# American needing visa advice. Please help me



## ChristopherKing (Sep 1, 2013)

Hi, my name is Chris. I'm 26 currently living in Louisville. I'm an American national, that is in a long distance relationship with a woman living in Germany. I think it's time to start the process of living together, but aren't ready to propose marriage just yet. Since I know she will never want to leave the EU, this leaves my only option as coming to Germany to be with her. I've read quite a bit on various forms of visas that would allow me to stay various lengths of times(my goal is 1 year). I have read about friends and family visas an I have read about self employment visas as well, which seem like they could be the best bet for me. I have been a television personality for 3 years, am a frequent local radio show guest, and have hosted a highly popular podcast for years, I'm a journalism major and operate my own blog about automotive tuning culture. I have 2 friends in Germany, my girlfriend and a dear friend that is an executive with a company in Munich. I am sorry to post so much information, I just want to make sure that I don't leave anything important out that could help me obtain the visa I'm after. Please give me advice about what to apply for, or what avenues to research


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## MrTweek (Jan 9, 2013)

> I just want to make sure that I don't leave anything important out that could help me obtain the visa I'm after.


So, which one are you thinking about? 

The problem is, not being married means being nothing at all. Regular relationships have no legal status in Germany.
Your friend will most likely not be of any help either, unless he can get you a job and sponsor you.


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## ChristopherKing (Sep 1, 2013)

I was hoping for self employment, as it seems to remove the variables that come along with relying on other relationships. I do a podcast here in America that I'm paid for, and they had talked about working my travels in as an element of the show. Since that's a paying job that would be sending me to Germany, would that count as employment?


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

When they talk about employment in connection with a visa, they usually mean the type of employment that sets you up in the German tax system and the social insurances system. Self employment is tricky because it's so easy to fly under the radar and simply avoid paying taxes altogether.

At a minimum, you would have to set up some sort of German business entity to cover your remunerative activity, which might involve having to charge your US employer VAT on the cost of your services. You may want to check with your local German consulate (probably Chicago) to see what the options are for a freelancer or self-employed individual looking to move to Germany.
Cheers,
Bev


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