General Visa Question (Freelance/Artist)

I would think a conductor would be seen as a performing artist. The main concern will be that one manages a steady income to be able to pay their expenses – and to properly report all of their world-wide income and pay taxes and social security contributions. I don’t know that it matters if the work is done outside of the country as far as being allowed but this can mean that they might not be eligible for financial assistance in the future if they can’t work. But this is something the government wants to avoid, that one will need any assistance.

I personally came to Germany as a free-lance performer but I married a German and mostly work in Germany, so my situation is a bit different. But I have a good performer friend who also comes from the States, is not married and got allowance to live and work in Germany and now has a settlement permit, the highest form of unlimited residency. He works almost exclusively on cruise-ships outside of Germany. This was not a problem as far as his permission but I think he is not qualified to get some of the Corona help programs that have been made.

But the bottom line is that local officials have the final say about granting a permit. It can be that a particular official in Berlin rejects one’s permit while one in say Hannover might have approved it. Thus any such questions are best posed to the officials directly rather than assuming someone else’s experience might prove to be the same.

If it works out for you, you need to get informed about  about the Künstlersozialkasse or KSK. All professional performers are required to join. One pays them a bit over 15% of the yearly net earnings and they then match this amount and pay for the health insurance, public retirement insurance and disability insurance.

Thank you so much for your advice!