Ausbildung in Germany for International Applicants: What It Is, Pay, Occupations and the Visa

Ausbildung is Germany's vocational training system: two to three and a half years leading to a state-recognised qualification. In its dual form you sign a training contract with a company, work there most of the week, attend a vocational school (Berufsschule) the rest of the time and receive a monthly training allowance. For trainees starting in 2026, the legal minimum is $818 (€724) a month in the first year, and the average collectively agreed allowance in 2025 was $1,366 (€1,209). Applicants from outside the EU need a training place (a contract with a company or admission to a vocational school), German at B1 and a national visa under section 16a of the Residence Act; if you have no place yet, a separate visa under section 17 lets you search in Germany for up to nine months, provided you are under 35 and can show $1,233 (€1,091) per month.

What Ausbildung is and how it differs from university

Ausbildung leads to a qualification in one of the occupations recognised under federal law (the Vocational Training Act, BBiG, and the Crafts Code, HwO) or under state rules. The Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training (BIBB) maintains the official register of recognised occupations. Employers across Germany read the resulting certificate the same way.

There is also the "dual study" route (duales Studium), a bachelor's degree combined with company work. Because it is a degree, it needs university entrance, so a graduate of an 11-year school system still goes through a Studienkolleg or a first year at home first — see bachelor's degrees in Germany.

Who Ausbildung suits

It makes sense if you want a practical, in-demand occupation quickly, can reach German B1 before you leave, and want to live on your own income from the first month. For school leavers from countries whose certificates need a Studienkolleg, it also avoids that preparatory year.

It suits you less if you aim for research, an academic career or a profession that needs a degree in Germany (medicine, law, chartered engineering). Do the arithmetic as well: a first-year allowance rarely covers rent in Munich or Frankfurt, so a training company in an affordable region is often the better deal than a famous employer in an expensive city.

Is there a list of occupations for foreigners?

No separate list exists. An international applicant can train in any recognised occupation if a company signs a contract and the Federal Employment Agency approves the training. Your odds are better where employers struggle to fill places — skilled trades, construction, hospitality, logistics, care and some technical occupations. The quickest way to see what is open right now is the Federal Employment Agency's official job search with the "Ausbildung" filter.

Collectively agreed training allowances, average across all training years, 2025, gross per month:

These are collective-agreement rates, not what every trainee earns. A company without a collective agreement may pay less, but never below the legal minimum and no more than 20% below the rate for its sector and region. Tax and social insurance contributions are deducted, so the net amount is lower.

Requirements

School education

German law sets no minimum school level for dual training: the company decides which certificate and grades it wants. Most employers expect completed secondary education, and an 11-year school-leaving certificate counts in your favour. School-based programmes have their own entry rules, sometimes including recognition of a foreign certificate by a state authority.

The search visa (section 17) is stricter: you need a school-leaving certificate that gives access to higher education in Germany or in the country where it was issued, or a certificate from a German school abroad. A Russian certificate of complete secondary education meets this; a grade-9 certificate does not.

German

The German Embassy in Moscow accepts B1 in two ways: a certificate at B1 or above, or enrolment in a job-related German course built into the programme. Under the state-funded DeuFöV scheme such a course lasts up to six months with at least 20 hours a week. If the company or school has already tested your German, the law does not require a separate certificate, but interviews and Berufsschule classes are in German anyway. Where to sit a German exam now that the Goethe-Institut has closed in Russia is covered in TestDaF, DSH and Goethe exams; courses inside Germany are covered in German language courses in Germany.

Age

Section 16a sets no age limit. For the search visa under section 17, you must not yet be 35 when you apply. Minors need notarised parental consent and a named person in Germany who takes over parental responsibility.

Visa options: with a contract or to search

For company-based training the law requires approval from the Federal Employment Agency, which checks the contract terms during the visa procedure. For school-based training, the Make it in Germany portal states $1,083 (€959) net per month, while the Moscow embassy checklist gives $1,121 (€992); prepare your file according to the mission where you apply.

Documents for the Moscow embassy

• national visa application form, two biometric photos, international and internal passports with copies;
• training contract stating the occupation, duration, workplace address, contact person and gross monthly allowance, plus the training plan (Ausbildungsplan);
• school or university certificate in the original, with a German translation;
• CV in table form and a motivation letter (with a notarised translation if not written in German);
• proof of German B1 or of enrolment in the preparatory course;
• proof of funds if the allowance is below the threshold: a blocked account or formal sponsorship from Germany;
• health insurance from an EU insurer until training starts; statutory insurance begins with the first day of training and address registration.

Translations made in Russia must be notarised, and civil-registry documents need an apostille. Appointments go through the RK-Termin waiting list and applications are filed in person in Moscow — the St Petersburg consulate closed on 18 September 2026 — and a biometric passport has been required since 1 January 2026. The general visa logic, timing and common mistakes are explained in our German student visa guide. The visa decision is made by the embassy together with the immigration office; the Federal Employment Agency approves the training itself.

When the allowance is not enough

No Russian bank offers a blocked account that the embassy accepts, and Russian bank statements are not accepted as proof of funds. You open the account with a provider abroad and transfer money lawfully — see our blocked account guide and how to pay for studies abroad from Russia.

Finding a training place from abroad

1. Shortlist two or three occupations and read their profiles in the Federal Employment Agency's BERUFENET: content, length and school requirements.
2. Search for places in the agency's official job search with the "Ausbildung" filter, on the apprenticeship exchanges of the chambers of industry and commerce and of crafts, and on company websites. Searching "Ausbildungsplatz" plus the German occupation name works in ordinary search engines too.
3. Start 9–12 months ahead. Most programmes begin on 1 August or 1 September, and large companies recruit almost a year in advance; smaller firms still hire in the spring of the same year.
4. Apply in German with a cover letter, CV with photo, translated certificate and language certificate. Interviews for applicants abroad are often online; some employers ask for a trial day.
5. Join the visa waiting list as soon as you sign. The appointment queue is usually the slowest part.

Be wary of intermediaries who charge "for a place": the contract is between you and the company, and no one should be paid for the right to train.

During training

The allowance rises each training year, and you may also work up to 20 hours a week in a job unrelated to the training. Health insurance switches to the statutory system once training starts and your address is registered, as the embassy checklist notes.

If the contract ends for reasons you are not responsible for (for example, the company closes), the immigration office must give you up to six months to find a new place before shortening or revoking your permit. Agree any change of occupation or employer with the immigration office in advance.

Rent, insurance and transport by city are covered in the cost of studying and living in Germany; finding a room is covered in student housing in Germany.

After you qualify

Once you complete a qualified training programme in Germany, you can receive a residence permit of up to 18 months to look for work, provided you can support yourself. With a job in your field you move to a skilled-worker permit. Further options include master craftsperson (Meister) or technician (Techniker) qualifications and, with university entrance, a bachelor's degree.

Ausbildung or university?

If university looks like the better fit, read our guides to the Studienkolleg and studying in Germany as a Russian citizen; the Germany country guide gives the overall picture.

Common mistakes

• Travelling on a Schengen visa to "look around": the search visa exists for that, and a Schengen visa cannot be converted into a training permit in Germany.
• Signing a contract that omits the occupation, duration or gross allowance — the embassy checks exactly those points.
• Hunting for a "list of occupations for foreigners" instead of looking at open places in the region you want.
• Postponing B1 until you have a contract: without German, companies rarely sign.
• Choosing a place by allowance alone without checking local rent.
• Paying intermediaries for "placement" in a training programme.

FAQ

Sources

• German Embassy in Moscow: vocational training checklist (November 2025), checklist for seeking a training place (February 2025), national visa and appointments, St Petersburg closure and biometric passports
• Residence Act: section 16a, section 17, section 20
• Make it in Germany: visas for vocational training and for seeking a training place
• BIBB: minimum training allowance 2026 (press release, 13.10.2025), collectively agreed training allowances 2025, register of recognised occupations 2026
• Federal Employment Agency: Ausbildung job search
• German Foreign Office: blocked accounts

All sources checked on 1 October 2026. ECB reference rate of 01.10.2026: €1 = $1.1298.

If you want to work through your route, send a request: document preparation and submission are provided under an agreement with StudyU, the company or school decides on your training place, and the embassy decides on the visa.

During the free initial consultation, we clarify your goal, profile, timing, and budget and identify the next realistic step.