How to find a Job In Berlin

Greg is the co-founder of GermanTechJobs.de.

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

On this page

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

Can you operate in Germany?

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

Do you need to speak German?

No, but it assists. You can discover English-speaking jobs, however the majority of companies want German speakers.

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

Tech business
– Companies with English-speaking workplaces
– Delivery services like Lieferando, Wolt and Flink
– Customer service and call centres
– Restaurants and bars

Do you require to speak German in Berlin?

The length of time does it require to get worked with?

A couple of months. Even if you discover a task rapidly, the working with procedure is very sluggish.

Know just how much you must earn, and how much taxes you need to pay. This helps you negotiate a better wage.

Calculate your income tax

1. Search for tasks

General task search

Indeed.com – Job search engine. You can filter by language and set alerts.
LinkedIn – Networking website with a big 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 noting site. Made in Berlin.
Jobted
Xing – Similar to LinkedIn. You can’t filter by language.
Glassdoor – Company evaluations, salary reports and task listings. You require an account.

English-speaking jobs

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

Berlin Startup Jobs – Most jobs remain 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 income
The Local jobs – Run by a paper
Jobted
English-speaking tasks in Berlin – Facebook group, 89,000+ members
English tasks in Berlin – Facebook group, 43,000+ members

Tech tasks

GermanTechJobs – You can filter by language and technology.
Berlin Startup Jobs – English-speaking tasks in startups and tech companies
Administrator/ Web Entickler/ Entwickler Jobs – German-speaking tech tasks
Imagine Foundation – They help software designers from developing nations find a job and get employed

Creative tasks: media, employment communications, style

dasauge (in German) – Media-related jobs
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 * job board (in German) – tbd * is a website for business owners. You can filter by language.
Wellfound – International start-up job website.
Germany Startup Jobs – You can filter tasks by language and income.
Berlin Startup Jobs – Facebook group, 56,000+ members.
Berlin Startup Jobs, Internships & Co-founders – Facebook group, 14,000+ members

Internships, temp 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 agency.
Manpower (in German) – Large temp work firm.
Randstad (in German) – Large temp work agency.
Craigslist – Most job listings are for restaurants and cafés

Freelance work

Berlin Freelancers – Facebook group, 25,000+ members

Restaurant jobs

Berlin Food Stories – Restaurant jobs in Berlin.
Huntler – English-speaking dining establishment jobs 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 profession coach can help you compose a better resume.

Useful links:

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

Cover letters

Include a brief cover letter (Anschreiben) with your application. It’s an individual introduction. It describes who you are, employment what you do, why you get this job, and why they must hire you.

Don’t send the exact same cover letter to everyone. Do your research, and personalise the letter for each task offer. Keep it brief and easy to check out. Get feedback from other people before you send it. A career coach can help you write much better cover letters.

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

3. The task interview

In Germany, the interview procedure is long. It can take a few weeks, and even a few months. You may have numerous interviews with various individuals. It depends on the company and the job. You require a lot of time for this.

The phone screen

The interview process starts with a brief call. An employer or working with supervisor will ask you a couple of concerns. They will attempt to comprehend who you are, what you desire, and how you fit the job offer. It’s a basic check before they welcome you for an interview.

How to prepare – Imagine Foundation

The technical interview

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

Technical interviews are different at every business. They may ask you technical concerns, ask you to fix an issue during the interview, employment or finish a technical difficulty in the house. Some companies don’t have technical interviews.

Meet the team

Most companies have a group interview. You meet your future team to see if you work well together. This interview is more relaxed. You might just talk with the team, or have lunch together.

4. The task offer

After your interview, the company can make a task offer.

Salary negotiation

After you get the job offer, you can work out a much better income. You can also request things like a moving bonus or more holiday days.

Salaries in Germany

The task agreement

Read your job contract thoroughly. If your company assured something to you throughout the interview, verify that it remains in your contract. Only sign the agreement if you concur with everything. Send the signed contract by e-mail or by post.

If you are unsure about your contract, ask for help or speak to a legal representative.

5. Get a home permit

If you are not a resident of the EU, EEA or Switzerland, you require a house license to reside in Germany. Sometimes, you need to wait for your home permit to begin working. It can take a few months.

How to get a home permit

If you currently have a residence license, you might require the Ausländerbehörde’s authorization to change jobs. Sometimes, you can begin your brand-new job immediately. Sometimes, you need to wait for your brand-new home license. 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 brand-new company, your company needs a few things:

A bank account.
Your company will pay you by bank transfer. For this, you require a savings account that supports SEPA transfers. Any European checking account will work.
Your tax ID (Steueridentifikationsnummer).
You get a tax ID when you register your address for the 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 coverage number (Krankenversicherungsnummer).
You get a Krankenversicherungsnummer 2 to 7 days after you pick health insurance. Your company requires this number to take health insurance payments from your salary. Your company can choose health insurance for you, employment but it’s a bad concept. Ask a broker to help you pick, it’s complimentary.
Your social insurance coverage number (Sozialversicherungsnummer).
If you have public health insurance, you get this number automatically in the mail. If you have personal health insurance, you must apply for it. Your employer can often help you with this. – How to get a social insurance coverage number

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

Things you should understand

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

Most workers in Germany are paid by bank transfer as soon as each month, on the first day of the month.4 Your company takes salary tax, health insurance coverage, employment pension insurance coverage and unemployment insurance from your income.

Income tax calculator

How taxes work

During your very first 6 months at a new company, you remain in your probation duration (Probezeit). 2 During that time, it’s simpler to get fired. It’s also more difficult to discover an apartment or condo, since you do not have a steady job.

How does the probation period work?

All employees in Germany make money trip days, and paid ill leave. You don’t deal with public holidays, however you still earn money.

How to take trips

What to do when you are sick

7. Make a tax statement

Much of your job search expenses are tax-deductible:3

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

If you started working in the middle of the year, you most likely paid too much salary tax. Make a tax statement to lower your earnings tax, and get some refund.

Need help?

Where to get help about work

Career training

These people can assist you get hired. For example, they can evaluate your resume and cover letter. Their cost is tax-deductible.