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NikoESL
Joined: 26 Mar 2013 Posts: 3
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Posted: Sun Mar 31, 2013 12:42 pm Post subject: Freelance Visa- Possibility with only private lessons? |
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Hello,
I am currently preparing my documents to apply for the freelance english teaching visa in Germany. The one sticking point is the "proof of work opportunity" part. I am planning on deriving all of my income from private lessons (I feel confident this will work out, from talking to other teachers as well as receiving unsolicited offers from friends/friends of friends, so don't really want advice on this part of my plan). However, how will the Auslander Behoerde feel about this? Has anyone received the freelance visa with this as proof? I was considering having a contract or general outline written up with a few of the people I will later teach, but don't know if this plan would work. As of now I have about 300 euro/month worth of lessons set up for May, but haven't started publicly advertising yet. I have read that 1000 euro/month is what they are generally looking for, but I also have the benefit of having a relatively high amount of money in my bank account to get me through the first few months (will have about 9000 euros in the account at the time of my appointment).
Any help would be appreciated, thank you. |
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scot47
Joined: 10 Jan 2003 Posts: 15343
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Posted: Tue Apr 09, 2013 8:41 pm Post subject: |
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What will you do about health insurance ? |
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JN
Joined: 17 Jan 2008 Posts: 214
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Posted: Wed Apr 10, 2013 5:10 am Post subject: |
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Not that there aren't people in Germany teaching only private lessons and making enough money, but I don't know anyone who does that. They all (those that don't get regular full-time jobs) seem to freelance at schools and maybe do private lessons on the side. I have no idea what the Auslaenderbehoerde would say to your plan. |
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spiral78
Joined: 05 Apr 2004 Posts: 11534 Location: On a Short Leash
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Posted: Wed Apr 10, 2013 6:21 am Post subject: |
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I suspect they're going to think this is too nebulous and uncertain, but it will be interesting to hear their verdict.
The contract route might work, though you'll obviously need a fair lot of them to equal a regular monthly salary. The problem with privates is that they are generally unreliable; ones' private language lesson is usually considered an extra every week and in any scheduling conflict, the lesson will be the first to get scratched. |
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NikoESL
Joined: 26 Mar 2013 Posts: 3
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Posted: Fri Apr 12, 2013 4:00 pm Post subject: |
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Over the past couple of weeks, I have been applying to (and will continue applying to) language schools in the area looking for work. Also I have been spreading the word a little bit more in my social circle to see who they know that needs English lessons. As of now I have one preliminary offer from a small company and a few more prospective private clients.
So my current plan is to go to the visa office in about 2 weeks, hopefully with at least one proper offer from a language school in hand. If I don't have one, then I'll just take in the letters of intent to employ/hire from the company and the potential students and see if it works out. If not, then I still have 2 months on my current visa to try again.
Question: does anyone know what such a "letter of intent to hire" looks like? What information it would need to contain? If anyone has a copy of the letter they got from their language school, could you share it with me? I would try to use it as a template for what I will have my prospective clients write (of course I will write it, but it will be from them). |
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JN
Joined: 17 Jan 2008 Posts: 214
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Posted: Sun Apr 14, 2013 6:02 pm Post subject: |
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I've always had a contract, so I don't have a copy of anything like that. I assume it's very simple, though.
It sounds as though you are in Germany. Have you joined a local elta (English language teaching association)? They could maybe help. |
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gloomyGumi
Joined: 29 Dec 2010 Posts: 353
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Posted: Wed Apr 17, 2013 12:59 pm Post subject: |
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i am planning to try to do the same. problem is where do i stay whilse looking for schools/privates/freelancing? Germany and Europe in general i think would be quite costly whilse staying 30 days say or even 45 days pounding the pavement.
any suggestions about where to stay long term? I am thinking for the moment about Frankfurt area but willing to go anywhere in Germany really. |
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spiral78
Joined: 05 Apr 2004 Posts: 11534 Location: On a Short Leash
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Posted: Wed Apr 17, 2013 1:20 pm Post subject: |
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By the way (I've replied to your thread above as well) you can also maximize your chances by taking care with timing. The main hiring is September. Coming over in the summer basically guarantees that you'll use up your 90 days in the Schengen zone for nothing! |
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artemisia
Joined: 04 Nov 2008 Posts: 875 Location: the world
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Posted: Sun Apr 21, 2013 8:06 pm Post subject: |
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NikoESL: Sorry, I�m too out of touch with that scene to be of much help these days, but JN�s suggestion is a great one.
gloomyGumi: If you�re willing to share on a temporary (permanent?) basis, then you probably already know that these sort of flats are called Wohngemeinschaft(en). You could try finding a room in one; I think they or hostels will be the cheapest option. I don�t know if you always need a deposit, but try a search under Wohngemeinschaft Frankfurt am Main or whatever city you�re interested in.
Toy Town is an expat site. I think they sometimes advertise rooms or flats for rent in various German cities. Frankfurt am Main would probably be quite a good starting place in terms of the number of businesses and networking you could do. It may not be that cheap though.
Spiral�s right about your arrival time being very important, especially for non EU passport holders. Most work will be available in September. Good luck with it. |
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NikoESL
Joined: 26 Mar 2013 Posts: 3
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Posted: Tue May 21, 2013 8:22 am Post subject: |
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Thanks for all of the advice guys.
So today I had my appointment, and got my visa .
The process was super easy once I got there (of course complicated getting everything ready). I just went in and she basically said "give me all the documents you have." So gave her everything (Anmeldung, Resume, Filled-out forms, Health Insurance Bescheinigung, etc). The two things that she asked for that I didn't have with me were proof of my university degree and reference letters from other employers (I did tell her that I had email addresses and phone numbers of references with me, but she never asked for those). This lasted maybe 5 minutes. Then I went to the waiting room, came back when she called me 10 minutes later, and the visa was already in my passport. Got my documents back, went to the cashier to pay, and came home.
So my experience doesn't really shed any light onto the original question about whether you can get the visa with only private clients. I presented letters for two jobs that I have: one for a language school, and another from a small company that I will give business english lessons to. I did have a list of a few private clients that I plan to teach, but never needed to present it. |
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alexmac84
Joined: 28 Dec 2013 Posts: 38
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Posted: Fri Jul 18, 2014 3:49 pm Post subject: |
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That's refreshing Niko. I have a question for you. What kind of teaching experience did you have to get those jobs, and where did you end up getting work (which city)? |
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