On January 1, 2026, Section 45c of the Residence Act became effective. Employers must now inform their skilled workers from third countries about the free advisory service from “Fair Integration” on employment and social law issues.
This notification must be given no later than the first day of work, and it must include the contact details of the advisory center nearest to the workplace.
For this purpose, Fair Integration has created a leaflet for employers in German and information for employees in various languages, including German, English, Arabic, Turkish, Ukrainian and Russian.
Employers hiring a third-country national skilled worker after January 1, 2026 should download the information leaflet for employees in the appropriate language from the Fair Integration website, tick the advisory location that is closest to the company on the list, and give the leaflet to the new employee, who can confirm notice with their signature.
If the foreign skilled worker was recruited through a placement agency, this requirement does not apply to the employer, but to the agency.
Fair Integration is a nationwide, free, multilingual advisory service for third-country nationals. The advisory service is aimed both at third-country nationals who are already in Germany and third-country nationals abroad who would like to work in Germany.
Topics for advice may include, among others:
- employment contract
- wage, minimum wage
- working hours, vacation, sick leave
- warnings, termination
- temporary work, seasonal work
- social security (health, pension, accident insurance, etc.)
- rights and obligations of employees and employers.
Erickson Insights & Analysis
Erickson Immigration Group will continue monitoring developments and sharing updates as more news is available. Please contact your employer or EIG attorney if you have questions about anything we’re reporting above or if you have case-specific questions.