Hello,

This is my first post here. I registered here, because people recommended me this forum as a place where i can get good information. I moved to Berlin Germany 6 months ago, because i found a good job. I work as a software development. I am not from EU (Serbia).
When i got here i heard about the blue card and applied for it. Because my salary is a little bit less than 44800 euros before granting me my Blue Card, AusaenderBehoerde sent my papers to ArbeitsAmt (or whatever the name of that institution  is).
They promptly responded that my occupation is one listed in the shortage list so i was granted a Blue Card.
However with my blue card i have gotten a Zusatzblatt saying exactly this in the Nebenbestimmungen:
"BESCHAFTIGUNG NICHT GESTATTET MIT AUSNAHME DER TATIGKEIT ALS SOFTWARE ENGINEER BEI <name of my company> SELBSTSTANDIGE TATIGKEIT GESTATTET." ( i missed some umlauts, sorry about that i dont have them on my keyboard).

So the thing that confuses me is why is my blue card limited to just my company? Doesn't that defeat the purpose of the blue card? Especially since 4 people from my company asked for Blue Card, and all got it, but without this restriction for the company. to them is says something like:
"BESCHAFTIGUNG NICHT GESTATTET MIT AUSNAHME DER TATIGKEIT ALS SOFTWARE
ENGINEER".

To tell the truth those 4 people have salaries greater than 44800 so they didn't have the additional check. I originally complained to AuslaenerBehoerde about this, and they informed me that it is correct, and that probably other people have it wrong????

After that i asked the HR of my company to ask what is going on, and they got a reponse that indeed there is an error in my Zusatzblatt and that it would me quickly corrected. After a while, they told me that they do not know whether my zusatzblatt is wrong or not and that they will have a discussion with colleagues about it.

That was 3 months ago. No body is doing anything about it.And i do not know what do to.

I read the law (thou i do not speak german very well). And for me it seems that my salary should decide only whether i get the blue card or not, not  a type of blue card.

In effect it seems that i have a blue card that is a second class citizen.

So please tell me what do you think about this case?

Is this their mistake? Or is this the way it should be?
What can i do if it is a mistake? Is there an institution that i can complain too?
I was thinking about going to newspapers about this, but i am not sure will this help the situation.

When i was leaving Serbia, i thought Serbian bureaucracy was inneficiant and unporffesional, but Germans have set the new low for me.

Thanks in advance,
Milos

Welcome and feel yourself at home. The first thing coming to my mind as an error is ""BESCHAFTIGUNG NICHT GESTATTET MIT AUSNAHME DER TATIGKEIT ALS SOFTWARE ENGINEER BEI <name of my company> SELBSTSTANDIGE TATIGKEIT GESTATTET.", because it means that you are not allow to work for any company as a software engineer except in your company but they do allow you to work as a freelancer : "SELBSTSTANDIGE TATIGKEIT GESTATTET."...

This you have to sort out.

D.

Hi Milos,

do not worry! Everything is fine. Berlin is a big city and the alien office is also a big one. So there are many officers working there and it is quite normal that they write different things into the visa stamps.

That your Blue Card is bound to your company is no problem at all, the only disadvantage is, that you have to apply for a new stamp if you want to change your employer. Which is easy as long as the new job will also follows the Blue Card rules.

To give you 'Selbständige Tätigkeit Gestattet' is illogical, because it is an advantage and normally this kind of permit will be given after 2 years of work. But it is an advantage for you, because it gives you the possibilty to found your own company or work as a freelancer.

But now, after 'making so much noise' about your work permit, they might cancel this part of it!

Detlef

Thanks for your responses.

I just got an anser from my HR management. They finally got the answer from Auslaender Behoerde about this. This is the email i just recived from them:

"Hello Milos,
I got news from the Alien Department. They confirmed that in Germany there are two different kinds of Blue Cards.
1.       One which is bound to a company
2.       One which is not bound to a company
 
Best....
"

So this seems to be an undocumented feature. I think this is crazy. I cannot find any proof of it in the the law. They didn't even tell me how to cheange from one category to another one. I cannot beleive this is happening to me.

Why all the drama? You just arrived in Germany and have a permit that is bound to your position and employer. It is perfectly normal. After you've worked here for two years you can apply for an open work permit (see §3 BeschVerfV).

Im just wondering how come it is possible that they have a feature of the blue card like this. How come my colleagues have different thing. Im seriously thinking about going to newspappers about this. People get all exited about this blue card thingie. But then you see its not like they writte about it in the press. I was thinking abut relatively soon changing my employer, because the place im currently working is not that good. 
I wouldnt even know what to say to the new employers now. What do they do to get me. Im totally confused.

Meanwhile I start to think that you are making a joke with us?

Are you sure that you know what you are talking about? There is nothing wrong at all with your Blue Card!

It would be fantastic if the newspapers have nothing else to report than your text in your work permit. Unfortunately the world is not that good to people.

As the moderator of this forum I tell you... think before you posta message!

Detlef

No im not making a joke with anyone.

I just don't get it. So there are in fact two type or not? My colleagues have their card not restricted to the employee, and i have it restricted. And i feel as if i have been wronged.

Im sorry if i sound as if i am making a joke.

@loshmi

I think you were problem is not that you got your WP tied to employer but the other 4 people got the Blucard with better conditions. What if the other 4 also had got he similar conditions like you ?

You have accepted in your earleir post that your salary was lower that the other 4.

There is only single type of Bluecard with different conditions.(tied to employer and sometimes tied to city also. I had earlier a WP tied to employer & city). If you want to learn more about the rules, please read the complete Gesetz book (rule book) on the Workpermit. Please read them in german, as the rules translated to english are not official, not comprehensive and doesnot contain the total exemption, conditions,...
There are hundreds of exceptions for each type of permit. Its upto the beamter to check your application based on merit and decide about these exceptions.

So stop comparing and complaining and enjoy your stay in Germany. You are free to go the press and lawyer, but I ( hopefuly most in this forum) suggeest to go cool and apply for open WP after 2 yrs.

Even making allowances for your rather poor language skills, your comments are absolutely ridiculous. Before making more outrageous accusations I strongly suggest that you read Article 12 of Directive 2009/50/EC.

 Ok, i see that i have managed to agitate everyone in this forum, and I'm very sad about that. Yes my English is not perfect, and i am not a native speaker of it. I am sorry for that too. I guess the angrier i get the worse my English becomes.
The question that really interests me now is this:
Is waiting two years to get a work permit not restricted to a specific employer the only way, or if i find another employer that is able to give me more than 44 700 and apply again i can get a work permit like my friends here in the company?
Thanks in advance,Milos

If you get a new job, just apply again at Ausländerbehörde. There is no reason to get worried. Even those whose job is not fixed with any company need permission of Ausländerbehorde for changing job during first two years (that is what is written on my Zusatzblatt).  Following is written on my Zusatzblatt:

beschäftigung als "job title" bei "company name" gestattet (relevant Clause of law). Arbeitgeberwechsel innerhalb der ersten zwei Jahre nur mit Zustimmung der Ausländerbehörde


For your new job,they just check that you fullfill the requirements for Blue Card and may change your zusatzblatt and/or duration of work permit(depending upon your duration of contract with the new company). If contract is unlimited , they give 4 years residence permit but if it is limited than it is duration of the contract+3month. But maxium limit is 4 years. So in any case, one has to go to ABH during first two years.

Don't expect that they will publish the whole law in English in press and websties. So there would always be some finer details as well as some interpretation of law which may change from city to city and person to person. Did it come to your mind that through all this you are telling your current employer about your intention of changing job very early? Your first 6 months would be probation, play safely .

Ok, thank you very much. This was really helpful.
Big thanks to everyone who participated in this discussion.

Dear Friends,

I needd your help here. I have work permit visa and going to work in Munich. I have hired agency for filiing EU blue card and they have informed me that appointment would take 4 months. 

Unfortunately, i have to file for my spouse work permit as well. Unless i do not get by blue card i can not file for hers. Any possibility of filing EU blue card in other city where backlog is less. 

Please share your experiences.

Thanks