German residence permit

The German residence permit is a document issued to non-EU citizens living in Germany.
Prior to 1 September 2011, residence permits and additional provisions were affixed to pages inside the passport in sticker form. Today, residence permits are issued as ID-1 plastic cards and the additional provisions are printed on a separate sheet of paper, so that residents have to possess, but not carry around, up to three different documents: a passport from their country of citizenship, their residence permit, and the supplementary sheet if applicable. Carrying passports and residence cards is only compulsory when crossing borders. Within Germany, it is sufficient to know where they are and to show them to the police within a reasonable amount of time, when requested.

Legal aspects

Types of residence permits

Limited residence permit

A limited residence permit is valid for a certain period of time and is issued for a certain purpose:

residence for educational purposes
residence for the purpose of economic activity
residence under international law or on humanitarian or political grounds
residence for family reasons

The Aufenthaltserlaubnis does not automatically grant the right to work; instead the permission to work must be explicitly mentioned in the document.

Unlimited residence permit

An unlimited residence permit is a permanent residence permit. It grants the right to live and work in Germany under EU law. A foreigner receives a settlement permit if:

they have held a residence permit for five years
their livelihood is secure
they are permitted to work
they possess sufficient living space for themself and the members of their family forming part of their household
Additional provisions

Additional provisions are stored on the chip and are printed on a supplementary sheet which must be kept together with the residence permit.

Physical appearance

Since 1 September 2011, the residence permit is issued as ID-1 plastic cards with an embedded RFID chip. It is covered with multi-colour guillochés and appears pink-blue from the distance. All information on it is given only in German, except for the English words residence permit.

Front side

The front side shows the symbol for biometric travel documents, the German Eagle, the European bull, and the words "AUFENTHALTSTITEL" and "RESIDENCE PERMIT". It contains the following information:

Photo of ID card holder
Document number: 9 alphanumeric digits
Access number for RFID chip: 6 decimal digits
Surname
Given name
Validity of residence permit: date of expire or "UNBEFRISTET" '
Place of issue
First day of validity: dd-mm-yyyy
type of document: "AUFENTHALTSERLAUBNIS" or "NIEDERLASSUNGSERLAUBNIS"
Notes:
*Document number of corresponding passport
*Date of expire of corresponding passport: dd-mm-yyyy
*If holder is permitted to work: "ERWERBSTÄTIGKEIT GESTATTET" '
*If additional provisions exist: "SIEHE ZUSATZBLATT"
Signature of holder
Back side

The back side contains the following information:

Place of birth
Date of birth
Nationality
Sex
Height in cm
Colour of eyes
Residence
Issuing authority
Machine-readable zone
Machine-readable zone

The three-line machine-readable zone on the back side contains the following information:

First line

positions	text	meaning
1-2	AR	residence permit
3	D	issuing country: Germany
6-14	alphanumeric digits	document number
15	decimal digit	check digit over 6–14

Second line

positions	text	meaning
1-6	decimal digits	date of birth
7	decimal digit	check digit over 1–6
8	alphabetic digit	sex
9-14	decimal digits	date of expire of the residence permit
15	decimal digit	check digit over 9–14
16-18	alphabetic digits	nationality of holder
30	decimal digit	check digit over 6-30, 1–7, 9–15, 19-29

Third line

positions	text	meaning
1-30	alphabetic digits<<alphabetic digits	SURNAME<

Empty spaces are represented by "<".

Chip

The residence permit contains a RFID chip. The chip stores the information given on the document, the holder's picture and, if the holder is at least 12 years old, also his/her fingerprints. The additional provisions are also stored on the chip. In addition, the new ID card can be used for online authentification. An electronic signature, provided by a private company, can also be stored on the chip.
The document number, the photo and the fingerprints can be read only by law enforcement agencies and some other authorities.
To use the online authentification function, the holder needs a six-digit decimal PIN. If the holder types in the wrong PIN, he has to type in the six-digit decimal access code given on the document to prove he/she really possesses the document. If the wrong PIN is used three times, a PUK must be used to unlock the chip.
The data on the chip are protected by Basic Access Control and Extended Access Control.

Security features

The residence permit contains the following security features:

multicoloured guillochés
microprinting: EU and DEUTSCHLAND
fluorescent elements:
*UV overprint: stars, lines, and EU luminesce in various colors under UV light
*randomly distributed fluorescent fibres which luminesce under UV light
tactile features:
*access number for RFID chip is tactile
*surface embossing: map of Germany and microlettering
security thread: colour changes when viewed under different angles; is personalized: NNNNNNNNNN< )
changeable laser image: shows either the date of expire or the holder's portrait depending on angle
color-changing ink: the colour of the biometric travel documents symbol changes from green to gold to red
2D and 3D holographic security elements:
*colour-changing holograms colour changes depending on angle
**holographic portrait: holographic reproduction of the holder's picture
**four eagles at the left side of the holographic portrait: change their colour under a different angle than the portrait itself
**document number: NNNNNNNNN, 9 digits
**holder's name: SURNAME<, 30 digits
*green kinematic structures above the conventional picture:
**EU Kinegram: bright E on dark background changes to dark E on bright background when document is tilted
**hexagon: moves across the picture when document is tilted
**stars: change their size when document is tilted
**text on the left side of the picture; visible only under a certain angle
***macrolettering: BUNDESREPUBLIK DEUTSCHLAND
***microlettering: BUNDESREPUBLIK DEUTSCHLAND BUNDESREPUBLIK DEUTSCHLAND BUNDESREPUBLIK DEUTSCHLAND
*machine-verifiable structure: a red spot which can be checked by machines
*3D eagle: a red-gold eagle visible only under a certain angle