If your old permit expires during processing, the Fiktionsbescheinigung (€13) preserves all rights — including work and travel.
✓ Verified: 17/07/2026
WHAT TO DO
Ausländerbehörde (ABH)
Municipal authorityThe Ausländerbehörde for your registered address is the one responsible. Enter your postcode and we will show yours.
§ 47 AufenthV
The Fiktionsbescheinigung is an insert for your passport officially confirming: application filed, rights continue. Ask for it right at the appointment if the decision clearly will not arrive before expiry.
Every extension brings you closer to permanent status — check your dates:
Enter your arrival date and permit type to see your earliest application dates.
I kept the fiction certificate next to my passport in my wallet: shown to employer and bank as a valid status proof. It fully covered the time until the card.
When eAT readiness was announced I collected the card at the next slot: the fiction certificate ends with permit issuance, so no point delaying pickup.
No, it confirms you are legally awaiting the renewal decision. Rights (work, travel) depend on its type and usually mirror your previous permit.
Yes, it is time-limited (often 3–6 months). If the decision drags, renew the fiction certificate until the eAT is ready — otherwise you are left without a valid document.
Explain: an official immigration-office document legally replacing the permit during processing. If in doubt, ask the office for a short e-mail confirmation.
With the extension fiction under § 81(4), yes — re-entry works with passport + Fiktionsbescheinigung + the expired permit. With the § 81(3) fiction, do not leave Germany.
The Fiktionsbescheinigung with the continuation note: all rights of the old permit, including employment, remain valid until the decision.
Usually 4–6 weeks after approval (printed by the Bundesdruckerei). The PIN letter arrives separately — keep it for the online eID function.