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Visa to perform voluntary service
To find out whether you require a visa to enter Germany, see „Who needs a visa?“.
Doing good, acquiring new skills and getting to know the country: there are a number of volunteering opportunities in Germany. Even unpaid volunteering is considered employment and you will need a visa or residence permit authorising volunteer work.
General information
A visa can be issued to participate in voluntary services in Germany (Voluntary Social Year (FSJ), Federal Voluntary Service (BFD) and Voluntary Ecological Year (FÖJ). Persons participating in the European Voluntary Service (EVS) will be granted a visa provided that the prerequisites are met. The duration of voluntary service can be between six and 24 months, as a rule, however, it lasts a full year.
What documents must be submitted during the application process?
To apply for a visa at the embassy, you will need the following documents in the original with one set of copies. Please sort the individual sets (original + one set of copies) in the order listed below.
Please do NOT staple the application documents!
A current biometric passport photo (3.5 x 4.5 cm with a light-coloured background) according to the photo sample table of the Federal Ministry of the Interior. The photo should not be older than three months.
Personally signed passport (original with one copy of the passport data page), with at least two completely empty pages and sufficient validity.
If you do not have your habitual residence in Switzerland, the German Embassy in Bern is not responsible for processing your application.
Contract/arrangement on your voluntary service in Germany:
-> Federal Voluntary Service (BFD): Your contract must be signed by you and the Federal Office of Family Affairs and Civil Society Functions (BAFzA), as well as the placement department, headquarters and, where applicable, by the institution implementing the voluntary service.
-> Voluntary Social Year (FSJ)/Voluntary Ecological Year (FOJ): Your contract must be signed by you and the respective institution, as well as, where applicable, the placement department.
-> European Voluntary Service (EVS): Your contract must be signed by the National Agency for Erasmus+ Youth in Action and the coordinating organisation. The coordinating organisation and the volunteer must sign the Volunteer Arrangement in which the tasks and planned participant achievements are described.
As a rule, the sponsoring organisation covers accommodation and food costs. If the contract or other confirmation provided by the respective department does not provide information on your accommodation and meals, please provide additional proof that you can support yourself.
Detailed curriculum vitae and motivation letter in German or English language
Information sheet with checklist to download
The German Embassy Bern reserve the right to ask for additional documents at any time during the processing of your application.
Postage expenses of 7 Swiss Francs
and
Visa fee of 75 Euro payable by cash in Swiss Francs or in Euro by Visa or MasterCard (information here).
Appointment booking
Please book an appointment here to submit your application. New appointments are regularly activated in the appointment system. Unfortunately, there are no additional appointments.
To submit your application, please appear in person at the visa section of the embassy (Willadingweg 78, 3006 Bern) at your pre-booked appointment. Please book one appointment per person - also for children. The visa office will accept your complete application documents and the fee and take your biometric data. It is not possible to submit an application without an appointment.
Processing time
In this visa category, most applications are typically processed within 2-3 weeks (calculated from the day you procided all documents).
During the application process
Please do not contact the mission abroad to check the status of your application during the normal processing period. Such inquiries are extremely time-consuming for the visa department and cannot be answered. We will contact you by email as soon as the decision has been made. In principle, all communication can only take place with the applicant themselves, a legal representative or an authorized person.
Decision about the application
You will be informed as soon as the embassy has decided on your application. Your passport is required for the visa to be issued.
Please check your visa label as soon as you have your passport with the visa in your hands. You should inform us immediately of any errors so that we can issue a new visa.