Answered briefly
Can I get an AVGS for coaching in Germany as a foreigner?
Yes, that is possible. What matters is not your nationality but that you are registered as a jobseeker or as unemployed with the Agentur für Arbeit or the Jobcenter; what applies in your case also depends on your residence status. Whether you get a voucher is decided by your caseworker, because for coaching it is a discretionary benefit. You don’t need perfect German: the coaching itself can also take place in English, Spanish or French.
1. Who is responsible: Agentur für Arbeit or Jobcenter
If you receive unemployment benefit (Arbeitslosengeld) or are looking for work without receiving benefits, the Agentur für Arbeit is usually your point of contact. If you receive benefits from the Jobcenter, ask there. Both can issue an AVGS. First register as a jobseeker or as unemployed, online, by phone or in person.
2. What your residence status has to do with it
- Citizens of the EU, the EEA and Switzerland have free access to the German labour market and do not need a residence title.
- If you come from another country, you generally need a residence title that also covers work. What you are allowed to do is stated in your residence title or on its supplementary sheet (Zusatzblatt).
- If you are in Germany to look for work, for example with the Opportunity Card (Chancenkarte), you can register as a jobseeker with the Agentur für Arbeit where you live as soon as you are here.
Whether an AVGS is possible in your situation is best clarified directly with your caseworker.
3. Language: German doesn’t have to be a barrier
The conversation with the agency is usually in German. So prepare your request in writing; you’ll find sample wording in the step-by-step guide. The coaching itself can take place in English, Spanish or French.
Good to know: German courses are mainly covered by the integration courses and job-related language courses of the BAMF, not by the AVGS.
4. How to ask for the AVGS
- Explicitly ask your caseworker for an AVGS for one-to-one coaching (Einzelcoaching). It is not issued automatically.
- Briefly explain how the coaching helps you: application documents to German standards, presenting your qualifications and experience from abroad clearly, job interviews.
- Name me as your coach and mention that the coaching takes place online. Ask for “bundesweit” (nationwide) to be written on the voucher.
- Only start after the written approval; costs are not covered retroactively.
5. And then?
Send me a photo or scan of the voucher. I take care of the AZAV-certified provider; you don’t have to find or contact it. With an approved AVGS the coaching is free for you. More about coaching for people who are new to Germany on the page Coaching in English.
Related pages
Let’s talk about your situation
In the free intro call we work out your next step and whether AVGS coaching suits you. No obligation, online.