File with your ABH, fee €113. PR is indefinite — no more renewals or employer ties.
✓ 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.
§ 44 AufenthV; self-employed €124, highly qualified €147
The decision usually takes weeks to a couple of months. The eAT card is produced as with extensions — including the PIN letter for the online function.
PR is not the finish line: after 5 years of residence (spouses of Germans: 3) the passport opens up. Our calculator gives you the dates.
I applied for settlement exactly when the 60 contribution months were full — not earlier: even one month short turns the application back and the 113 € fee is due again.
Despite settlement I set a reminder about the 6-month absence rule: I now clear long home trips with the office in advance so as not to lose the permanent status.
Usually 2–4 months with a complete package, longer in busy cities. After the old permit expires you are protected by the fiction certificate during processing.
Yes: a long absence from Germany (usually over 6 months without special permission) voids it. Planning a long trip — request an extension of the absence in advance.
Permanence, free work with any employer and self-employed, status security and a direct road to citizenship. The tie to a specific job disappears.
File the extension in parallel or get a Fiktionsbescheinigung: your rights continue until the PR decision.
Yes — by staying abroad longer than 6 months without the authority approval. Get approval before any long absence.
It is indefinite, employer and profession are free, mortgages come at normal terms — and it is the last step before citizenship.