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Updated: September 30, 2026 · Documents

"Verpflichtungserklärung: the formal obligation letter for a German visa"

A Verpflichtungserklärung is a written obligation given to the state by a person living in Germany: they take on all costs the public purse may incur because of your stay. The legal basis is §§ 66 and 68 of the Residence Act (AufenthG).

In English it is often called a formal obligation letter or a sponsorship letter, but in substance it is closer to a financial guarantee: the sponsor is liable with their own money. The obligation covers living costs in a broad sense: food, accommodation, clothing, medical treatment, medication and care, as well as the cost of removal from the country should it come to that.

This is not a formality or a piece of paper for the consulate. If the person who arrives claims social assistance or ends up in hospital without insurance, the bill goes to the sponsor, and the authority will enforce it.

When it is required

A guarantee is needed wherever you have to prove you can support yourself and your own documented funds are not enough. In practice, most often for:

• A Schengen visitor visa: a stay of up to 90 days with relatives or friends
• The Chancenkarte: as an alternative to a blocked account, covered separately below
• Family reunification: where the sponsor's income needs additional proof
• Study and language course visas: if a relative in Germany covers the costs

For a work visa or an EU Blue Card a guarantee is normally not needed: there, subsistence is proven by the salary in the employment contract.

Instead of a blocked account for the Chancenkarte

This is the most underused option, and it deserves its own section.

The standard way to prove subsistence for the Chancenkarte is a blocked account. It must hold €1,091 for every month of the stay, which is €13,092 for the usual 12-month card. For many people this is the real barrier: the money has to be not just available but frozen for a year.

The Federal Foreign Office, however, explicitly names an obligation under §§ 66, 68 AufenthG as an equivalent alternative. If a relative or a close friend lives in Germany with sufficient income and is willing to give the guarantee, no blocked account is needed.

A third accepted route is documented income from part-time work: a contract showing weekly hours and monthly earnings.

Which path fits depends on the sponsor's situation: the solvency check takes time, and if the income is borderline, a blocked account is the safer option. We work this out in a consultation, together with your Chancenkarte points.

Who can be a sponsor

Formally, any adult with legal status in Germany. Kinship is not required, although the authority will usually ask how you know each other. There is one real constraint: income.

There is no single minimum figure. The authority calculates individually: it takes the sponsor's net income, deducts their own housing and living costs, deducts the maintenance obligations they already carry, and checks whether what remains covers the guest.

This is why the same salary passes in one case and fails in another: what matters is not the size of the income but what is left of it.

The following do not count as income and will not get the sponsor through the check: basic income support (Grundsicherung), social assistance, housing benefit (Wohngeld), scholarships, BAföG, child benefit (Kindergeld) and Erziehungsgeld.

Where it is issued and what is needed

The sponsor applies in person at the Ausländerbehörde responsible for their own place of residence, not yours and not at a consulate. In some cities the Bürgeramt handles it, so check the website of the specific authority. Almost everywhere you need an appointment, and in large cities the next free slot can be weeks away. Build that into your timeline.

The fee is around €29 per declaration, paid at the appointment. It is set at state level, so it differs in some places: check the page of your own authority. If the guarantee is needed for several people, a family for instance, it has to be paid for each of them.

The sponsor usually brings:

• A passport or ID card, plus proof of their own residence permit if they are not a German citizen
• Proof of income: payslips for the last three months for employees, a statement from a tax adviser for the self-employed, a pension award notice for pensioners
• Proof of health insurance
• A copy of your passport and details of how you are related
• If they own property, a land register extract and a statement of the outstanding mortgage

This list follows the requirements of one large authority and broadly matches practice across the country, but details vary. Check it on the website of the Ausländerbehörde the sponsor will visit before booking the appointment.

The sponsor then sends you the finished declaration as an original, by post. Consulates as a rule do not accept a scan, so allow time for delivery.

Validity and length of liability

There are two different periods here, and they are often confused.

How long the document stays usable for an application is limited: the declaration has to be recent when you file. There is no single nationwide figure and missions differ, so check with the one handling your case. If you obtain the guarantee well in advance and the application slips, expect to have it issued again.

How long the sponsor stays liable is up to five years from the date of your entry, § 68 para. 1 sentence 3 AufenthG. Those five years are not shortened by you finding a job or changing status: the obligation ends early only if you receive a residence permit on a different basis, and even then not in every case.

Talk this through with the sponsor before the appointment. They are signing a document that binds them for five years, and they should understand that.

How this differs from letters of intent from clients

"Guarantee letter" often refers to a completely different document, and the confusion is expensive.

For a freelance visa under § 21 AufenthG the consulate wants to see that you will have work in Germany. That is proven with letters of intent from prospective clients: a company confirms it is interested in your services and indicates the likely scope of cooperation. Such a letter creates no financial obligation, it is signed by the client rather than a sponsor, and it is written in free form without involving any authority.

For a freelance visa you normally need the second kind. A Verpflichtungserklärung is rarely required in that category.

Why applications fail

• Income is not enough after deductions. The sponsor looks at their gross salary and assumes it is sufficient, while the authority deducts rent and maintenance for their own children, and the remainder falls short
• The sponsor receives social benefits. That income does not count at all
• The declaration has expired by the time the application is filed
• A scan was sent instead of the original
• The guarantee does not cover the full period. For the Chancenkarte it has to cover all 12 months, not just the first few
• Filed with the wrong authority, at the applicant's place of residence instead of the sponsor's

What to do with this

If you are considering the Chancenkarte and a blocked account is a heavy sum for you, look into the guarantee. If there is someone in Germany willing to help, it can be faster and cheaper than freezing €13,092.

In a consultation we check the sponsor's solvency in advance, before they go to the authority, so that neither the appointment nor the fee is wasted. Which visa fits your case is covered in the services section, and where to file is covered in where to apply for a D visa. If the guarantee is for bringing your family over, see the separate article on family reunification.

Sources

• Verpflichtungserklärung, City of Dortmund: fee, scope of the guarantee, documents, which income does not count
• Chancenkarte, Federal Foreign Office: blocked account amounts and recognition of the Verpflichtungserklärung as an alternative

FAQ

How much does a Verpflichtungserklärung cost?

Around €29 per declaration, paid by the sponsor at the appointment. The fee is set at state level, so check the amount on the website of the Ausländerbehörde the sponsor will visit. If the guarantee covers several people, it has to be paid for each of them.

Can a guarantee replace a blocked account?

For the Chancenkarte, yes: the Federal Foreign Office names an obligation under §§ 66, 68 AufenthG as an equivalent alternative to a blocked account. What decides the case is not the guarantee itself but the sponsor's solvency, which the authority assesses individually.

How long is the sponsor liable?

Up to five years from the date of entry, § 68 para. 1 sentence 3 AufenthG. The period is not shortened by the person finding work, and it ends early only if they receive a residence permit on a different basis, and even then not always.

What income does the sponsor need?

There is no single figure. The authority takes net income, deducts the sponsor's own housing and living costs and their existing maintenance obligations, then looks at what remains. That is why the same salary passes in one case and fails in another.

Does the sponsor have to be a relative?

No, formally any adult with legal status in Germany can act as a sponsor. The authority usually asks about the nature of the relationship, but income remains the decisive factor.

Will the consulate accept a scan of the declaration?

As a rule no, the original has to be sent by post. Allow time for delivery from Germany, especially if your appointment at the consulate is already booked.