Brits in Germany

The EU’s new Entry/Exit System (EES) is live ✈️🚢🚄
British passport holders travelling to and from the Schengen area may now need extra border checks, including passport scans and biometrics on their first trip.
Plan ahead, check operator advice and allow extra time.

The Welsh flag flies proudly from the British Embassy Berlin to mark St. David's Day, the celebration of Wales' patron saint.

UK-Germany Youth Summit 'Resilient Democracies – Youth Shaping the Future' | British Council The UK-Germany Youth Summit brings together young people from the UK and Germany and offers a space to explore intercultural dialogue.

The European Union (EU) is expected to introduce the EU Entry/Exit System (EES) that will affect non-EU citizens, including British nationals, entering an EU country for a short stay. The exact date that EES will be introduced has not been confirmed.

Non-EU nationals visiting the EU, including UK nationals, will need to create a digital record when they enter the EU’s Schengen Zone. This includes providing biometric data (fingerprints and facial image) at the border.

If you are a UK national living in Germany with rights under the Withdrawal Agreement, you will be exempt from EES registration provided you have the correct documentation. If you hold other residence permits issued to non-EU nationals under the general system for legal residents in Germany, you are also exempt from EES.

In Germany, documents that allow exemption include the Aufenthaltsdokument-GB (UK residence document for rights-holders under the Withdrawal Agreement), the Aufenthaltsdokument für Grenzgänger-GB (UK residence document for frontier-worker rights-holders under the Withdrawal Agreement), the Aufenthaltserlaubnis (residence permit), Niederlassungserlaubnis (permanent settlement permit), and the Blaue Karte EU (EU Blue Card). If you have one of these documents or another German residence permit, you will not need to register for the EES when travelling. You can also continue to use e-Gates at German airports (provided you are aged 12 or over).

You can apply for a residence permit from your local Foreigners Authority ‘Ausländerbehörde’. Use the side bar on the map to enter either your postcode, location or address and find your local Foreigners Authority. Check with them whether you can book an appointment online.

All UK nationals, lawfully resident in the EU before 1 January 2021, should ensure they have applied for the Aufenthaltsdokument-GB (as rights-holders under the Withdrawal Agreement) or another residence permit to avoid difficulties at the border in connection with EES. More generally, all UK nationals lawfully resident in Germany should ensure they apply for a residence permit from their local Foreigners Authority.

There are certain additional temporary documents issued by German Foreigners Authorities which will also allow exemption from registration in EES. In Germany this is the “Fiktionsbescheinigung.”, which is issued in certain circumstances (including for rights-holders under the Withdrawal Agreement) by a local Foreigners Authority as a provisional document in lieu of a residence permit.

Update for UK nationals living in Germany:

The EU is still looking to implement its new digital Entry/Exit System (EES) as soon as possible, despite the recently announced delay.

Once the system is introduced, non-EU nationals visiting the EU, including UK nationals, will need to create a digital record when they enter the EU’s Schengen Zone. This includes providing biometric data (fingerprints and facial image) at the border.

If you are a UK national living in Germany with rights under the Withdrawal Agreement, you will be exempt from EES registration provided you have the correct documentation. If you hold other residence permits issued to non-EU nationals under the general system for legal residents in Germany, you are also exempt from EES.

In Germany, documents that allow exemption include the Aufenthaltsdokument-GB (UK residence document for rights-holders under the Withdrawal Agreement), the Aufenthaltsdokument für Grenzgänger-GB (UK residence document for frontier-worker rights-holders under the Withdrawal Agreement), the Aufenthaltserlaubnis (residence permit), Niederlassungserlaubnis (permanent settlement permit), and the Blaue Karte EU (EU Blue Card). If you have one of these documents or another German residence permit, you will not need to register for the EES when travelling. You can also continue to use e-Gates at German airports (provided you are aged 12 or over).

You can apply for a residence permit from your local Foreigners Authority ‘Ausländerbehörde’. Use the side bar on the map to enter either your postcode, location or address and find your local Foreigners Authority. Check with them whether you can book an appointment online.

All UK nationals, lawfully resident in the EU before 1 January 2021, should ensure they have applied for the Aufenthaltsdokument-GB (as rights-holders under the Withdrawal Agreement) or another residence permit to avoid difficulties at the border in connection with EES. More generally, all UK nationals lawfully resident in Germany should ensure they apply for a residence permit from their local Foreigners Authority.

There are certain additional temporary documents issued by German Foreigners Authorities which will also allow exemption from registration in EES. In Germany this is the “Fiktionsbescheinigung.”, which is issued in certain circumstances (including for rights-holders under the Withdrawal Agreement) by a local Foreigners Authority as a provisional document in lieu of a residence permit.

Update for UK nationals living in Germany

In late autumn 2024, the EU will introduce a new digital Entry/Exit System (EES).

Non-EU nationals visiting the EU, including UK nationals, will need to create a digital record when they enter the EU’s Schengen Zone. This includes providing biometric data (fingerprints and facial image) at the border.

If you are a UK national living in Germany with rights under the Withdrawal Agreement, you will be exempt from EES registration provided you have the correct documentation. If you hold other residence permits issued to non-EU nationals under the general system for legal residents in Germany, you are also exempt from EES.

In Germany, documents that allow exemption include the Aufenthaltsdokument-GB (UK residence document for rights-holders under the Withdrawal Agreement), the Aufenthaltsdokument für Grenzgänger-GB (UK residence document for frontier-worker rights-holders under the Withdrawal Agreement), the Aufenthaltserlaubnis (residence permit), Niederlassungserlaubnis (permanent settlement permit), and the Blaue Karte EU (EU Blue Card). If you have one of these documents or another German residence permit, you will not need to register for the EES when travelling. You can also continue to use e-Gates at German airports (provided you are aged 12 or over).

You can apply for a residence permit from your local Foreigners Authority ‘Ausländerbehörde’. Use the side bar on the map to enter either your postcode, location or address and find your local Foreigners Authority. Check with them whether you can book an appointment online.

All UK nationals, lawfully resident in the EU before 1 January 2021, should ensure they have applied for the Aufenthaltsdokument-GB (as rights-holders under the Withdrawal Agreement) or another residence permit to avoid difficulties at the border in connection with EES. More generally, all UK nationals lawfully resident in Germany should ensure they apply for a residence permit from their local Foreigners Authority.

There are certain additional temporary documents issued by German Foreigners Authorities which will also allow exemption from registration in EES. In Germany this is the “Fiktionsbescheinigung.”, which is issued in certain circumstances (including for rights-holders under the Withdrawal Agreement) by a local Foreigners Authority as a provisional document in lieu of a residence permit.

Update for UK nationals living in Germany

In late autumn 2024, the EU will introduce a new digital Entry/Exit System (EES).

Non-EU nationals visiting the EU, including UK nationals, will need to create a digital record when they enter the EU’s Schengen Zone. This includes providing biometric data (fingerprints and facial image) at the border.

If you are a UK national living in Germany with rights under the Withdrawal Agreement, you will be exempt from EES registration provided you have the correct documentation. If you hold other residence permits issued to non-EU nationals under the general system for legal residents in Germany, you are also exempt from EES.

In Germany, documents that allow exemption include the Aufenthaltsdokument-GB (UK residence document for rights-holders under the Withdrawal Agreement), the Aufenthaltsdokument für Grenzgänger-GB (UK residence document for frontier-worker rights-holders under the Withdrawal Agreement), the Aufenthaltserlaubnis (residence permit), Niederlassungserlaubnis (permanent settlement permit), and the Blaue Karte EU (EU Blue Card). If you have one of these documents or another German residence permit, you will not need to register for the EES when travelling. You can also continue to use e-Gates at German airports (provided you are aged 12 or over).

You can apply for a residence permit from your local Foreigners Authority ‘Ausländerbehörde’. Use the side bar on the map to enter either your postcode, location or address and find your local Foreigners Authority. Check with them whether you can book an appointment online.

All UK nationals, lawfully resident in the EU before 1 January 2021, should ensure they have applied for the Aufenthaltsdokument-GB (as rights-holders under the Withdrawal Agreement) or another residence permit to avoid difficulties at the border in connection with EES. More generally, all UK nationals lawfully resident in Germany should ensure they apply for a residence permit from their local Foreigners Authority.

There are certain additional temporary documents issued by German Foreigners Authorities which will also allow exemption from registration in EES. In Germany this is the “Fiktionsbescheinigung.”, which is issued in certain circumstances (including for rights-holders under the Withdrawal Agreement) by a local Foreigners Authority as a provisional document in lieu of a residence permit.