How to find a Job In Berlin

Greg is the co-founder of GermanTechJobs.de.

This guide assists you find a task in Berlin, from discovering job listings to your first day at work.

On this page

1. Before your task search Can you operate in Germany?
Do you need to speak German?
The length of time does it take to get hired?
Salaries in Germany
General job search
English-speaking tasks
Tech jobs
Creative tasks: media, communications, design
Startup tasks
Internships, temp work and minijobs
Freelance work
Restaurant tasks
German resumes
Cover letters
The phone screen
The technical interview
Meet the group
Salary negotiation
The task agreement
Things your employer requires
Things you need to understand
Career coaching
Before your job search

Can you operate in Germany?

If you are not a resident of the EU, EEA or Switzerland, you require a residence license to work in Germany. You can get a work visa or a Blue Card, for example. There might be a minimum wage or education requirement.

Do you require to speak German?

No, but it helps. You can find English-speaking jobs, however a lot of business want German speakers.

If you do not speak German, you can still discover tasks in …

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

Do you need to speak German in Berlin?

The length of time does it take to get employed?

A few months. Even if you discover a task quickly, the working with procedure is extremely slow.

Know how much you must earn, and just how much taxes you must pay. This assists you negotiate a better salary.

Calculate your earnings tax

1. Try to find jobs

General task search

Indeed.com – Job online search engine. You can filter by language and set alerts.
LinkedIn – Networking website with a huge tasks section. 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 website. Made in Berlin.
ArbeitNow – Job listing site. Made in Berlin.
Jobted
Xing – Similar to LinkedIn. You can’t filter by language.
Glassdoor – Company evaluations, income reports and job listings. You need an account.

English-speaking jobs

These sites only have English-speaking tasks, or let you filter by language:

Berlin Startup Jobs – Most jobs are in English-speaking offices
Englishjobs.de – Only English-speaking tasks
JobsInBerlin.eu – You can filter jobs by language
Germany Startup Jobs – You can filter tasks by language and wage
The Local tasks – Run by a popular English-speaking newspaper
Jobted
English-speaking tasks 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 innovation.
Berlin Startup Jobs – English-speaking jobs in startups and tech business
Administrator/ Web Entickler/ Entwickler Jobs – German-speaking tech jobs
Imagine Foundation – They assist software designers from establishing nations find a job and get worked with

Creative jobs: media, interactions, design

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

Startup jobs

Berlin Startup Jobs – English-speaking tasks in start-ups and referall.us tech companies
Startup Sucht (in German).
tbd * job board (in German) – tbd * is a site for somalibidders.com business owners. You can filter by language.
Wellfound – International startup task portal.
Germany Startup Jobs – You can filter tasks by language and wage.
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 temperature work firm.
Manpower (in German) – Large temperature work company.
Randstad (in German) – Large work company.
Craigslist – Most job listings are for restaurants and cafés

Freelance work

Berlin Freelancers – Facebook group, 25,000+ members

Restaurant tasks

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

2. Apply for jobs

German resumes

German CVs are longer than American resumes. They include your date of birth, your citizenship and a picture of you.1 You must go to an image studio and get an expert portrait for your resume. A career coach can help you compose a much better resume.

Useful links:

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

Cover letters

Include a short cover letter (Anschreiben) with your application. It’s an individual introduction. It discusses who you are, what you do, why you request this task, and why they ought to hire you.

Don’t send the same cover letter to everyone. Do your research, and personalise the letter for each task deal. Keep it short and simple to check out. Get feedback from other people 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 extremely long. It can take a few weeks, and even a couple of months. You might have multiple interviews with different individuals. It depends on the company and the job. You need a lot of time for this.

The phone screen

The interview process begins with a short call. A recruiter or employing supervisor will ask you a few questions. They will attempt to understand who you are, what you desire, and how you fit the job deal. 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 difficulties. They verify that you know how to do your task.

Technical interviews are various at every company. They may ask you technical concerns, ask you to fix a problem throughout the interview, or finish a technical obstacle at home. Some business don’t have technical interviews.

Meet the group

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

4. The job offer

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

Salary negotiation

After you get the job deal, you can negotiate a better wage. You can likewise request things like a moving bonus offer or more trip days.

Salaries in Germany

The job contract

Read your task agreement carefully. If your company promised something to you throughout the interview, validate that it remains in your contract. Only sign the agreement if you concur with everything. Send the signed agreement by email or by post.

If you are not exactly sure about your agreement, request help or talk to an attorney.

5. Get a house authorization

If you are not a resident of the EU, EEA or Switzerland, you require a residence authorization to live in Germany. Sometimes, you need to wait on your residence authorization to begin working. It can take a couple of months.

How to get a home authorization

If you currently have a home authorization, you might need the Ausländerbehörde’s consent to alter tasks. Sometimes, you can begin your new job immediately. Sometimes, you should wait on your new home authorization. This can take a few weeks.

How to alter jobs

6. Start working

Things your company needs

During your first month at a brand-new business, your company needs a couple of things:

A bank account.
Your company will pay you by bank transfer. For this, you need a bank account that supports SEPA transfers. Any European bank 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 details.
Your health insurance number (Krankenversicherungsnummer).
You get a Krankenversicherungsnummer 2 to 7 days after you choose health insurance. Your employer requires this number to take health insurance coverage payments from your income. Your employer can choose health insurance coverage for you, however it’s a bad concept. Ask a broker to assist you choose, it’s complimentary.
Your social insurance number (Sozialversicherungsnummer).
If you have public health insurance coverage, you get this number automatically in the mail. If you have personal health insurance coverage, you must get it. Your employer can in some cases assist you with this. – How to get a social insurance number

Your employer can’t require an address registration certificate.5

Things you need to understand

In Germany, many people are paid once per month, normally 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 when each month, on the first day of the month.4 Your employer takes salary tax, health insurance, pension insurance and joblessness insurance coverage from your income.

Income tax calculator

How taxes work

During your first 6 months at a new company, you remain in your probation period (Probezeit). 2 During that time, it’s easier to get fired. It’s likewise harder to find a home, since you don’t have a stable task.

How does the probation period work?

All workers in Germany get paid getaway days, and paid ill leave. You do not deal with public holidays, but you still earn money.

How to take holidays

What to do when you are sick

7. Make a tax declaration

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

Relocation costs
If you move closer to your brand-new job, you can deduct your moving costs
Job search costs
Coaching, resume composing, professional photos, translations, printing costs, task search services …
Travel costs.
Fuel, train tickets, hotels, meals and parking costs to go to task interviews.

If you began working in the middle of the year, you probably paid too much income tax. Make a tax declaration to decrease your earnings tax, and get some refund.

Need help?

Where to get help about work

Career coaching

These people can assist you get worked with. For instance, they can examine your resume and cover letter. Their cost is tax-deductible.