If you are a researcher/scientist/postgraduate (PhD) in Portugal (with cartão de residência type “investigador”) and want to go to Germany temporarily (max. 1 year) to conduct parts of your scientific work there, you do not a visa, but you need to register in Germany. You can find more information here on the website of the BAMF. Please ask the university in Germany whether they can help you with the registration process.

If you want to go to Germany for a longer period of time or if you do not have a Portuguese cartão de residência type “investigador”, you need to apply for a visa. Please prepare all documents listed below and then contact us via the contact form. Please mention in your message your nationality and that you would like to apply for a research visa (§18d AufenthG). We will ask you to send the documents for a pre-check and then assign you an appointment. Please note that all applications have attend the appointment at the embassy in person.
 

At the time of your visa appointment you have to submit the following documents in person (original plus one copy):

• completed and signed application form for a long-term visa
• 1 recent biometric passport photograph
• your national passport – Please note: The passport has to be valid for a minimum of 3 months after the expiration of the visa (example: when issuing a 12 months visa, the passport must be valid for at least 15 months), needs to have at least two empty pages and must have been issued during the last 10 years. 
• residence permit for Portugal
• Graduation certificate /degree
• Curriculum Vitae
• Hosting agreement or contract on the research
• Invitation from German university or German scientist/organization that you will work with including payment /scholarship and a short description of the project you will be working on 
• If applicable: Letter of your local university / research institute in Portugal confirming that you will take part in a research project in Germany 
• Proof of financial means (1091 Euros net/month): official scholarship, remuneration, or blocked bank account

• Confirmation of health insurance equivalent to German statutory health insurance (gesetzliche Krankenversicherung)

Please note that in individual cases additional documents can be required.