How to Discover a Job In Berlin

Greg is the co-founder of GermanTechJobs.de.

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

On this page

1. Before your task search Can you work in Germany?
Do you require to speak German?
For how long does it require to get employed?
Salaries in Germany
General task search
English-speaking jobs
Tech jobs
Creative jobs: media, interactions, design
Startup tasks
Internships, temp work and minijobs
Freelance work
Restaurant jobs
German resumes
Cover letters
The phone screen
The technical interview
Meet the group
Salary negotiation
The task contract
Things your company needs
Things you must know
Career training
Before your task search

Can you work in Germany?

If you are not a person of the EU, EEA or Switzerland, you need a home license to work in Germany. You can get a work visa or a Blue Card, employment for example. There may be a minimum income or education requirement.

Do you need to speak German?

No, but it assists. You can find English-speaking jobs, however most companies desire 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
– Customer support and employment call centres
– Restaurants and bars

Do you need to speak German in Berlin?

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

A few months. Even if you find a task rapidly, the employing procedure is extremely sluggish.

Know how much you ought to earn, and just how much taxes you must pay. This assists you work out a much better salary.

Calculate your income tax

1. Search for tasks

General task search

Indeed.com – Job online search engine. You can filter by language and set alerts.
LinkedIn – Networking website with a big jobs area. 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 noting website. Made in Berlin.
ArbeitNow – Job listing site. Made in Berlin.
Jobted
Xing – Similar to LinkedIn. You can’t filter by language.
Glassdoor – Company reviews, wage reports and job listings. You require an account.

English-speaking tasks

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

Berlin Startup Jobs – Most tasks remain in English-speaking offices
Englishjobs.de – Only English-speaking tasks
JobsInBerlin.eu – You can filter tasks by language
Germany Startup Jobs – You can filter jobs by language and wage
The Local jobs – Run by a popular English-speaking paper
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 tasks in start-ups and employment tech business
Administrator/ Web Entickler/ Entwickler Jobs – German-speaking tech jobs
Imagine Foundation – They assist software developers from developing countries find a task and get employed

Creative tasks: media, interactions, design

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

Startup tasks

Berlin Startup Jobs – English-speaking tasks in startups and tech business
(in German).
tbd * task board (in German) – tbd * is a site for entrepreneurs. You can filter by language.
Wellfound – International start-up task portal.
Germany Startup Jobs – You can filter jobs 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 temp work company.
Randstad (in German) – Large temp work firm.
Craigslist – Most task 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. Make an application 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 picture for your resume. A career coach can help you write a better resume.

Useful links:

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

Cover letters

Include a short cover letter (Anschreiben) with your application. It’s a personal intro. It discusses who you are, what you do, why you obtain this job, and why they ought to employ you.

Don’t send out the very same cover letter to everybody. Do your research study, and personalise the letter for each job offer. Keep it brief and easy to check out. Get feedback from other individuals before you send it. A profession coach can assist you write much better cover letters.

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

3. The job interview

In Germany, employment the interview process is long. It can take a couple of weeks, and even a few months. You might have numerous interviews with various people. It depends on the business and the task. You need a great deal of time for this.

The phone screen

The interview process starts with a short call. A recruiter or hiring manager will ask you a few concerns. They will attempt to understand who you are, what you desire, and how you fit the task deal. It’s a basic check before they welcome you for an interview.

How to prepare – Imagine Foundation

The technical interview

Most tech companies have technical interviews or coding obstacles. They validate that you understand how to do your job.

Technical interviews are different at every business. They may ask you technical concerns, ask you to solve a problem during the interview, or employment finish a technical obstacle in the house. Some business don’t have technical interviews.

Meet the team

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

4. The job offer

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

Salary settlement

After you get the task deal, you can work out a better salary. You can also request things like a relocation benefit or more vacation days.

Salaries in Germany

The job contract

Read your job contract thoroughly. If your company promised something to you throughout the interview, verify that it’s in your agreement. Only sign the contract if you agree with whatever. Send the signed agreement by email or by post.

If you are uncertain about your agreement, ask for aid or talk to an attorney.

5. Get a home license

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

How to get a residence license

If you currently have a house permit, you might require the Ausländerbehörde’s approval to change tasks. Sometimes, you can start your new job instantly. Sometimes, you should wait for employment your new residence license. This can take a few weeks.

How to alter jobs

6. Start working

Things your employer needs

During your very first month at a new company, your employer requires a couple of things:

A checking account.
Your company will pay you by bank transfer. For employment this, you need a savings 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 begin working. – More info.
Your health insurance coverage number (Krankenversicherungsnummer).
You get a Krankenversicherungsnummer 2 to 7 days after you choose health insurance coverage. Your company needs this number to take health insurance payments from your wage. Your employer can choose health insurance for you, however it’s a bad concept. Ask a broker to help you select, it’s totally free.
Your social insurance number (Sozialversicherungsnummer).
If you have public health insurance coverage, you get this number instantly in the mail. If you have personal health insurance coverage, you should obtain it. Your company can in some cases help you with this. – How to get a social insurance coverage number

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

Things you need to know

In Germany, many people are paid once per month, generally on the 1st or 15th day of the month. You get your very first income after 30 or 45 days after you begin working. You normally get paid by bank transfer.

Most workers in Germany are paid by bank transfer when each month, on the first day of the month.4 Your employer takes wage tax, medical insurance, pension insurance and unemployment insurance coverage from your income.

Income tax calculator

How taxes work

During your very first 6 months at a brand-new company, you are in your probation period (Probezeit). 2 During that time, it’s easier to get fired. It’s likewise harder to discover an apartment or condo, since you don’t have a steady task.

How does the probation duration work?

All workers in Germany earn money holiday days, and paid ill leave. You don’t work on public vacations, but you still earn money.

How to take holidays

What to do when you are ill

7. Make a tax declaration

A lot of your job search costs are tax-deductible:3

Relocation costs
If you move more detailed to your new task, you can subtract your moving costs
Job search expenses
Coaching, resume writing, expert photos, translations, printing expenses, task search services …
Travel expenses.
Fuel, train tickets, hotels, meals and parking costs to go to task interviews.

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

Need aid?

Where to get help about work

Career coaching

These people can help you get worked with. For example, they can evaluate your resume and cover letter. Their charge is tax-deductible.