Bundeseinheitliches Merkblatt zur Verwendung des bundeseinheitlichen Formulars der Verpflichtungserklärung zu § 68 i. V. m. § 66 und § 67 AufenthG - (englisch) (Seite 2)

Receipt of the formal obligation

1. Receipt of the formal obligation

A formal obligation made by a third party resident within the federal territory is to be submitted to the aliens authority responsible for the place where the foreigner is to reside. If the third party is ordinarily resident in a district for which a different aliens authority is responsible, he/she may submit the formal obligation and supporting documents to this aliens authority, which will forward it without delay to the responsible aliens authority. When doing so, the first aliens authority is to inform the second of any doubts as to the third party’s financial capacity or other specific matters which might prevent the obligation from being fulfilled (such as multiple invitations).

Persons living abroad may submit a formal obligation to the German diplomatic representation responsible for their place of usual residence. The original of the formal obligation will be returned to the person who submitted it, who is instructed to ensure that the foreigner gets it in order to present it to the diplomatic representation responsible for issuing visas.

The need for a formal obligation

2. The need for a formal obligation

First-time issuance of a residence title

a) First-time issuance of a residence title

Whether a formal obligation is required always depends on the specific individual case. A formal obligation must be submitted not only for visits, but also for intended longer stays if the foreigner is not capable of supporting him- or herself in accordance with the applicable legal requirements.

If a formal obligation is to be submitted without an existing maintenance obligation over very long periods of time (e.g. in case of stays for the purpose of study), this may be recorded by a notary.

Extending a stay

b. Extending a stay

In order to extend visas or residence permits, a new formal obligation must be submitted if the original purpose of the stay has changed and a new residence title is issued for the new purpose, and the foreigner cannot support him- or herself in accordance with the applicable legal requirements. This also applies to the extension of Schengen visas issued by another Schengen state.

Credit risk assessment

3. Credit risk assessment

Assessment standard

3.1 Assessment standard

A formal obligation can meet the requirement of sufficient support only if the third party can meet this obligation based on his/her income or other funds within the federal territory. If the third party is abroad, the authority must be certain that his/her income and funds can fulfil the requirement within the federal territory if necessary. It is not possible to enforce the recovery of funds abroad. If the aliens authority or diplomatic representation does not know whether the third party can meet this requirement, he/she must provide sufficient supporting documents. When checking the ability to pay, adequate attention should be paid in particular to the reason for or purpose of the foreigner’s intended stay, the planned length of stay, the temporal limits of the formal obligation and the consolidation of the third party’s residence status in federal territory.

The authority responsible for receiving the formal obligation will assess the credit risk on the basis of the information provided voluntarily and will note the result on page 2 of the form. If there is no explicit confirmation that the third party's creditworthiness has been proven or substantiated, the formal obligation is to be disregarded.

The following options are possible for noting the result of the credit risk assessment:

Evidence

In the case of intended stays of up to three months (within a six-month period) with no employment and of stays requiring the approval of the aliens authority (Section 31 ordinance on residence), appropriate evidence to demonstrate creditworthiness is required (see no. 3.2).

Substantiation

Substantiation will constitute an exception. If the aliens authority/diplomatic representation has no reason to doubt the creditworthiness of the person submitting the formal obligation, in particular on the basis of previous information (e.g. experience with earlier formal obligations and/or previous credit risk assessments), it may be sufficient in the case of intended short stays for the third party to substantiate his/her creditworthiness.

In principle, the credit risk assessment will be more thorough when there is a greater chance of the foreigner having recourse to public funds. The relevant criteria may include the length of stay, the number of previous stays, or the relationship between the foreigner and the third party.

In this case, a schematic assessment is not advisable; it is crucial that, following its assessment, the authority is convinced that the third party is able to fulfil the obligation entered into.