Do you qualify?
The Chancenkarte lets you move to Germany without a job offer and search for DevOps roles for up to 12 months. To apply, you need a qualifying higher-education degree of at least 3 years (ISCED level 6 or higher). A 4-year B.Sc. CS or B.Eng. CS/SE from a Pakistani university meets the requirement.
Route 1 applies if your degree is fully recognised in anabin. Route 2 applies if it is not, or if you want to skip the anabin verification step: you need at least 6 points.
Which route applies to you?
| Your situation | Route |
|---|---|
| 4-year B.Sc. CS / B.Eng. from H+ university, programme listed as "entspricht" | Route 1: no points needed |
| 4-year degree from H+ university, programme not listed | Route 2: 6 points required |
| 3-year BCS or B.Sc. (Hons) | Route 2: 6 points required |
| No degree or degree below ISCED level 6 | Not eligible |
Route 2: calculating your points
| Criterion | Points | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| ZAB partial equivalence decision | 4 | Formal ZAB assessment required |
| Shortage occupation (DevOps qualifies) | 1 | ISCO-08 group 25 |
| At least 2 years qualifying experience in last 5 years | 2 | Post-graduation, in your field |
| At least 5 years qualifying experience in last 7 years | 3 | Replaces 2-year tier |
| German at A2 | 1 | |
| German at B1 | 2 | Replaces A2 |
| English at C1 (with certificate) | 1 | Certificate required |
| Age under 35 | 2 | |
| Age 35 to 39 | 1 | Replaces under-35 |
| Prior lawful residence in Germany, at least 6 months in last 5 years | 1 | |
| Spouse applies jointly | 1 |
Points examples for Pakistani DevOps engineers:
Profile A: 4-year B.Sc. CS (programme unlisted), 2 years DevOps experience, age 25, IELTS 7.0 (C1): 1 (shortage) + 2 (experience) + 2 (age under 35) + 1 (English C1) = 6 points ✓
Profile B: 4-year B.Eng. CE, 5 years experience, age 32, German A2 + English C1: 1 (shortage) + 3 (5-year exp) + 2 (age under 35) + 1 (German A2) + 1 (English C1) = 8 points ✓
Financial requirement
€13,092 in a Sperrkonto before your visa appointment (§ 20a(4) AufenthG). The figure German missions apply in 2025-2026 is €1,091/month. Verify the current amount with your mission before opening an account. Also budget the €500 return ticket reserve Embassy Islamabad lists. Sperrkonto providers: Fintiba, Coracle, Expatrio.
What you can do on the Opportunity Card
- Part-time employment: up to 20 hours per week on average
- Trial employment (Probebeschäftigung): up to 2 weeks per employer
- Freelancing: not permitted
Worked example: Imran's Chancenkarte application
Imran Bhatt, 29, DevOps engineer, Islamabad to Germany
Imran holds a 4-year B.Sc. Software Engineering from NUST Islamabad (2018). He checks NUST in anabin and confirms his programme is listed as "entspricht einem deutschen Hochschulabschluss." He is on Route 1: no points calculation needed.
HEC attests his degree and transcript; MOFA attests on top. No apostille: Germany formally objected to Pakistan's Hague accession on 24 October 2022. His registered address is in Islamabad (ICT), so he applies to Embassy Islamabad.
He opens a Fintiba Sperrkonto (€13,092) two weeks before his appointment. Visa fee: €75, paid in PKR at the Embassy exchange rate.
After arriving in Berlin, he works 18 hours per week as a part-time DevOps contractor while conducting interviews. Converts to a Blue Card at a Berlin SaaS company four months later.
Document checklist (Pakistan, Chancenkarte, 2026)
- Valid passport (at least 2 empty pages)
- Biometric passport photograph
- VIDEX application form
- Degree certificate with HEC attestation and MOFA attestation (no apostille)
- Academic transcript with HEC attestation and MOFA attestation
- anabin printout or ZAB Statement of Comparability
- Language certificate
- Experience letters and payslips
- Sperrkonto certificate (€13,092)
- Travel health insurance
Which German mission handles your application
| Mission | Jurisdiction | Visa applications |
|---|---|---|
| Embassy Islamabad | ICT, Punjab, KPK, Gilgit-Baltistan, AJK | Yes, via CSP portal (digital.diplo.de) |
| Consulate General Karachi | Sindh, Balochistan | Yes, via CSP portal |
| Honorary Consul Lahore | Lahore and Sargodha | No visas. Certified document copies only. |
Common mistakes
Adding a Pakistani apostille. No legal effect. Use HEC and MOFA attestation.
Applying to the wrong mission. Punjab, KPK, Gilgit-Baltistan, AJK, and ICT: Embassy Islamabad. Sindh and Balochistan: Consulate General Karachi.
Paying for APS. APS is for student visas only.
Counting system administration as DevOps experience. Experience letters for the points table must describe infrastructure engineering: CI/CD pipelines, container orchestration, IaC. Support and monitoring work without engineering scope does not strengthen a borderline points case.
Sources
- § 20a AufenthG: Chancenkarte, Bundesministerium der Justiz
- Chancenkarte: Make it in Germany, Federal Government
- anabin database, KMK / ZAB
- German Embassy Islamabad, Auswärtiges Amt
- HCCH: Pakistan accession and German objection, Hague Conference on Private International Law
We are not a law firm. This page provides general information only, not legal advice. Always verify current requirements with the relevant German mission before applying.