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Nitin Singh
Nitin Singh

Posted on • Originally published at qarera.com

A free, embeddable points calculator for Germany's Chancenkarte visa

#opensource #germany #career #javascript

Germany's Opportunity Card (Chancenkarte) is a job-seeker visa that lets you move to Germany for up to a year to look for work, without a job offer. Eligibility runs on a points system defined in §20a AufenthG: you need a recognised qualification, basic language skills, and 6 points from criteria like language level, experience, and age.

The rules aren't complicated, but they're annoying to check by hand — points for German stack differently than English, A1 counts for the entry requirement but earns nothing, full recognition of your degree skips the whole system. So we built a calculator. This post is mostly for people who run blogs or resource pages about moving to Germany, because you can have it on your own site for free.

The embed

Paste this anywhere HTML works (WordPress custom HTML block, Ghost, plain sites):

<iframe src="https://www.qarera.com/embed/chancenkarte-calculator"
  width="100%" height="880" style="border:0;border-radius:12px"
  title="Germany Chancenkarte Points Calculator" loading="lazy"></iframe>
<p>Free calculator by <a href="https://www.qarera.com/guides/germany-opportunity-card">Qarera — Germany Opportunity Card (Chancenkarte) guide</a></p>
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

That's the whole deal: keep the credit line, and you get a calculator that stays current. The blocked-account amount (€1,091/month in 2026) changes every January and the shortage-occupation list moves too — we update the hosted version, so your page never quietly goes stale.

It's also open source

If you'd rather self-host or check the scoring logic, the whole thing is one HTML file plus a small scoring module, MIT-licensed:

The scoring function runs in Node and the browser, and there's a small test file covering the edge cases (the A1 rule, the prerequisite gates, the 16-point maximum). Point values were cross-checked in July 2026 against make-it-in-germany.com and handbookgermany.de. If the law changes and we're slow, open an issue.

The points, in short

You need 6, after meeting two prerequisites (a degree or 2-year vocational training, plus German A1 or English B2):

  • Partial recognition of your qualification: 4
  • German A2 / B1 / B2+: 1 / 2 / 3
  • English C1+: 1
  • Experience, 2+ years in last 5 / 5+ in last 7: 2 / 3
  • Age under 35 / 35–40: 2 / 1
  • Prior 6-month stay in Germany, shortage occupation, qualifying spouse: 1 each

Full recognition of your qualification in Germany skips the points entirely — you qualify as a skilled worker.

The full guide covers the rest: proof of funds, the application steps, and what to do after you land.

We build free job-search tools at Qarera — resume builder, ATS checker, job matching. The calculator is part of our Germany Opportunity Card guide.

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