FAQ – Illegal emloyment

Potential consequences for you!

Illegal employment, i.e. working without being registered with the social insurance authorities and without paying taxes, is prohibited (illegal) in Germany. Your employer must register you with the social insurance system and the tax office. That is his duty. If he/she fails to do so, he/she risks punishment.

If you receive benefits from social services, the job centre or employment agency and start work, you must register this immediately. If you don’t, you may be fined or prosecuted. You will also have to pay back any benefits you have received.

If you need a work permit but work without one, you may be fined or prosecuted. The customs authorities can also pass this information on to the Foreigners' Registration Office. This can affect your residence status!

You should therefore always make sure that you are legally employed / a registered employee.

Illegal employment / unregistered workers or work without a work permit can be detected in different ways:

Employers can be reported to the customs authorities, for example. This can also be done anonymously. If there is sufficient evidence, customs will follow up on the information and investigate the employer. Customs can also check employers even without a direct tip.

Warning! Reporting an employer to customs can have negative consequences for other employees in the company, for example if:

• a work permit is missing
• benefits were received from social services, the job centre or the employment agency at the same time as unregistered work.

A report can be made online on the website of the customs authority (the fields for personal data do not have to be filled in, the report is anonymous): Zoll online - Finanzkontrolle Schwarzarbeit

Authorities have to forward information to customs and/or the Foreigners' Registration Office if they become aware of illegal employment or working without a work permit. That's what the law says in Germany. You can also approach your employer directly first: If you think he hasn't registered you, you can remind him of his duty. Get some support from your Fair Integration advice centre!

If you work without registration or a work permit, this can have negative consequences for you. For example, it can have a negative impact on your residence status. In addition, unregistered work means that no social insurance contributions are paid. So you are not paying anything into the insurance policies. The social insurance system provides social security if you become ill or unemployed, for example, or when you reach retirement age. Only those who pay into these social insurance schemes can receive benefits from them.

In the case of illegal employment, it often happens that the rights of employees, i.e. your rights, are disregarded. This means you have to work longer hours, are paid less than the minimum wage or similar. It is then difficult to defend yourself against this, because the illegal employment can also have negative consequences for you. This is why illegal employment is also dangerous and can lead to you being exploited.

Important: you are always entitled to your wages, even if you are an unregistered worker or don’t have the necessary work permit!

You can contact your Fair Integration advice centre at any time. Or you can organise yourself in a trade union together with your colleagues. You can stand up for your rights in the trade union. Trade unions also have lawyers who can advise and support you.

Your employer must register you with the social insurance system and the tax office before you start your job. He/she is legally obliged to do so. If your employer (your boss) has registered you, you will receive a copy of your social insurance registration.

Your employer needs the following information to register you:

• your social insurance number
• your tax ID
• your proof of health insurance and
• your address

If your employer hasn’t asked you for these details, you probably aren’t registered. If you think this may be the case, you can ask your pension insurance scheme or health insurance company whether you are registered. Your employer has 6 weeks in which to register you after you have started work.

For some economic sectors, registration must be done by the time the person starts work at the latest. The list of economic sectors this applies to can be found here: Zoll online - Anmeldung und Beitragspflicht.

If you are unsure whether you are registered, be sure to seek advice at a Fair Integration advice centre or from your trade union if you are a member.

Working without being registered is forbidden in Germany.

In Germany, salary/wages are normally transferred to your bank account. This is why your employer will always want your account number when you start your new job. If your employer pays all or part of your wages in cash, this may be a sign that he/she has not registered you for social insurance. Then you should ask him/her to transfer the money and send you a statement of the payment.

To be on the safe side, you can also check yourself whether you have been registered. You can ask your health insurance company and pension insurance scheme about this!

As a matter of principle: if you work, you have the right to be paid for your work. This also applies if you work illegally/unregistered or without the necessary work permit. You can go to the labour court and sue for your wages.

If you are a member of a trade union, the union will provide you with a lawyer.

If you have not been registered, your employer may deny that you have worked for them. Then you must try to prove when and for how long your employment relationship existed. The best way to do this is if you have witnesses, documents, mobile phone messages or photos. You can use these to prove that you have worked. The best idea is to write down your working hours yourself every day!

Please note: even if you win in court, there may still be negative consequences for you.

If you go to court, the judge can report violations of the law to the relevant authorities. It is possible that proceedings are initiated against you. German courts handle this differently. This can happen if you have worked and at the same time received benefits from an authority (such as the job centre or employment agency) and have not reported this. It can also happen if you have worked without the necessary work permit.

Important: if your employer does not pay your wages but you are not registered/you are working without a permit, always contact your Fair Integration advice centre! We will advise and support you in enforcing your rights.

Some people need a work permit from the Foreigners' Registration Office and approval from the employment agency if they want to work in Germany. Some people are not allowed to work at all.

This depends on:

• residence status,
• country of origin,
• place of residence,
• and the duration of the stay in Germany.

Recognition of asylum, refugees, subsidiary protection:

If you have asylum status, are a recognised refugee or have subsidiary protection status, you do not need a work permit.

Temporary protection, Section 24 AufenthG (Residence Act)

If you have temporary protection status for refugees from Ukraine, the Foreigners' Registration Office must authorise you to work as an employee when issuing your residence permit. Your residence permit must include the words: “Erwerbstätigkeit erlaubt” (employment allowed). This work permit is not tied to an employer, but is issued generally.

Temporary residence permit (still in the asylum procedure)

If you are still in the asylum procedure and in possession of a temporary residence permit (Aufenthaltsgestattung), you will need a work permit. This then only applies to a specific employer, a specific activity and a specific number of hours. You can apply for a work permit 3 months after your arrival in Germany. If you are living in a reception centre, you can only apply for a work permit after 9 months.

People from safe countries of origin, such as the member states of the European Union, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Ghana, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, Senegal and Serbia, who have submitted their asylum application after 31 August 2015, must live in a reception centre for the entirety of the asylum procedure. They are still not allowed to work after 9 months.

Tolerated stay permit (Duldung)

If you have a tolerated stay permit, you also need a work permit from the Foreigners' Registration Office. This then only applies to a specific employer, a specific activity and a specific number of hours. If you are living in a reception centre, you can apply for a work permit after 6 months, otherwise after 3 months. Some people are banned from working, for example people who come from a safe country of origin and have submitted an application for asylum after 31 August 2015 that was rejected. Your residence papers will tell you whether you are banned from working.

If you have lived in Germany for more than 4 years, you no longer need approval from the employment agency. Some Foreigners' Registration Offices then enter "Beschäftigung erlaubt/gestattet" (employment permitted) in the residence papers. Then you can work without a work permit. However, the rule that some groups of people are not allowed to work remains in place.

You are responsible for applying for your work permit yourself. Your future employer must help you with this. To get a work permit, you must do the following:

• Find an employer who wants to hire you.
• Then you must submit an application to the Foreigners' Registration Office.

The Foreigners' Registration Office provides forms for the application. You need to fill these out. You have to submit the forms with your application to the Foreigners' Registration Office. The Foreigners' Registration Office will check your application and obtain approval from the employment agency if necessary. The Foreigners' Registration Office will inform you of the result of their checks. You will then either receive a work permit or a negative decision (rejection). How long it takes to process the application can vary greatly.

Important: you are not allowed to start work until you have received your work permit.