Information for refugees from Ukraine

Citizen´s benefit (Bürgergeld) for protection seekers from Ukrain

We have summarised further information for you here. You can also find out where you can get targeted help after your arrival in Hamburg. This page is updated on an ongoing basis.

• Registration in Hamburg

  You can only apply for financial aid after official registration. Registration is possible in all German cities. Registration is important so that you can work in Germany or receive state assistance.

  If you do not yet have accommodation in Hamburg, please register at the Arrival Centre (Ankunftszentrum) in Rahlstedt. The arrival centre is open 24/7. You will be provided with state accommodation.

  You have private accomodation with relatives or acquaintances? Please contact the Office for Migration (Amt für Migration) for registration. Please book an appointment online in advance for each person who wishes to register.

• Financial support (application for citizen´s benefit)

  In order to receive financial support (Bürgergeld), registration in the Central Register of Foreigners and the presentation of a fictitious certificate or a residence title according to Section 24 (1) of the Residence Act (AufenthG) is a prerequisite.

  Please make an appointment online at the Jobcentre team.arbeit.hamburg office responsible for you to apply for citizen´s benefit.

  Find out here how to reach us and which attachments you need to fill in and which documents we require.

  An information sheet on citizen´s benefit (Bürgergeld) in Ukrainian can be found here.

  Guidlines for filling out the application for citizen´s benefit are also available in Ukrainian and Russian.

• Child benefit (Kindergeld)

  Parents who fled from Ukraine can receive child benefit under certain conditions.

  Child benefit is financial support for families with children. It is paid from birth until the child’s 18th (or 25th) birthday. A monthly child benefit of 250,- EURO is paid for each child.

  Claiming child benefit

  The application for child benefit (Ukrainian and Russian) and the appendix enclosure child (Ukrainian and Russian) as well as further information on the subject you can find here.

  Further information is summarised in the leaflet on child benefit (Ukrainian, Russian).

• Bank account

  You need a bank account for the payment of benefits and for daily life. All people in Germany have the right to open a so-called basic account at a bank of their choice. All standard banks and savings banks offer a basic account. You can get the application directly from the bank or savings bank.

  You can find more information about the basic account here. The flyer Ride to an Account is also available for download on the website of the City of Hamburg (in Ukrainian, Polish and Russian).

• Health insurance

  In order to receive medical care, you need health insurance. You can choose a statutory health insurance fund (Krankenversicherung) yourself. Find out about membership at a statutory health insurance fund of your choice and get a certificate for the Jobcenter (membership certificate). If you receive money from the Jobcenter, the Jobcenter will pay the monthly contributions directly to your health insurance fund.

  Jobcenter team.arbeit.hamburg does not register children under 15 with the health insurance. If you live with children under 15, you must register them with your health insurance yourself. As a rule, this is done through a so-called family insurance.

  Family insurance, also called non-contributory (family) co-insurance, covers the non-contributory co-insurance of family members of compulsory and voluntary members insured in the statutory health insurance system.

• Housing and accommodation

  If you receive citizen´s benefit (Bürgergeld) from the Jobcenter, the costs of your accommodation will be taken into account when calculating your financial support if they are reasonable.

  If you receive benefits from the Jobcenter and would like to move, it is essential that you contact the responsible Jobcenter staff before you sign a contract. Before you sign a tenancy agreement/subtenancy agreement, you should have the Jobcenter team.arbeit.hamburg confirm that they will take over the monthly rent. You can find more information on the website of the City of Hamburg.

  Important: For the smooth processing of your requests, it is absolutely necessary that you inform us of your current residential address or place of residence in Hamburg. In case of changes, it is necessary that you inform us immediately.

  Which Jobcenter team.arbeit.hamburg location is responsible for you depends on where you live in Hamburg. You can find out which location is responsible for you here.

• Job search, employment and recognition of qualifications

  Refugees from Ukraine are allowed to work in Germany if they have a fictitious certificate (Fiktionsbescheinigung) or a residence permit (Aufenthaltserlaubnis) according to Section 24 (1) of the Residence Act (AufenthG). The fictitious certificate or the residence permit must have the entry “Erwerbstätigkeit erlaubt” („gainful employment permitted“). Please note that depending on the type of activity, there may be further requirements for taking up employment, such as access restrictions under professional law.

  Jobcenter team.arbeit.hamburg supports you if you are looking for a job or training, want to gain a qualification or have your foreign vocational qualification recognised.

  Get in touch with us! We will be happy to advise you

  Book an appointment online at the Jobcenter team.arbeit.hamburg location responsible for you.

  You can find more information on the topic of taking up employment here:

  • On the website of the Employment Agency (Agentur für Arbeit) you can find, among other things, the telephone number of a hotline offering advice on finding a job in Ukrainian.
  • The portal Jobsuche of the employment agency (Agentur für Arbeit) allows you to search for occupational fields, work, training, studies and regional offers.
  • The Hamburg Welcome Center (HWC) offers extensive information on job search, also in Ukrainian.
  • The newsletter Job-Brücke regularly lists current job offers and is available for download here.
  • Information on the recognition of qualifications acquired in Ukraine or abroad is provided by the Federal Government’s information portal on the recognition of foreign professional qualifications. The information is particularly helpful for professions with access restrictions under professional law.

• Language and integration courses

  Refugees from Ukraine now have access to language support from the Bundesamt für Migration und Flüchtlinge (BAMF). In this way, the Federal Government would like to make it easier for you to arrive and settle in Germany. A number of offers are available free of charge and help with initial orientation.

  The offer includes:

  • the so called MiA courses – Migrants simply strong in everyday life, an offer especially for women,
  • the initial orientation courses, where you receive important information about everyday life in Germany as well as initial German language skills,
  • the comprehensive integration courses, consisting of a language course and an orientation course, and
  • German for professional purposes, which build on the integration courses and prepare you for the working world in Germany.

  How to register

  Admission to the integration course is possible upon application. You can find the application here.

  Please submit the application to the responsible regional office of the Bundesamtes für Migration und Flüchtlinge (BAMF). You can find out which office is responsible in Hamburg via the BAMF-NAvI.

  Participation is free of charge for refugees from Ukraine.

  If you have been approved for participation by the Bundesamt für Migration und Flüchtlinge (the entitlement certificate/Berechtigungsschein), you can choose a course. All types of courses supported by the BAMF are available. You can find an integration course provider near you using the BAMF-NAvI information system.

  Important: If you receive financial support (Bürgergeld) from the Jobcenter, it is possible that you will receive an integration course entitlement (obligation) from Jobcenter team.arbeit.hamburg. If you have an integration course entitlement (obligation), you do not have to apply for admission to the integration course at the BAMF.

  The following types of integration courses are available:

  • general integration course,
  • special courses for young people, for women and parents,
  • literacy courses,
  • second-script learning courses, which are aimed at people who have not yet mastered the Latin alphabet,
  • intensive courses,
  • courses for deaf and courses for blind people

• School and child day care

  In Germany, school attendance is compulsory. In Hamburg, this applies to all children and young people between the ages of six and 18. Information on school attendance for Ukrainian children and young people can be found here.

  Kita and day care

  If you are registered in Hamburg and are entitled to social benefits, you can claim day care for your children.

  For this purpose, a day care voucher (Kita-Gutschein) must be applied for. The application for day care must be submitted to the responsible district office, department for day care. With the Kita-Gutschein you can then claim a place in a Kita. Registration takes place directly at a Kita.

  Multilingual information on the subject can be found on the website of the City of Hamburg at: https://www.hamburg.de/kitaplatz/

  Information and all the important steps for your child’s entry into Kita, also in Ukrainian and Russian, can be found here: https://www.kita-einstieg-hamburg.de/elterninfo/de/.

• Further support in Hamburg

  Further information and contact details can be found on the website of the City of Hamburg at www.hamburg.de/ukraine/. The information for protection seekers is available in German, Ukrainian and Russian.

  The Hamburg Welcome Center offers special counselling to those seeking protection from Ukraine on topics such as practical aspects of life in Hamburg, learning German and recognition of foreign qualifications.

  The Employment Agency (Agentur für Arbeit) can help you find a job or vocational training. You can find out which agency is responsible for you here.

• Information for victims and witnesses of war crimes

  If you have witnessed or experienced war crimes in Ukraine, you can contact any police station. Your information will help to prosecute crimes. You can find further information on the website of the City of Hamburg and the Federal Criminal Police Office (Bundeskriminalamt).

  You need counselling in an emergency situation, here you will find the telephone numbers of the different help services.

• Further information

  The website http://www.germany4ukraine.de/hilfeportal-de offers information on asylum, entry, accommodation and medical care in Germany. The information is available in several languages: Ukrainian, Russian, English and German.

  Questions and answers on entering Ukraine and staying in Germany can be found on the website of the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees.