What is the Anabin Database?
The Anabin Database is a website that checks if foreign degrees have a German equivalent. Unfortunately, the database is currently only available in German.
So to make your day a bit easier, we’re going to walk you through how to use it.
Step 1: Open Anabin
First things first. We’ll need to navigate to the Anabin website. Clicking the button below will open Anabin in a new tab. Keep both open parallel as we move through the following steps.
Step 2: Search for your university
Next, we’ll check if your college, university, or institution of higher learning is registered in the database.
For obtaining a blue card, you will need at least one degree that is equal to a German University degree - it can either be a master or a bachelor degree, so we always recommend checking both. If your degree is not equal, you are not eligible for a blue card but there are other visa types that you might be eligible for, so don’t panic.
Click on Search (Suchen) tab
Filter the search results by country (Länderauswahl öffnen), city (Alle Orte)
Click on start search (Suche starten) and scroll down the list. If there are too many results, you can try to search by your Universities’ name in the field (Bitte geben Sie einen Suchbegriff ein)
Step 3: Check Search Result
Check the search results and navigate to your institution
Click on the plus sign next to your institutions’ name
Save the description as a pdf - you’ll need it for your visa appointment
Step 4: How to interprete your result
There are four possible outcomes to your search:
My institution is not on the list: If you can’t find your specific degree, it means that no one has previously requested recognition or equivalency for this particular qualification. That doesn’t necessarily mean you should worry—it just means Anabin has no information on it. Unless you want to apply for an IT skilled visa (where you do not need a degree), we recommend applying for an equivalency statement from the ZAB.
My institution is rated as H+: hooray, your degree is equal to a German degree. This is especially important in case you would like to apply for a blue card.
(!) There is one exception: e.g. in case the search result specifies your University e.g. Havard and mentions specific subjects as well, you need to find the subject that you majored in exactly on the Anabin result. E.g. if the Anabin slip mentions Havard University and specifies subjects like “Chemistry”, “Biology” and “IT” beneath it but you studied Geology you will need to apply for a statement from the ZAB.
My institution is rated as H+/-
In case your University is rated as H+/- it means that only certain degrees from your institution are recognized as equal. To proof equivalency, you need to find your exact degree type as well. Move to the next section and we’ll explain how to move forward.
(!) There can be exceptions to the rule - we recommend reading the Anabin print out as well.
My institution is rated as H-
It means that your institution is not recognized as equal - it won’t be possible applying for the blue card with this result but there are plenty of other visa types that you might be eligible for
Step 5: Optional in case H+/-
Navigate to search for degrees (Suche nach Abschlüssen)
Look for your degree type, e.g. Bachelor of architecture
Klick on serach (Suche starten)
Click on the plus sign and see if you can find your degree type including your institution.
If you can find an H+ rating, the embassy will most likely accept it as a proof of equivalency. If you cannot find it and want a blue card, we recommend applying for a statement of comparability.
