How to Discover a Job In Berlin

Greg is the co-founder of GermanTechJobs.de.

This guide helps you find a job in Berlin, from finding job listings to your very first day at work.

On this page

1. Before your job search Can you work in Germany?
Do you need to speak German?
For how long does it take to get employed?
Salaries in Germany
General job search
English-speaking jobs
Tech tasks
Creative tasks: media, communications, style
Startup tasks
Internships, temp work and minijobs
Freelance work
Restaurant tasks
German resumes
Cover letters
The phone screen
The technical interview
Meet the team
Salary negotiation
The job contract
Things your company requires
Things you need to know
Career training
Before your job search

Can you operate in Germany?

If you are not a citizen of the EU, EEA or Switzerland, you need a home permit to work in Germany. You can get a work visa or a Blue Card, for instance. There might be a minimum income or education requirement.

Do you require to speak German?

No, but it assists. You can find English-speaking tasks, but a lot of companies desire German speakers.

If you don’t speak German, you can still find jobs in …

Tech companies
– Companies with English-speaking offices
– Delivery services like Lieferando, Wolt and Flink
– Customer support and call centres
– Restaurants and bars

Do you need to speak German in Berlin?

How long does it require to get worked with?

A few months. Even if you find a job quickly, the hiring procedure is extremely slow.

Know how much you should make, and just how much taxes you must pay. This assists you work out a better income.

Calculate your earnings tax

1. Try to find tasks

General job search

Indeed.com – Job online search engine. You can filter by language and set informs.
LinkedIn – Networking website with a huge jobs section. Incredibly popular.
Jobsuche der Bundesagentur (in German) – Run by the Agentur für Arbeit
Talent Berlin – Run by the state of Berlin. You can’t filter by language.
HeyJobs – Job listing site. Made in Berlin.
ArbeitNow – Job listing site. Made in Berlin.
Jobted
Xing – Similar to LinkedIn. You can’t filter by language.
Glassdoor – Company reviews, wage reports and job listings. You need an account.

English-speaking tasks

These websites only have English-speaking jobs, or let you filter by language:

Berlin Startup Jobs – Most jobs are in English-speaking offices
Englishjobs.de – Only English-speaking jobs
JobsInBerlin.eu – You can filter jobs by language
Germany Startup Jobs – You can filter tasks by language and income
The Local tasks – Run by a popular English-speaking newspaper
Jobted
English-speaking jobs in Berlin – Facebook group, 89,000+ members
English tasks in Berlin – Facebook group, 43,000+ members

Tech jobs

GermanTechJobs – You can filter by language and employment technology.
Berlin Startup Jobs – English-speaking jobs in startups and tech companies
Administrator/ Web Entickler/ Entwickler Jobs – German-speaking tech jobs
Imagine Foundation – They help software designers from establishing nations discover a task and get worked with

Creative tasks: media, interactions, style

dasauge (in German) – Media-related tasks
Mediengestalter Jobs (in German) – Creative tasks

Startup jobs

Berlin Startup Jobs – English-speaking tasks in start-ups and tech companies
Startup Sucht (in German).
tbd * task board (in German) – tbd * is a site for business owners. You can filter by language.
Wellfound – International startup task website.
Germany Startup Jobs – You can filter tasks by language and salary.
Berlin Startup Jobs – Facebook group, 56,000+ members.
Berlin Startup Jobs, Internships & Co-founders – Facebook group, 14,000+ members

Internships, temperature work and minijobs

Zenjobs.
BSIG – Berlin Startup Internships – Facebook group, 10,000+ members.
Foreign Young Professionals in Berlin – Facebook group, 8,000+ members.
Jobsuche der Bundesagentur (in German) – Run by the Agentur für Arbeit. Has a filter for internships.
Adecco (in German) – Large temp work firm.
Manpower (in German) – Large temperature work agency.
Randstad (in German) – Large temperature work agency.
Craigslist – Most job listings are for dining establishments and cafés

Freelance work

Berlin Freelancers – Facebook group, 25,000+ members

Restaurant jobs

Berlin Food Stories – Restaurant tasks in Berlin.
Huntler – English-speaking restaurant tasks in Berlin

2. Get jobs

German resumes

German CVs are longer than American resumes. They include your date of birth, your citizenship and a photo of you.1 You need to go to a picture studio and employment get an expert picture for your resume. A profession coach can help you write a better resume.

Useful links:

How to write a German resume – HalloGermany.
German resume examples – Imagine structure.
Resume list – Imagine foundation.
Translate your resume to German

Cover letters

Include a short cover letter (Anschreiben) with your application. It’s an individual intro. It discusses who you are, what you do, why you make an application for this task, and why they should hire you.

Don’t send the very same cover letter to everybody. Do your research, and personalise the letter for each task deal. Keep it brief and easy to check out. Get feedback from other individuals before you send it. A profession coach can help you write much better cover letters.

How to compose a German cover letter – HalloGermany.
Advice for cover letters with examples – Hacker News

3. The job interview

In Germany, the interview process is long. It can take a few weeks, and even a couple of months. You might have several interviews with different people. It depends on the business and the job. You need a great deal of time for this.

The phone screen

The interview procedure starts with a short call. An employer or working with supervisor will ask you a few concerns. They will attempt to understand who you are, what you want, and how you fit the job offer. It’s a simple check before they invite you for an interview.

How to prepare – Imagine Foundation

The technical interview

Most tech companies have technical interviews or coding challenges. They verify that you know how to do your job.

Technical interviews are various at every company. They might ask you technical questions, ask you to fix a problem during the interview, or finish a technical obstacle in the house. Some companies don’t have technical interviews.

Meet the team

Most business have a team interview. You fulfill your future group to see if you work well together. This interview is more relaxed. You may simply talk with the team, or have lunch together.

4. The task offer

After your interview, the business can make a job deal.

Salary settlement

After you get the task offer, you can work out a much better salary. You can likewise request for things like a moving reward or more holiday days.

Salaries in Germany

The task contract

Read your job agreement thoroughly. If your employer assured something to you throughout the interview, confirm that it’s in your agreement. Only sign the agreement if you concur with everything. Send the signed agreement by email or by post.

If you are not sure about your agreement, ask for aid or employment speak to a legal representative.

5. Get a home permit

If you are not a citizen of the EU, EEA or Switzerland, you need a home permit to reside in Germany. Sometimes, you must wait on your house authorization to start working. It can take a few months.

How to get a residence license

If you currently have a residence authorization, you may require the Ausländerbehörde’s approval to alter tasks. Sometimes, you can begin your brand-new job right away. Sometimes, you need to wait on your new residence permit. This can take a couple of weeks.

How to change tasks

6. Start working

Things your company requires

During your very first month at a new company, your employer needs a few things:

A savings account.
Your company will pay you by bank transfer. For this, you require a savings account that supports SEPA transfers. Any European savings account will work.
Your tax ID (Steueridentifikationsnummer).
You get a tax ID when you register your address for the very first time. If you can’t register your address, you can still get a tax ID. If you can’t get a tax ID, you can still start working. – More info.
Your health insurance number (Krankenversicherungsnummer).
You get a Krankenversicherungsnummer 2 to 7 days after you select medical insurance. Your employer needs this number to take health insurance payments from your income. Your company can choose health insurance for you, but it’s a bad idea. Ask a broker to assist you select, it’s complimentary.
Your social insurance coverage number (Sozialversicherungsnummer).
If you have public health insurance, you get this number immediately in the mail. If you have personal health insurance, you should get it. Your company can often help you with this. – How to get a social insurance number

Your company can’t need an address registration certificate.5

Things you should understand

In Germany, the majority of people are paid as soon as per month, generally on the 1st or 15th day of the month. You get your very first income after 30 or 45 days after you start working. You normally make money by bank transfer.

Most employees in Germany are paid by bank transfer once monthly, on the first day of the month.4 Your company takes wage tax, medical insurance, pension insurance coverage and unemployment insurance coverage from your paycheck.

Income tax calculator

How taxes work

During your first 6 months at a new business, you are in your probation duration (Probezeit). 2 During that time, employment it’s simpler to get fired. It’s also more difficult to find an apartment, since you don’t have a stable task.

How does the probation duration work?

All workers in Germany earn money vacation days, and employment paid sick leave. You don’t deal with public holidays, however you still get paid.

How to take getaways

What to do when you are sick

7. Make a tax statement

A lot of your task search costs are tax-deductible:3

Relocation expenses
If you move more detailed to your brand-new job, you can subtract your moving costs
Job search costs
Coaching, resume writing, expert photos, translations, printing expenses, task search services …
Travel expenses.
Fuel, train tickets, hotels, meals and parking costs to go to job interviews.

If you began operating in the middle of the year, you most likely paid excessive wage tax. Make a tax declaration to lower your earnings tax, and get some refund.

Need aid?

Where to get assist about work

Career training

These people can help you get hired. For instance, they can review your resume and cover letter. Their cost is tax-deductible.