• Introduction about the declaration of commitment
The “declaration of commitment” (🇩🇪 Verpflichtungserklärung) is a formal declaration of financial responsibility. A German national or a foreigner (working and living in Germany) sends you this document. You can then provide this document to the German embassy for your visa application. This declaration is also known as a “Letter of Commitment” or “Letter of Obligation.”
The declaration of commitment and the blocked bank account (🇩🇪 Sperrkonto) are the two ways a foreigner can use to prove that he has sufficient financial resources for the purpose of applying for a visa and traveling to Germany.
Many do not like the closed bank account, because the amount required for that is more than 12 thousand euros, which is unfortunately for many people a very large amount of money to secure immediately.
More details about the closed bank account are here:
• Who can help you with this document?
A German citizen or someone with a residence permit in Germany AND working could apply for this document for you. This person is the sponsor, and you are being “sponsored”.
• Do I need to personally know the sponsor or that he/she is a relative of mine?
No! You can get to know me now, and I can ask tomorrow in my city for a declaration of commitment to you.
• What does the sponsor certify through this commitment?
Through this application, he/she certifies that he/she will be responsible for all the financial costs during your stay in Germany. But ONLY if you did not pay them. These costs might be:
- Living costs (e.g., accommodation, food, travel, treatment, etc.).
- Any fines you might need to pay (e.g., if you caused damage to your apartment by forgetting to close the water tap; this can cause thousands of Euros!).
- Last but not least, if you did not leave Germany after the end of your visa, this person would need to pay for all costs of your deportation (could be easily thousands of Euros).
If you paid all of your costs and did not get any fines (or got them and paid them): The person who signed this document for you (the sponsor) would not need to pay anything and would not get any troubles.
By the way, this person does not need to pay you a monthly or weekly salary.
• How many persons could a German citizen or working foreigner in Germany give a declaration of commitment for?
With a net salary of around 3 thousand Euros, around two to three persons. The higher the salary, the higher the persons.
We mentioned this because this is the most common excuse that people say in order not do a declaration of commitment for you. They will say: “I have just sponsored my cousin and the friend of my wife, so, I cannot sponsor new people”.
• Is it easy to convince someone to sign a declaration of commitment for you?
Probably not. If you have relatives or close friends who trust you, they might do that for you.
I apologize for any spelling or grammar mistakes in my previous response. Here is the corrected version:
• Where can the document on the declaration of commitment be issued?
In the immigration office (🇩🇪 Ausländerbehöde) where the sponsor lives (This means, where he has his residence registration).
• How much does the document about the declaration of commitment cost?
It differs from one immigration office (ِ🇩🇪 Ausländerbehörde) to another. It is around 25-30 Euros.
• What documents does the immigration office ask for?
– Information about you as a sponsored person
- The person who wants to order this document for you from Germany (the sponsor) must know your name and date of birth exactly as they appear in the passport. Same letters, same syllables. Please, pay attention.
- Approximate date of your arrival in Germany (approximately in weeks)
- Duration of the financial guarantee. Required I think is at least a year (check the information).
– Documents from you as a sponsored person
Nothing
– Documents from the sponsor
- Personal identity
If he is German: a personal ID or a German passport.
If he is a foreigner: the passport with the residence card.
- Rental or ownership contract for the apartment or house in which the sponsor lives
- Copy of salaries (🇩🇪 Gehaltsabrechnungen) for the last 3 months (an unemployed person cannot make a financial guarantee for you)
- A copy of the work contract in case he is an employee. If he is a self-employed employee, a list of his sources of income and his copy from his bank account statements (🇩🇪 Kontoauszüge)
- Some authorities require a health insurance document (it can be easily downloaded from the mobile application of many insurance companies within a minute).
• What does the sponsor do after he goes to the immigration office, submits the required documents and information, and pays the cost of the declaration of commitment?
On the same day (or a few days later) he will receive one paper printed on green paper similar to the paper on which the visa is printed.
It is written on this piece of paper (the declaration of commitment) that he sponsors you, in addition to your information and his information.
This document must be mailed to you because the German Embassy requires that you receive the original copy of this document.
Just! It’s that easy.
For more details about the requirements, you can see as an example the official information given in Berlin: Link
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