If you have been granted subsidiary protection by the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees, apply for a residence permit at the immigration authority responsible for you.

You must be granted a residence permit (legal entitlement) if you have been incontestably recognized by the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees as a person entitled to subsidiary protection. However, you may not be granted a residence permit if you have been deported due to a particularly serious reason for deportation (e.g. conviction for an intentional criminal offense resulting in imprisonment or a juvenile sentence of at least two years).

Until the residence permit is issued, your stay is deemed to be permitted by law.

The residence permit entitles you to pursue gainful employment.

Persons entitled to subsidiary protection receive a residence permit valid for one year, which can be extended for two years at a time. After five years at the earliest (including the time of the asylum procedure), you can be granted a permanent settlement permit if you meet the requirements for this.

For three years, you are subject to a residence requirement for the federal state in which you have been assigned to carry out the asylum procedure. The residence regulation does not apply or can be lifted if you, your spouse, registered partner or a minor child take up employment subject to social security contributions for at least 15 hours per week and have a minimum income that exceeds the average monthly requirement according to the German Social Security Code (SGB), or are taking up or have taken up vocational training or studies. The employment must also be sustainable. This is assumed if your employment relationship is expected to last for more than three months.

Legal consequences:

You are permitted to work.

You are entitled to social benefits (basic income support for jobseekers or basic income support in old age or in the event of reduced earning capacity) and child benefit, parental benefit and educational support

The possibility of family reunification exists for your relatives, the so-called nuclear family - these are the spouse, underage unmarried children and parents of underage children who live in Germany without a custodial parent.

Reunification is limited to a total of 1,000 persons per month for the entire territory of the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) and requires that there is a humanitarian reason. The decision on the entitlement to reunification is made as part of the visa procedure.

You are entitled to attend an integration course. When issuing the residence permit, the immigration authority will also determine ex officio whether you are entitled to attend an integration course. If this is the case, it will issue you with a certificate of eligibility. At the same time, you will also receive a list of course providers in your area where you can register on presentation of your certificate of eligibility.

You can be granted a settlement permit if you

• have held a residence permit for five years,
• can support yourself and your family (community of need) from your own income without claiming public benefits,
• have paid contributions to the statutory pension insurance scheme or another pension scheme with comparable benefits for at least 30 months,
• your stay does not jeopardize or impair the interests of the Federal Republic of Germany,
• are allowed to pursue gainful employment and have all the necessary permits,
• have sufficient knowledge of the German language (level B1),
• have a basic knowledge of the legal and social order and living conditions in Germany and

have sufficient living space for themselves and their family.