Maksym Stepanenko
Managing Partner, Crystal Tax
International client projects since 2012: company structures, tax, immigration, DUNS and NCAGE. 50+ jurisdictions.
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In 2026 a German residence permit is issued on a specific ground of the Residence Act (AufenthG): employment (including the EU Blue Card from EUR 50,700 a year), self-employment and freelancing under §21, job search with the Opportunity Card, study, family, or temporary protection for Ukrainians. Ukrainian citizens need a national D visa for most routes. After the move a person usually becomes German tax resident and is taxed on worldwide income.
Immigration support by the lawyers of legal.ua · the tax side of the move is handled by us
Residence routes in 2026
| Route | Main conditions | Law |
|---|---|---|
| Self-employment | economic interest, positive effect, financing; over 45, adequate pension provision; permit for up to 3 years | §21(1)–(3) AufenthG |
| Freelancer (freie Berufe) | professional licence where required | §21(5) AufenthG |
| EU Blue Card | salary from EUR 50,700 a year, from EUR 45,934.20 for shortage occupations and recent graduates (2026) | §18g AufenthG, BAnz 2025 |
| Opportunity Card (Chancenkarte) | up to 1 year of job search, work up to 20 hours a week, means of subsistence, German A1 or English B2 | §20a AufenthG |
| Temporary protection | for Ukrainians under §24; the EU extended protection to 4 March 2028 | §24 AufenthG, 2026/1912 |
The AufenthG has no separate digital nomad status, passive-income permit or investor programme. For purposes the law does not cover there is only §7(1) "in justified cases", without the right to work (§7 AufenthG).
Settlement permit and citizenship
Blue Card settlement
After 27 months of work with pension contributions, or 21 months with German at B1 (§18c(2)).
Self-employed settlement
Possible after 3 years with a successful business and secure income (§21(4)).
General settlement permit
5 years with a residence permit, secure income, 60 months of pension contributions, German language (§9 AufenthG).
Citizenship
5 years of lawful residence and German at B1. The 3-year fast track has been abolished, and German law no longer requires giving up a previous citizenship (§10 StAG).
Ukrainians under temporary protection: key dates
The EU extended temporary protection to 4 March 2028 (Decision 2026/1912); new applicants must show they have met Ukrainian military registration duties. Existing German §24 permits were extended automatically to 4 March 2027 (Fortgeltungsverordnung). A German ordinance extending the transitional regime to 4 March 2028 has been drafted (Bundesrat Drucksache 431/26); check its publication before filing. As a rule Ukrainian citizens cannot apply for another permit from inside Germany without a D visa, since Ukraine is not on the §41 AufenthV list.
Residence, settlement and citizenship support: legal.ua lawyers: German residence permit.
Taxes after the move
A person becomes German tax resident with a home they keep and use in Germany, or after more than 6 months of continuous stay (§8, §9 AO). The type of permit does not matter: holders of a temporary protection card become residents too.
- A German resident is taxed on worldwide income, including dividends from a Ukrainian company and income as a Ukrainian sole proprietor.
- If Ukraine also treats the person as resident, the Ukraine–Germany treaty decides which country prevails.
- Controlling a foreign company with passive income taxed below 15% triggers the German CFC rules (§7, §8(5) AStG).
- If the director lives in Germany and manages the company from here, the company can also become German resident (§1 KStG).
Company taxes and dividends: German company taxes. Changing residence: tax residency guide.
Tell us where you live, what income you have and which companies you own in Ukraine and elsewhere. We will prepare a tailored proposal on your taxes after moving to Germany.
Sources: §21, §18g, §18c, §20a, §9, §24, §7 AufenthG, §41 AufenthV, §10 StAG, BAnz AT 18.12.2025 B3, EU Decision 2026/1912, Ukraine-Aufenthaltserlaubnis-Fortgeltungsverordnung, §8 and §9 AO. Checked on 9 October 2026.
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Frequently asked questions
Can I get a German residence permit by forming a company?
What salary is required for an EU Blue Card in 2026?
How long until I can apply for German citizenship?
How long does temporary protection for Ukrainians last in Germany?
Does a §24 protection holder become German tax resident?
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Our advantages
Corporate structuring, company registration in Ukraine and abroad, tax and reporting, migration, bank accounts, DUNS and NCAGE codes. We run the whole project, from choosing the solution to the finished documents.
Confidentiality terms are set out in our contract. We do not pass information about a client or their project to third parties, except where the law expressly requires it.
We compare jurisdictions against your business task: tax regime, reporting, substance requirements and access to banking. On the call we go through the upsides and the limits of each option.
We name the timeline for every step before the work starts — it depends on the jurisdiction, the registrar and the bank. Personal data is used only to deliver the service.
We handle the correspondence with registrars, government bodies and banks and answer their requests ourselves. From you we need documents and signatures.
We take each case to the finish: if an authority or registrar comes back with remarks, we revise the documents at no extra charge. The fee is calculated for your task before work starts.