Germany Visa Documents to Notarise From Australia

For a Germany visa or residence permit, most Australian documents need a certified copy, a translation, or a DFAT apostille, and only some need a notary. Two things shape the pack. Australian citizens may apply for a residence permit from inside Germany. And German authorities care more about certified copies and translations than about notarisation as Australians know it.

Key takeaways

• Australian citizens may enter Germany without a visa and, in many cases, apply for a residence permit inside Germany. Check whether that suits your purpose.
• German authorities often want an officially certified copy, a beglaubigte Kopie. Ask who they accept as the certifier for a copy made in Australia.
• Translations into German are often expected from a translator sworn or publicly appointed in Germany. Ask before you order one here.
• For skilled work, the key document question is recognition of your qualification, not notarisation.
• Prepare Australian documents before you leave. Dealing with DFAT from Germany is slower.

Do Australians need a visa before going to Germany?

For short stays, Australian citizens can enter Germany without a visa. For longer stays, Australia is one of a small group of countries whose citizens may enter without a visa and then apply for a residence permit from inside Germany. They apply at the local foreigners' authority, the Ausländerbehörde, rather than obtaining a national visa from a German mission first.

That changes the planning. Your documents may be presented in Germany, to a local authority, rather than at the embassy in Canberra or a consulate in Australia. You still need to prepare Australian documents before you leave. Authenticating them from Germany means dealing with DFAT by post or through someone in Australia.

Whether applying from inside Germany suits your case is a question for the authority or an adviser. It matters, for example, for a job you cannot start until the permit is granted. It is also different if you travel on a passport other than an Australian one.

There is also a working holiday arrangement between Australia and Germany for younger Australians. Its age limits and conditions are set by Germany and can change, so check them with the German mission before you apply. See working holiday visa documents.

What do German authorities usually ask for?

Certified copies. German authorities often want an officially certified copy, a beglaubigte Kopie, rather than a plain photocopy. That applies particularly to degrees and civil documents. Ask who they accept as a certifier for a copy made in Australia. An Australian notary's certified copy is one option. German missions in Australia may also certify copies and signatures for use in Germany.

Translations. Documents not in German often need a German translation. German authorities frequently expect it from a translator sworn or publicly appointed in Germany. Some accept English documents without any translation. Ask the authority two questions:

• Will you accept this document in English?
• If not, must the translator be sworn in Germany, or will you accept a translation made in Australia?

Apostilles on Australian public documents. Where an authority wants an Australian birth or marriage certificate authenticated, the usual route is a DFAT apostille. Germany is a party to the Apostille Convention; check the HCCH status table on the day. Registry certificates may go to DFAT directly, without a notary. The DFAT step is covered in detail in apostilles for Germany from Australia.

What does a skilled work application need?

Skilled work routes, including the EU Blue Card, depend on your qualification being recognised in Germany. For a university degree, the first check is usually the German database for foreign qualifications, anabin. It shows whether your university and degree type are listed as comparable.

If they are not, you may need a Statement of Comparability from the German Central Office for Foreign Education, the ZAB. The ZAB sets its own document rules, including what it accepts as a certified copy. Read them before you certify anything.

Regulated professions need a separate recognition decision from the competent German body. Medicine, nursing, teaching and law are examples, and some engineering titles are regulated in some German states. That body sets its own document rules, often including certified copies and German translations.

Before you certify anything, find out which body assesses your qualification and what form it wants. A notarised copy made for the wrong body is wasted. For the Australian side of certifying a degree, see certified copies of a university degree.

What about family reunification?

Joining a spouse or partner in Germany means proving the relationship, usually with a marriage certificate. An Australian marriage certificate for this purpose is generally apostilled by DFAT, and may need a German translation. The registry certificate usually goes to DFAT directly; no notary is needed.

If you married outside Australia, the certificate is authenticated in the country that issued it, not here. An Australian notary cannot vouch for a foreign marriage certificate. For children, a birth certificate showing both parents is usually needed. Ask whether the other parent's consent must be signed and certified.

What does a study application need?

Admission is a matter for the university, often through a central applications service. The university sets its own rules on certified copies of transcripts and degrees. Some accept a certified copy made by an Australian notary. Others want certification from a German mission or a German body. Ask the admissions office before you pay for a certification.

Proof of funds and health insurance are also usually part of a study or residence application. Those come from a bank or insurer. They do not need a notary.

Where does an Australian notary fit?

An Australian notary is useful for a handful of specific tasks:

• certified copies of Australian degrees and transcripts, where the German body accepts an Australian notary's certification;
• witnessing signatures on declarations or powers of attorney for use in Germany, for example to let someone sign a lease or open an account for you;
• notarising documents DFAT cannot deal with directly, before an apostille.

An Australian notary cannot certify a foreign degree or a foreign civil certificate. Those are handled in the country that issued them. A notary never certifies that a document's contents are true; the certificate records what the notary saw and did. See document notarisation.

What should you prepare before you leave?

1. Ask the German authority or mission for its document list for your purpose, in writing if you can.
2. Order fresh Australian certificates from the registry, because laminated or damaged ones are refused.
3. Obtain DFAT apostilles on the certificates the authority wants authenticated.
4. Have degrees verified and certified in the form the recognition body wants.
5. Decide where to translate, after asking whether a German sworn translator is required.

Which documents commonly go?

Document	Typical German requirement	Australian step
Birth certificate	Apostille; translation if asked	Registry certificate to DFAT
Marriage certificate	Apostille; translation if asked	Registry certificate to DFAT
Degree and transcript	Certified copy; recognition	Notarised copy or as the body specifies
Police check	Sometimes, for certain permits	National police check to DFAT if asked
Power of attorney	Signature certified	German mission, or notary then apostille

What does not work?

• A Justice of the Peace copy of your degree. It is for domestic use and not recognised overseas.
• Translating in Australia without asking whether a German sworn translator is required.
• Certifying a degree before finding out which body assesses it.
• Leaving DFAT until you are in Germany. It can be done, but slowly.

Why is this different from an Australian visa?

People who have dealt with the Department of Home Affairs often expect Germany to work the same way. It does not. For an Australian visa, a clear scan is often enough, and a copy certified by an authorised person usually suffices where certification is asked for. Home Affairs expects translations made in Australia to come from a NAATI-credentialled translator.

For Germany, the receiving authority is German, and it applies German practice. A copy certified by an Australian authorised person, such as a pharmacist or police officer, is unlikely to satisfy a request for a beglaubigte Kopie. A NAATI translation is a professional Australian credential, but it is not a German sworn translation. Ask the German authority rather than assuming Australian rules carry over.

What if a German family member is coming to Australia?

That is the reverse direction, and it follows Home Affairs rules. German documents are issued in Germany, so any apostille comes from the German authorities, not DFAT. An Australian notary cannot vouch for a German registry's document. For translations, Home Affairs' guidance on the immigration website says a translation made in Australia should be by a NAATI-credentialled translator. One made in Germany should show the translator's full name, address, telephone number and qualifications. See document translation.

A statutory declaration supporting a partner visa is an Australian document. It is witnessed by an authorised witness in Australia; a notary is not required, though a notary can witness one.

Here is an illustration, not a real case

A software developer in Brisbane has a job offer in Munich. She checks anabin and finds her degree listed as comparable. She asks the foreigners' authority what it wants, and it asks for a certified copy of her degree and an apostilled marriage certificate. She orders a fresh certificate, DFAT apostilles it, and a notary certifies her degree copy. She enters Germany visa-free and applies there. A sworn translator in Munich translates the marriage certificate.

In short

For Germany, find out where you will lodge, which body assesses your qualification, and who must translate. Registry certificates go to DFAT for an apostille without a notary. A notary helps with certified degree copies and signatures. Prepare everything in Australia before you go.

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