The German government’s official “Make it in Germany” portal has refreshed its EU Blue Card pages, explicitly confirming the 2026 salary thresholds after this year’s reforms to the Skilled Immigration Act. Highly qualified professionals now require a minimum gross annual salary of €50,700 to qualify for the standard Blue Card. For shortage-occupation roles—or for applicants who graduated less than three years ago—the threshold is €45,934.20, provided the Federal Employment Agency consents. The update also clarifies eligibility for IT specialists without formal degrees: three years of high-level professional experience plus the lower salary floor suffice for a Blue Card under §18g of the Residence Act. Importantly, the portal now links directly to the Auswärtiges Amt’s online visa-application system, signalling the government’s push towards end-to-end digital processing. For HR and mobility teams the figures are vital budgeting datapoints: salary offers below the new thresholds will trigger alternative (and slower) work-permit routes, potentially delaying assignments. Companies should audit existing German employment contracts for internationally hired staff to ensure continued compliance—especially when promotions or internal transfers reset remuneration packages. Legal advisers note that the salary benchmarks are pegged to the pension-insurance contribution ceiling and will be updated again in January 2027. Multinationals planning large recruitment drives should therefore include an escalation clause in offer letters to accommodate future threshold rises.
