Every recognised qualification opens every qualified job — how the reformed Section 18a Residence Act changes skilled-worker migration
Every recognised qualification opens every qualified job — how the reformed Section 18a Residence Act changes skilled-worker migration
1. The Outcome
An Indian client holding a recognised master's degree has been working as a qualified restaurant professional in a Leipzig restaurant since February 2026. In April 2026 the Berlin State Office for Immigration issued him a residence permit under Section 18a of the German Residence Act. The legal basis is the revised Section 18a, in force since the Skilled Immigration Act reform of 16 August 2023. A qualification no longer needs to match the specific job. Any recognised qualification opens access to any qualified employment in Germany.
2. The Legal Core: Section 18a after the Reform
Section 18a paragraph 1 sentence 1 of the Residence Act in the version in force since 18 November 2023 provides that a skilled worker with vocational training may be issued a residence permit to pursue qualified employment. The prior strict link between training field and actual job has been removed. The federal legislator has thereby eliminated one of the central bottlenecks of the German labour market. Anyone holding a qualification recognised in Germany is permitted to take up any qualified employment — not only their trained occupation.
The qualification must still be recognised. For academic degrees, the Central Office for Foreign Education (ZAB) of the Standing Conference of the Ministers of Education carries out this assessment. For vocational qualifications, the competent bodies of the federal states are responsible. The recognition serves as the legal anchor for the skilled-worker classification under Section 18 paragraph 3 of the Residence Act.
The reform also covers academics who wish to take up qualified but non-academic positions. A master's graduate in environmental sciences may lawfully work as a restaurant professional, a computer scientist as a logistics supervisor, a biochemist in commercial sales. The legislator assumes that a completed academic programme demonstrates the general capacity for qualified professional work.
3. The Case
Our client is an Indian national and holds a Master of Science in Environmental Sciences from an Indian university. His degree was formally recognised as equivalent by the ZAB on 13 November 2025. At the time of his application he held a residence permit under Section 16b (studies), due to expire at the end of the winter semester 2025/2026.
In January 2026 he received a job offer from a Leipzig restaurateur introduced through a mutual friend. The employment contract provided for unlimited full-time employment as a qualified restaurant professional, 160 hours per month at EUR 16.00 gross per hour. The resulting gross monthly salary of EUR 2,560.00 exceeded both the national median for the occupation (EUR 2,526.00) and the regional Leipzig median (EUR 2,369.00) according to the Federal Employment Agency's salary atlas (data basis 2024).
4. What We Delivered in the Proceedings
4.1. Fact-finding and qualification review
We reviewed the ZAB certificate, the Indian master's diploma and the complete study documentation, and we tested the file against the current version of Section 18 paragraph 3 of the Residence Act. The ZAB recognition was sound. A separate vocational recognition procedure was unnecessary, because the reformed Section 18a no longer requires a field match.
4.2. Employer liaison and contract review
We work with an established network of German employers who actively seek international skilled workers and understand the requirements of skilled-worker migration. In this matter the introduction arose through a mutual friend of the client and the employer. We reviewed the employment contract, cross-checked the wage against the current salary atlas of the Federal Employment Agency, and documented compliance with Section 18 paragraph 2 number 5 of the Residence Act (comparable working conditions).
4.3. Application and approval by the Federal Employment Agency
We filed the application for a residence permit under Section 18a on 28 January 2026 with the Berlin State Office for Immigration, where the client was registered at the time. The Federal Employment Agency issued its approval in March 2026.
4.4. Fictitious certificate bridging the gap
Because the student permit expired on 31 March 2026, we obtained a fictitious certificate under Section 81 paragraph 5 of the Residence Act for the pendency of the new application. Section 81 paragraph 3 sentence 1 provides that a timely application prolongs the validity of the existing permit until decision. Our client therefore remained lawfully resident throughout and was able to take up the employment contract.
4.5. Accompaniment at the immigration office
After the Federal Employment Agency's approval, the State Office scheduled an appointment for issuance of the permit. We prepared the appointment, assembled the documents and briefed the employer in parallel. The residence permit was granted in April 2026.
5. What This Means for Those Affected
Anyone with a foreign qualification who wishes to work in a qualified position in Germany should bear three points in mind. First, recognition of the qualification is what determines access to Section 18a. The recognition procedure is the bottleneck, not the subsequent immigration application. Second, the job is freely selectable as long as it is qualified. Unskilled labour does not qualify; qualified work outside the trained field does. Third, timing is decisive — particularly when switching from Section 16b to Section 18a, because only an application filed before expiry of the existing permit triggers the continuation fiction of Section 81 paragraph 3.
Employers should be aware that the reform significantly eases international recruitment. The qualification must be recognised; a precise field match to the specific position is no longer required. We advise employers and skilled workers as a single service — from qualification recognition through employment contract to residence permit.
6. Contact
KAP Rechtsanwälte — Kleibömer Dr. Arroyave Partnerschaft. Gohliser Straße 26, 04105 Leipzig.
https://kap-kanzlei.de/en/5/contact.html
Phone +49 341-97854268. Email info@kap-kanzlei.de. We advise in German, English and Spanish.
