Definition
BAMF (Bundesamt für Migration und Flüchtlinge — Federal Office for Migration and Refugees) is the German federal agency responsible for processing asylum applications, managing integration programmes, and overseeing the recognition of foreign professional qualifications under the Federal Recognition Act (BQFG). For skilled workers, BAMF provides the anabin database for checking foreign qualification equivalency and operates the Central Office for Foreign Education (ZAB) which issues Statements of Comparability. BAMF also coordinates the fast-track procedure (Beschleunigtes Fachkräfteverfahren) for employers recruiting skilled workers from outside the EU.
Official name
Bundesamt für Migration und Flüchtlinge
Official sources
Related terms
Aufenthaltstitel
The German term for a residence title — the physical or digital document confirming a non-EU national's legal right to reside in Germany.
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Foreigners Authority
Ausländerbehörde
The local German government office responsible for processing residence permit applications, renewals, and related immigration matters for non-EU nationals.
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Opportunity Card
Chancenkarte
A German points-based residence permit that allows qualified non-EU jobseekers to enter Germany to search for work without a prior job offer.
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Qualification Recognition
The formal process by which a European country or authority evaluates and accepts a foreign academic degree or professional qualification as equivalent to a domestic one.
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