Working all over Europe with an intra-corporate transfer (ICT) – Information for employees and undertakings , Date: 2024.08.26, format: Article, area: Migration and residence

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Information for undertakings

Make it in Germany: Working and Living in Germany Link to the information hotline "working and living in Germany" Source: © Make it in Germany

If there are plans, or if you have received information, that individuals who are employed in your unit within an undertaking that is headquartered in other EU States (with the exception of Ireland and Denmark) intend to stay in Germany for up to 90 days within the same undertaking or group of undertakings, you should let the National ICT Contact Point at the Federal Office have a mobility notification via the specialist MoNa application.

The entity in the first Member State is responsible for doing this. The host entity within the undertaking in Germany may however also be issued with a power of attorney to submit the mobility notification.

Information for managers, specialists and trainee employees

What are managers, specialists and trainees?

Managers are persons employed in key positions who primarily direct the management of the host entity, or of a department or subdivision of the entity.
Specialists possess specialised knowledge essential to the host entity’s areas of activity, techniques or management in the unit at which they are to be deployed. They are also highly qualified, and have appropriate professional experience.
Trainee employees are persons with a university degree who are undergoing a graduate training programme at an undertaking for career development purposes or in order to obtain training in business techniques or methods.

If you are a manager, specialist or trainee employee of an undertaking that is headquartered outside the EU, you may come to Germany and other EU States (with the exception of Ireland and Denmark) by way of an intra-corporate transfer and work for your undertaking here.

You will be issued with an ICT (intra-corporate transfer) Card in the EU Member State in which you are to spend the most time during the transfer. This residence title also provides you with the flexibility to work for your undertaking in other EU States.

You will find information on the requirements for issuing an ICT Card in Germany in the section entitled "Intra-corporate transfer".

Transfer to other Member States of the EU for up to 90 days

You can use a German Mobile ICT Card to also work in other EU Member States (with the exception of Ireland and Denmark) for up to 90 days in a unit within your undertaking or group of undertakings. Some Member States require a separate notification to be made to the respectively competent authorities. You do not need to obtain a residence title from the other Member State.

Transfer to Germany for up to 90 days

If you already hold an ICT Card from another EU Member State, you do not need a German residence title if you are planning a stay for employment purposes of up to 90 days within 180 days. The residence title issued by the other EU Member State entitles you to come to Germany and take up residence here, and needs to be valid for the entire duration of your stay in Germany.

It is sufficient for your employer to notify the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees accordingly in advance. This notification needs to be made as soon as it becomes known that you intend to engage in an intra-corporate transfer to Germany. The notification absolutely must be received in full before you enter the country.

You do not need to present yourself in person to any German authorities.

The Federal Office for Migration and Refugees will issue you with a certificate entitling you to residence. The certificate is declaratory, and you do not absolutely have to have it in order to enter the country, but it can be used as proof vis-à-vis authorities and private individuals.

Documents for submission to your employer

The host entity in the other EU Member State (or the host facility in Germany, where a power of attorney has been set up) will arrange for the notification to be sent to the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees. You should make the following documents available to your undertaking to this end:

  • a residence title issued by the first EU Member State bearing the designation “ICT”,
  • a work contract, and any assignment letter,
  • a recognised, valid passport/replacement passport,
  • a licence to practice the profession (if necessary).

Your undertaking should forward these documents to the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees, along with proof that the entity in Germany belongs to the same undertaking or group of undertakings as the undertaking in the third country at which you are employed. All documents, with the exception of the passport and the residence title, need to be submitted in German. The BAMF may be able to accept easily-understood documents in a foreign language, and will decide in individual cases whether the documents submitted meet the requirements.

Transfer to Germany for more than 90 days

If you wish to work in a German unit within your undertaking for more than 90 days, you will need a Mobile ICT Card in Germany.

Good to know!

When an ICT Card or Mobile ICT Card is issued in Germany, the holder’s spouse or life partner and any minor, unmarried children also receive a residence permit for the same period.

There are two ways to apply for a Mobile ICT Card:

  • Applying from abroad:
    You should submit the application to the immigration authority competent for the place in which the entity is located at the latest 20 days before coming to Germany. Alternatively, you may also send your application to the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees, but the competent immigration authority will still decide on the application.
    You may already come to Germany and work for up to 90 days within 180 days, pending the decision of the immigration authority, if you lodged your application 20 days before coming to Germany.
  • Applying from Germany:
    If you are already in Germany for the purposes of short-term mobility and would like to remain in the country for more than 90 days in order to engage in an inter-corporate transfer, then you should lodge your application with the immigration authority competent for the place where you are staying no later than 20 days before the expiry date of the short-term mobility, which must not exceed 90 days.

You can apply for a Mobile ICT Card if you satisfy the following requirements:

  • You hold an ICT Card issued by another EU State that is valid in Germany for the duration of the application procedure,
  • you take up work in the host entity in Germany as a manager, specialist or trainee employee,
  • the intra-corporate transfer is to last for longer than 90 days, and
  • you can present an employment contract and where appropriate an assignment letter that is valid for the duration of the intra-corporate transfer.

Important: The application for a Mobile ICT Card may not be submitted at the same time as a notification of short-term mobility.

The legal basis

The Residence Act

  • Section 19
  • Section 19a
  • Section 19b
  • Directive (EU) 2014/66