What are the requirements for the EU long-term residence permit (Daueraufenthalt – EU) in Germany?

Checked on 2026-10-25

Germany's Residence Act grants the permanent EU long-term residence permit after five years in Germany with a residence title, if fixed and regular income covers you and your dependants, you speak German at B1 level, know the basics of German law and society, have adequate housing and raise no public-safety concerns. Study time counts at half.

Key facts

What	The law says	Source
What it is	An unlimited residence title; unless the law says otherwise, it is equal to the settlement permit	AufenthG § 9a(1)
Time required	Five years in Germany with a residence title	AufenthG § 9a(2) sentence 1 no. 1
Income	Your livelihood and that of dependants you support is secured by fixed and regular income	AufenthG § 9a(2) sentence 1 no. 2
German	Sufficient German, defined as CEFR level B1	AufenthG § 9a(2) sentence 1 no. 3; § 2(11)
Civic knowledge	Basic knowledge of the legal and social order and living conditions in Germany	AufenthG § 9a(2) sentence 1 no. 4
Housing	Adequate living space for you and family members living with you	AufenthG § 9a(2) sentence 1 no. 6
Public safety	No reasons of public safety or order stand against it	AufenthG § 9a(2) sentence 1 no. 5
Not available	With a residence permit under § 16a (vocational training) or § 16b (study), or for another purpose that is by nature temporary	AufenthG § 9a(3) nos. 4–5

What “fixed and regular income” means

The law says this is as a rule the case when you have met your tax obligations, you or your spouse paid into adequate old-age provision (in Germany or abroad), you and your family are covered for illness and long-term care by statutory health insurance or essentially equivalent cover that is unlimited or renews automatically, and you are allowed to do the work your income comes from (§ 9c). The pension contributions demanded are no higher than the 60 months required for the settlement permit.

How the five years count

Section 9b sets the rules:

Time in Germany for study or vocational training counts at half.
Time abroad while holding a residence title counts if each absence was at most six consecutive months and they total at most ten months within the five years, or if it was a work posting of up to six months (or a longer period the immigration office set).
Time when you had free-movement rights counts.
Earlier residence in Germany counts up to four years if you held a settlement permit or EU long-term permit when you left and it lapsed only because of time outside the EU or long-term status gained in another EU country.
Leaving Germany otherwise interrupts the five years, unless the stay abroad did not make your residence title expire; that time does not count towards the total.

Blue Card holders from another EU country

Time with a Blue Card or certain other permits from another EU member state can count, if you have held a German Blue Card for at least two years and held the other country’s Blue Card right before it. Time outside the EU then does not count, but does not interrupt the period if it is at most 12 consecutive months and 18 months in total (§ 9b(2)).

The German and civic-knowledge requirements follow the same proof and exemption rules as the settlement permit, including a completed integration course (AufenthG § 9a(2) sentence 2, referring to § 9(2) sentences 2–5).

Sources

Change history

2026-10-25: Page created

This is general information, not legal advice, and Lumen is not a law firm. Rules change and offices differ: check the official sources above before you act. Found something wrong or out of date? Write to support@lumen.observer.