For countries that don't have a visa waiver deal with Germany, applying for an entry permit is an essential step before visiting the country.
For years, this has involved filling in long paper forms and posting them to the nearest consulate or German embassy, which could be located tens or even hundreds of kilometres away. Physical copies of documents needed to be included, and applicants often had to endure long waiting times and high postage costs as part of the process.
Since January 1st, 2025, however, a new digital system has been in service. Branded the Consular Services Portal, it enables online applications for 28 different types of visa - including tourists, students, family members and skilled workers - from anywhere in the world with an internet connection.
According to the German Federal Foreign Affairs Office (BAA), the new consular services portal has been over two years in the making. Following a pilot programme at three visa application spots, the portal has now been extended to serve 167 embassies and consulates worldwide.
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In digitalising the old system, the government hopes to dramatically speed up the process of granting visas and boost the numbers of skilled immigrants entering the country.
Welcoming the new portal, Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock of the Green Party alluded to the fact that Germany needs 400,000 more skilled workers each year to keep the economy running.
"In these times, we cannot afford to discourage the best people from working in our country with long paper applications and even longer waiting times," she said. "We need a state-of-the-art national visa procedure - modern, digital and secure."
After two and a half years of work, the online application process represents a "genuine administrative revolution" that will strengthen Germany as a business location, Baerbock added.
How it works
From January, visa applicants will have to follow a three-step process in order to get the permit they need to enter Germany.
The first step involves filling in an online form for the relevant visa using the Consular Services Portal and uploading relevant documents such as passport scans or proof of qualifications.
In the second step, the German mission conducts a preliminary check of the application. If extra info is required, officials will request it through the portal.
Finally, applicants will be invited to an in-person appointment at their nearest German mission to establish their identity, check original documents and take biometric data such as photos and fingerprints.
At each step, the status of the application is displayed in the portal. Applicants can also check which visa they should apply for with a new online Visa Navigator tool.
Speaking to The Local, Berlin-based immigration lawyer Sven Hasse said he expected the new system to result in much faster decisions on visa applications.
"It's no longer relevant whether a person in the embassy checks the application," he explained. "They can check it anywhere."
This means that workers in Germany or elsewhere in the world can carry out preliminary checks on applications, such as the Foreign Affairs Office in Brandenburg, which has been increasing its capacity recently.
"This should speed up the process in future," Hasse said.
The introduction of the new visa portal follows the rollout of digital residence permit and citizenship applications in states like Berlin, Hamburg and Bavaria.
In Berlin, for example, applicants have been able to apply for naturalisation online since the start of 2024, while online applications for residence permits and permit renewals were expanded later in the year.
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Currently, the online visa portal is only available for individual applicants, meaning family members will still need to submit an application at their local German consulate.
However, the next step in the digitalisation of visa applications will be to allow joint applications for families, groups and authorised representatives online.
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