I have a question, I  have lived in Germany for more than 5 years. I finished my master in a  german university and now I have a PhD position half -time. I  have applied for my " permanent resident" (Niederlassungserlaubnis) and  I  sumitted these  documents:

-german language (B1)
-work certification
-rentenversicherung ( 24 months)
-remuneration Statements ( last 3 months).

Now I am reading about the blue card, which allows to work in EU,  I  would like to now whether I  can  apply for the blue card  once I  have got the "permanent resident" ???

In terms of job permision, which are the differents between blue card and permanent visa?.

how long  shall I wait to apply for the blue card, once I have got the permanent resident or can I get both??

In advance I thank you,

with regards.

karen.

Permanent resident is better than Bluecard. So if you are getting Permanent residenceship then dont bother about Bluecard.
If you dont get Niederlassungerlabnis then if you want you can apply for Bluecard. You dont have to wait for Bluecard.

That is an interesting question karen and I think it still needs clarifying. You see, I got my Blue Card for Germany in August 2013 and I know that in the conditions is says that after 18 months a person can move (very easily) to other countries within the EU for work (excluding Denmark, UK and N. Ireland). Whereas on the other hand doesn't a permanent residnece permit allow you to work in Germany only? And it expires after one year of living within another country in the EU? In which case, wouldn't an Blue Card be better to have for keeping that option of moving to other countries within the EU?

One important thing to note - if you wan to bring your wife to Germany
- With EU Blue-Card the German A1 requirement for your wife is waived
- But with Niederlassungserlaubnis, your spouse will have the prove the German proficiency (the exception is only if your Niederlassungserlaubnis is based on highly-qualified worker and I am not sure about the specific terms and conditions for that)

One of the advantage of Niederlassungserlaubnis is the processing fee. Blue card is only valid for few year and then you have to extend it again (and pay the fee again - approx 120E)

If you are planning to stay in Germany only for few years, then I would suggest to go for EU Blue card (you can always convert it to Niederlassungserlaubnis later)
But if you are planning to settle in Germany and dont care about your wife's german requirement, then definately go for Niederlassungserlaubnis

Hope this helps

Dear Karen,

I'm in the same position as you are, I have a Master's degree from a German Uni and doing my PhD with 50% salary. I am a Turkish citizen. I did not know that we are eligible for Niederlassungserlaubnis.

Can you give more details about yourself, maybe you are a American/Australian etc. so laws maybe different for you. I think it also depends on which state you are living since the regulations are also different for different states. If you can give me some info I can inquire further to ABH.

Thanks in advance for your answer and I hope you get accepted.

Arnhem, I am Mexican citizenship and perhaps the laws are different, and perhaps it also depends on the state where you are living (I do not know!) but the most importants requirements are the "retenversicherung for at least 2 years" and  the type of visa  you got, I mean: if your visa is as "promotion: student visa"  first than all, you should  finish your PhD, then  find a Job  and with the contract of  your job, which should be related with your career, apply for a visa as:"worker-visa". Once you have gotten "worker-visa" for  at least 2 years, you are eligible for "Niederlassungserlaubnis"In my  case, I am  doing my PhD  and my visa is as "worker" and  NOT as a "promotion: student visa"because I have a contratc as: "miterarbeiter" for  5 years. that is why I have applied  but still I  have a lot of question about this type of visa (Niederlassungserlaubnis).Karen.