The German residence permit (German: Aufenthaltstitel) is a document issued to non-EU citizens (so-called third-country nationals) living in Germany.
Prior to 1 September 2011, residence permits and additional provisions were affixed to pages inside the passport (in sticker form). Today, residence permits are issued as ID-1 (credit card size) plastic cards and the additional provisions are printed on a separate sheet of paper, so that residents have to possess (but not carry around) up to three different documents: a passport from their country of citizenship, their residence permit, and the supplementary sheet (if applicable). Carrying passports and residence cards is only compulsory when crossing borders. Within Germany, it is sufficient to know where they are and to show them to the police within a reasonable amount of time, when requested.
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A limited residence permit (a so-called Aufenthaltserlaubnis, literally residence permit) is valid for a certain period of time and is issued for a certain purpose:
The Aufenthaltserlaubnis does not automatically grant the right to work; instead the permission to work must be explicitly mentioned in the document.
An unlimited residence permit (a so-called Niederlassungserlaubnis, literally settlement permit) is a permanent residence permit. It grants the right to live and work in Germany. A foreigner receives a settlement permit if:
Additional provisions (e.g. whether the resident is allowed to work) are stored on the chip and are printed on a supplementary sheet which must be kept together with the residence permit.
Since 1 September 2011, the residence permit is issued as ID-1 (credit card size) plastic cards with an embedded RFID chip. It is covered with multi-colour guillochés and appears pink-blue from the distance. All information on it is given only in German (except for the English words residence permit).
The front side shows the symbol for biometric travel documents, the German Eagle, the European bull, and the words "AUFENTHALTSTITEL" and "RESIDENCE PERMIT". It contains the following information:
The back side contains the following informaion:
The three-line machine-readable zone on the back side contains the following information:
| positions | text | meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 1-2 | AR | residence permit |
| 3 | D | issuing country: Germany (Deutschland) |
| 6-14 | alphanumeric digits | document number |
| 15 | decimal digit | check digit over 6-14 |
| positions | text | meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 1-6 | decimal digits | date of birth (YYMMDD) |
| 7 | decimal digit | check digit over 1-6 |
| 8 | alphabetic digit | sex (M or F) |
| 9-14 | decimal digits | date of expire of corresponding passport (YYMMDD) |
| 15 | decimal digit | check digit over 9-14 |
| 16-18 | alphabetic digits | nationality of holder (three-letter code) |
| 30 | decimal digit | check digit over 6-30 (first line), 1-7, 9-15, 19-29 (second line) |
| positions | text | meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 1-30 | alphabetic digits<<alphabetic digits<alphabetic digits | SURNAME<<GIVEN<NAMES |
Empty spaces are represented by "<".
The residence permit contains a RFID chip. The chip stores the information given on the document (like name or date of birth), the holder's picture and, if the holder is at least six years old, also his/her fingerprints. The additional provisions are also stored on the chip. In addition, the new ID card can be used for online authentification (e.g. for age verification or for e-government applications). An electronic signature, provided by a private company, can also be stored on the chip.
The document number, the photo and the fingerprints can be read only by law enforcement agencies and some other authorities.
To use the online authentification function, the holder needs a six-digit decimal PIN. If the holder types in the wrong PIN, he has to type in the six-digit decimal access code given on the document to prove he/she really possesses the document. If the wrong PIN is used three times, a PUK must be used to unlock the chip. The data on the chip are protected by Basic Access Control and Extended Access Control.
The residence permit contains the following security features: