the study program from the German university, with one (1) copy.
  
  or
• Internship contract, with details of weekly working hours, tasks and confirmation of remuneration with German minimum wage, with one (1) copy
• Polish student card, with one (1) copy
• Current certificate of the Polish university about the student status (with indication of the year of study, the field of study, scholarship promise, amount and period of the scholarship as well as indication at which German university, or internship company the stay should take place, with one (1) copy.
  
  The confirmation of the Polish university must be issued in English.
• In case of a study stay: proof of financing, if the scholarship does not cover at least 992,- Euro, with one (1) copy.
  
  The proof can be provided:
  
  - by a formal declaration of commitment according to §§ 66 to 68 of the Residence Act, in which a third person commits himself/herself in writing to cover the costs (foreigners' offices and registration authorities in Germany have appropriate forms available for this purpose)
  
  or
  
  - by providing proof of a credit balance at a German bank in the form of a blocked account in the amount of the difference to the scholarship up to at least 992,- Euro per month.
  
  For more information on opening a blocked account in Germany and on the various providers of suitable blocked accounts, please visit our website at: „Opening blocked account in Germany for students prior to entry“.
  
  Some blocked account providers require that your signature on the application to open an account be notarized by a German mission abroad. If the provider you have chosen requires this certification, please make a separate appointment for this. We will then retain the signed documents and send them to the financial institution in Germany by registered mail. We will charge PLN 30,- for this service. In addition, a fee of currently approx. 265,- PLN has to be paid for the certification of signatures. The application to the financial institution must be accompanied by proof of the origin of the money to be deposited (so-called “source of funds„) as well as simple copies of your registration certificate and passport.