Special regulations for refugees from Ukraine

Information for refugees with a residency permit acc. to § 24 AufenthG or with a fictitious certificate

Update:

(Status: 14.06.24)

On 13.06.24, the EU Commission proposed extending temporary protection for people fleeing Russian aggression against Ukraine for a further year, from 5 March 2025 to 4 March 2026.

Given the ongoing Russian attacks on civilian and critical infrastructure in Ukraine, there are currently no safe and sustainable conditions for people to return to Ukraine. The Commission therefore considers that the reasons for temporary protection continue to exist and that it should be extended for a further year as a necessary and proportionate response to the current situation.

Until a decision is taken on this proposal, the following will continue to apply:

You do not have to apply for an extension. An appointment at the immigration office (LEA) is not necessary. The prerequisite is that the current residence permit in accordance with Section 24 of the Residence Act is valid until at least 1 February 2024.

  • Due to the automatic extension, the possibilities for working, studying, receiving social benefits, travelling abroad and other guarantees and freedoms associated with the residence permit are retained.
  • Holders of such residence permits are therefore still entitled to benefits under SGB II and SGB XII and are generally entitled to benefits under the Federal Training Assistance Act (BAföG), child benefit, housing benefit and health insurance benefits.
  • Please note: this does not apply to fictitious certificates! If you have a fictitious certificate that expires in the next few weeks, you must apply for an extension in good time!

You can find more information and a contact form to extend your fiction certificate on the LEA website (only in German).

Before the war, people from Ukraine who wanted to come to Berlin to study needed an entry visa and a residence permit for studying or preparing for studies. This has changed due to the EU Council decision of March 4th, 2022, the subsequent Ukraine Transitional Residence Ordinance and Ordinance of the Federal Ministry of the Interior and for Home Affairs (BMI) of April 6, 2023.

If you were in Ukraine shortly before or on February 24, 2022, you may enter Germany without a visa until March 4, 2025 and stay here for a period of 90 days after your initial entry. You must apply for a residence permit within these 90 days. You can find information on the procedure here.

If you are a Ukrainian national, you will usually receive a humanitarian residence permit for temporary protection under Section 24 of the Residence Act (AufenthG). If you have been assigned to Berlin, you can apply for the residence permit online at the State Office for Immigration (LEA).

Refugees who are permanently accommodated in Berlin can now apply for this residence permit online at the State Office for Immigration (LEA).

As long as the application is being examined, you will receive a so-called "fiction certificate". This is a document with which you can prove that you are staying in Berlin legally.

Please note: the residence title is currently not issued as a card (electronic residence title, eAT), but in the form of an adhesive label in order to simplify the administrative procedure.

With a residence permit according to § 24 AufenthG you have the following options:

  • Studying permitted
  • Unlimited gainful employment permitted
  • Right to receive social benefits such as BAföG or citizen's allowance if the other requirements are met
  • There is usually a residence requirement
  • Valid until 04.03.2025 if the regulation is not extended

Beneficiaries are Ukrainian nationals and third-country nationals who were in Ukraine at the time of the outbreak of the war if they

  • enjoyed international protection or equivalent national protection in Ukraine before 24 February 2022 or
  • legally resided in Ukraine before 24 February 2022 on the basis of a permanent residence permit issued under Ukrainian law.

If you do not fulfil any of these criteria, you will receive a so-called fictitious certificate in many cases. This gives you time to fulfil the requirements for a residence permit for study purposes or for another residence permit.

You can find more information here.

If you can no longer return to your country of origin because you have fled from there, you should seek advice from us on the asylum procedure.

 

Flüchtlingsrat Berlin:

https://fluechtlingsrat-berlin.de/news_termine/ukraine_english/#90

Information from LEA:

https://www.berlin.de/einwanderung/service/downloads/artikel.875097.php

or

https://www.berlin.de/einwanderung/en/

Information from Berlin Senate:

https://www.berlin.de/ukraine/

https://www.berlin.de/ukraine/en/arrive/online-application-temporary-residence-permit/

 

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Disclaimer: The advice and assistance provided by the Center for Student Refugees is subject to careful examination of the content. However, we do not assume any liability for the content. All advice and assistance are of a general nature and cannot cover every individual case in a binding manner. If you have any further questions, we will be happy to help.

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General Information on Entry and Residence

Residency permit for studying vs Asylum procedure