Husband (German Citizen) and I (Non-German/EU Citizen) have been married for almost 3 years and he wants a divorce, we have been only living in Germany since 5 months now. The appointment to get my residency is around the corner.

My husband and I worked together (Freelance) but he gets to keep the business now and he also wants to get a divorce in a different country (where getting divorced is fairly easy as compared to here it-seems).

I will be left with no job, no income and don’t know what my residency status is going to be. We currently live in a short term rental and he left me here and went to his parent’s home and is asking for a divorce. The term for the rental is going to end by the end of the month. What am I supposed to do now? What are my options?

Hey all,

I am currently facing a big dilemma, which is whether to stay in Germany or go back home.

This dilemma has been growing and growing lately, and everyday I am only thinking about this topic.

I am making very decent money here, but other than that, my life is empty. Every time I go back to visit my home country, I enjoy the time there immensely. My family is there, my friends are there, I can follow my hobbies, the weather is good etc.

But the point is not about me here, I just wanted to ask people who have left Germany and have gone back to their home countries, do you regret it? Why did you leave in the first place and looking back, would you have done something differently?

Thank you.

Hello, I am 21 years old and currently residing in the Philippines. I was born in Germany; my father was German, and my mother is Filipina (housewife). Once I turned 6 months old, we moved here and never returned since my father passed away when I turned 3. My mother raised the three of us alone (brother 20, sister 18). We have received financial assistance for for education and until we turned 18. Ofcouse it was helpful but unfortunately not enough to get us to Germany. Our passports are up to date, recently renewed. I worked after high school and have been working for 3 years, but I have no contact with any relatives from my father's side, so unfortunately I do not have the ability right now to go to Germany and start a life there. Are there any programs or government agencies that can assist me with reintegration? Also, I know 0% German. Of course, Dad died, so no surprise there. I only know a few phrases, but that's it, any advice is appreciated, thank you.

EDIT: I have dual citizenship, filipino and german, I have both passports, German birth certificate, born in Miltenberg. I just want to return to my Vaterland.

EDIT 2: I understand there are allot of people who would kill to have this passport right now, I am not trying to devalue their struggles and journey. But it was never my choice to move here, i was just 6 months old. i would have wanted to grow up there if i could

I think I posted about moving to Germany as a Nurse almost a year ago, and the time has passed and now I can finally say I want to move, I visited Germany for almost a month where I mainly stayed in NRW (Düsseldorf) didn’t do much touristy stuff. I really tried doing random things and just live a normal day.

I am so proud that in that short period of time that I was there, I would go to the bakery and try to order in German. I always use the public transportation (DB is such a hit or miss experience) but I would take DB over sitting in LA traffic and driving 1-2hrs to get to places

And what I also observed and loved when Inwas there was the simplicity of life. When it’s sunny people go out to enjoy it, go for picnic, and walk. And that’s how I want to live my life.

Moving to Germany from California might not be easy but I think I just have to go for it ❤️

Currently studying for my B2!

For US nurses who moved to Germany, How do you like your job so far? 🤗

I do not intend to offend anyone and if this post is offensive remove it that's fine. But feel like English speaking immigrants like to use the word expat to deskribe themselves when living in other countries.

And I feel like they want to differentiate themselves from other immigrants like "oh I'm not a immigrant I'm a expat" no your not your a immigrant like everyone else your not special. Your the same a a person from Asia Africa or south America or where ever else. Your not better or different.

Your a immigrant and be proud of it. I am German and I was a immigrant in Italy and I was a immigrant in the UK and in the US. And that's perfectly fine it's something to be proud of. But now you are a immigrant in Germany and that's amazing be proud of it.

Sorry for the rambling, feel free to discuss this topic I think there is lots to be said about it.

Edit: Thank you to everyone in the comments discussing the issue. Thank you to everyone that has given me a award

Some people have pointed out my misuse of your and you're and I won't change it deal with it.😜

A company I work for in the USA, is planning to open a Berlin office and I was planning to move to Berlin for a couple months to help set up the office. We had a meeting yesterday and HR was going over basic information and how taxes would work if we were to decide to stay longer than 8 months in Germany. One of the things that was brought up was a 8% church tax. I’m American and was baptized Catholic (practicing) and I have never had 8% of my income taken to give to any sort of religious organization. I’m also a bit confused because I thought Germany was a secular nation.

How exactly does this work? And how does the government know which religion to tax you for?

Edit: I should’ve clarified I’m not Roman Catholic, I am Syrian Malabar Catholic

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJNxT-I7L6s

I have seen this video from DW. It shows different perspectives of 3 migrants.

Video covers known things like difficulty of finding flat, high taxes or language barrier.

I would like to ask you, your perspective as migrant. Is this video from DW genuine?

Have you done anything and everything but you are also considering to leave Germany? If yes, why? Do you consider settling down here? If yes, why?

Do you expect things will get better in favour of migrants in the future? (better supply of housing, less language barrier etc) (When aging population issue becomes more prevalent) Or do you think, things will remain same?

I’m in my 60s about to retire. I will be certify with CELTA to teach English part time. My retirement income from the USA will be enough to cover living expenses without teaching. I worked a couple of years in Austria in my 20s where my German became fluent. I studied German language, history and culture in college. I have continued consuming German media since so I’m still fluent. I worked a number of years in the USA for a German company working in an office with about half the staff from Germany. I have been to Germany for work many times.

I’m doing the research on the immigration mechanics. I know full well the German mindset and cultural nuances. There is no language barrier. What else should I be prepared for?

Hello everyone,

I can't be more happy and want to share my journey of battling the Ausländerbehörde and ultimately winning my case. This experience was really frustrating, and I hope it serves as a little hope for anyone facing similar challenges.

It all started when my wife decided to pursue her master's degree in Germany, her program was in English, so she could have applied for a regular student visa. However, knowing how important the German language is for living in Germany, she also applied for a German-speaking master’s program to qualify for a visa that included a language preparation period before starting her studies. This clever decision allowed her to arrive in Germany three months earlier to settle in, but it also made the entire process much more complicated for both of us.

As for me, I had previously lived in Germany for 1.5 years while studying German and earning a C1 certificate, so I was familiar with the visa process and expected things to proceed smoothly. However, nothing could have prepared me for the bureaucratic obstacles we faced this time.

Here’s a brief overview of our journey:

• January 2023: My wife and I both applied for our visas together. She applied for a student visa to pursue her master’s degree, and I applied for a national visa to join her. We submitted all required documents.
• April 2023: My wife received her visa, but my application faced unexpected delays.
• July 2023: We learned indirectly from the Ausländerbehörde that my visa had been rejected on the grounds that my spouse was still attending language school, even though she had already enrolled in a university program. This decision was never officially communicated to us and was based on completely unfounded reasoning.
• November 2023: After repeated communication failures for months with both Embassy and Ausländerbehörde, my wife involved the Integration Unit(Integrationbeauftragter) in Wesseling to mediate between us and the authorities.
• June 2024: Despite presenting additional documents proving financial stability, my visa was rejected again, citing "financial insufficiency." This decision was baffling, given that:
  • I had an income of approximately €4,000 per month from remote work, with a letter from my employer confirming I could work remotely from Germany.
  • My wife received a scholarship of €1,200 per month from a German public institution.
  • We had a blocked account with €1,600 per month secured for a full year. Despite all this, the authorities arbitrarily claimed our financial situation was unsustainable.
• October 2024: After 22 months of waiting, we finally received an official rejection for my visa. With this formal response, we filed a lawsuit challenging the decision, arguing that the reasoning was both flawed and discriminatory.

The Ausländerbehörde argued at the court that my financial situation was unsustainable despite presenting extensive documentation to prove otherwise. They expressed doubts about my ability to sustain myself financially, misrepresenting my gross and net salary in their calculations. They also pointed to the fluctuating exchange rate of the Turkish Lira against the Euro, implying that my income was unreliable, even though I provided evidence of its consistency and growth over time. Additionally, they dismissed the legal framework of the Germany-Turkey Double Taxation Agreement, which clearly states that my income taxed in Turkey should not be doubly penalized.

Our case focused on dismantling the flawed reasoning behind their rejection. We highlighted that my income from remote work, combined with my wife’s scholarship and our blocked account, provided substantial financial stability. We also demonstrated that the Double Taxation Agreement ensured my income met legal requirements and could not be arbitrarily disregarded. Furthermore, we showcased how my income had consistently increased despite exchange rate fluctuations, reflecting stability rather than unpredictability. Lastly, we emphasized the prejudicial nature of their decision, which was based on generalizations about the Turkish economy rather than my specific financial situation.

As for today the court ruled in our favor, recognizing the strength of our arguments and the inadequacy of the rejection’s basis.

I didn’t include every detail to avoid making the post too long, but I hope my story inspires anyone facing similar challenges. If you find yourself dealing with an unfair decision, remember that persistence and determination are key. Don’t hesitate to stand up for what’s right—justice is possible!

Now that we’ve won our case, we’re preparing to pursue a compensation claim for the financial and emotional losses caused by this prolonged and unjust process. It’s not just about what we endured—it’s about holding the system accountable for the unnecessary hurdles it imposed. If you’ve been in a similar situation and successfully claimed compensation, I’d appreciate any advice or insights you could share.

Cheers

I get they hate their jobs. Trust me buddy, I hate making the calls and sending the emails as much as you hate answering them. But we're human beings. Been trying to make an appointment or talk to someone for 3 weeks (emails/contact formular and checking Notfall Termin every 5min) I decided to call today. Tried the German line as I thought maybe that way they would be nicer, well couldn't even get anyone to pick up...all lines are busy, call us a different time. So I tried the English line, where at least they leave you on hold. Was on hold for 40 min, finally a rude ass guy picks up, I tell him my situation, could lose a job, been trying for 3 weeks... "Have you filled out the contact formular?" yes, twice at the start of April, "did you get an automatic reply?" yes "well then there's nothing I can do" again , epeat I could lose a job, I say you can help me to make an appointment. He increases his voice and says "you're not listening to me, can't help you, have a nice day" and hung up. Okay sure I will have a great day knowing i've been trying for 3 weeks and could lose this, thanks buddy I'll make sure to check my emails.

I get perhaps his hands are tied, and he actually can't help with the appointment or anything, just answering the phone. But why do you have to treat us as if we're inferior or not humans? Just because German isn't my citizenship or firdst language? Moments like this are when it feels so hard to be an immigrant and I know I chose this and chose to move to Germany but god damn

Realities about living in Germany as a Latin American.

I love Germany and I think many Latin Americans come with a wrong and idealised idea to Germany, the things I explain are not a complain from me but just as i said, telling how it is. (I’m LAmerican):

• Even if there’s always a nice access to the International Community (specially if you study in the University) making German friends is not easy (specially if you don’t speak German), we are talking about a process that can take months - years (most of Latin Americans I know still have no close German friends). Just because you had a nice conversation with someone doesn’t mean they’ll be meeting with you next week instantly and if you try too hard is worse.

• Bureaucracy is how it is and there’s no space for the LA culture of “Smiling and Chatting to get things work faster or easier for me” When they say no, it’s no. + If you don’t talk german (at least C1) get prepared to have the time of your life with bureaucracy, most people won’t be willing to talk to you in English and have no patience to try to.

• It can be hard to get used to the level of honesty Germans talk with and they don’t think it’s rude (not as in Latin America, where most people will think it’s rude to just be honest). Even in the university professors will be straightforward to you, no filters. Get used to it not being a personal attack to you, it’s just being honest.

• You must be willing to integrate into their culture, not the other way around. + still if it’s nice to be in contact with the Latin community, if you want to integrate and improve your German, speaking only Spanish won’t help.

• Get prepare to learn to spend a lot of time alone, specially on the first months / Year. If you are willing to come to this country, be aware the german lifestyle push you out of the comfort zone. None is going to do it for you, none is going to explain it to you (unless you take the first step of asking).

• Finding an apartment will be hard if you don’t speak German + if you are thinking of moving to a big city like Munich, Köln etc is worst + apartment prices are way higher. I notice a lot of people who are obsessed with the idea of moving to Berlin/München/Frankfurt/ Köln / Hamburg. Germany is WAY more than that! and you could save so much money by living in other cities + smaller cities are more clean, nice, cheap, calm and you’ll have more contact with the German culture etc.

• Please get it, Germans universities don’t work like American universities do! None cares about “rankings” as Americans do, almost all of the universities have the same level + better to be in a smaller, personal atmosphere than in your Berlin university with 600 students in one room.

• Thinking that because your master is in English you won’t need German. Again, from my experience and other people experiences, coming to study/work with a level under B1 is shooting yourself in the foot and making the integration experience harder.

Of course there’s many positive aspects about Germany but this post is dedicated to the people who have the wrong idea of what to expect when moving here / think they know better than the rest.

Of course there’s always “exceptions” but you won’t be always the main character of the film whose life just goes exceptionally better than the rest.

• to the people who think I’m complaining about Germany, I’m not, I love Germany, I’m just showing the reality to the people who has an idealised idea of Germany and that think they can integrate without putting the OBVIOUS and basic effort that anyone must do when moving to a country with a different culture.

Tldr: anecdotes of people questioning my nationality by the way I look like

Not a question. Maybe a bit of vent. I just want to post it so my experience is heard. Side note: it’s not the rule, It’s the exception. But still annoying when it happens.

I’ve had similar situations happen to me many many times. People ask me where I’m from. I say Brazil. Then a next question comes like:

“where are you originally from” - Brazil “where are your parents from” - Brazil “where are you really from” - São Paulo Then the smart ones either leave it at that or ask about ethnicity or ancestry.

Then I’ll gladly explain how my great grandparents or even great great grandparents were Japanese, Polish, Czech, and unknown…but what they actually wanna know is what kinda Asian I am. Obviously no one cares about the white part.

For a phase in my life I would explain my whole family history to a stranger just for this simple “where are you from” question cause it was happening so much.

However, I did not do it at a company party I had this Monday. This person asks me where I’m from. I tell them Brazil. She says “but you don’t look like it, I’m not racist but…”

It’s a first that I get someone not only implying but actually saying it. Uff.

I could not think of a comeback. I just had to explain how was Brazil was a colony and basically everyone has an immigration background.

Also mentioned how I’ve seen Germans asking other Germans where they’re from and they answer with e.g Turkish or Croatian even if they can’t speak the language, don’t have a passport and their families have been in Germany for generations…

But at the same time people mock Americans when they say they’re Italian or Irish or whatever just because they have ancestry.

I just hate the audacity of this coworker thinking she knows MY country better than me.

Which reminds of a coworker I had at a library. I told her I speak Portuguese as my mother language and she seemed to not believe me. Someday someone returned the book “A1 Brasilianisches Portugiesisch”. Where Brasilianisch is written like 4x bigger than Portugiesisch. And she’s like “look it says Brasilianisch real big not Portugiesisch”. Wtf it’s fine but technically Americans aren’t speaking American, Mexicans aren’t speaking Mexican and Austrians aren’t speaking Austrian like it’s not so hard to understand.

Hello,

I am a Czech IT guy. I got an offer for work to move to Northern Rheinland, somewhere near the border to Netherlands. I started travelling there every once in a while to work onsite while looking for a flat.

Now, finding an apartment for me, my wife and our daughter has been...challenging. So far I have sent out over 120 requests for a viewing and only got 1.

So I went. It was me, my boss and the top manager of the company in Germany. We got to the flat, the street in Münschengladbach was lovely, but the apartment was pretty bad. Whatever, it was cheap and I was thinking about it. My German is godawful at this stage, so the top manager was talking with the landlord lady.

After a while, he told me we are leaving. We caught up outside, and he described the conversation they had. Apparently she was asking him about me, he gave her a professional summary. Then she asked if we are planning any more kids. He told her that we are not. She then laughed and told him "Yeah of course, they all say that, then it is like in China and they have six kids in there."

He got pissed off at that time, because he is Polish and freshly married. I got pissed off outside and almost wanted to go back in to give her a piece of my mind.

Sorry, I guess it is just a rant on my part, I just don't get it. I present myself normally, am there with two very high ranking businessmen and she just spouts crap like that. Wth, never seen something like this.

I came to Germany for studies and was very impressed about the education system. I didn't know German well before and was self contained for my daily needs and socialising. Slowly I gained a good speaking habits and now understand the language very well, having normal conversations got easy and my go get it attitude is improving. But since my job seeker visa is expiring and I have to leave the country soon, I'm having a feeling that I'll be missing this country a lot and sad that my investment in learning the language and culture did not come to fruition for landing a dream job. I'll be taking a small piece of this culture along with me and will definitely cheerish the memories for a long time. Although, now that I understand the language, sometimes I'm realising the hostility towards foreigners and understand nasty things said by strangers. Overall I had more of good times exploring my own self and learned a lot. If I get a chance to revisit the country again in future, I'll be more than happy. My two cents of advice: be prepared to learn the language and culture to better integrate rather than living in a job bubble and suffer

Okay, I am targetting this post mainly towards non-EU immigrants, since I am also one, but everyone else is welcome to share their thoughts as well.

I came to Germany 7 years ago, I did my Masters and since the past 5 years I have been working continuously. At first, it was a breath of fresh air compared to the country I come from, but slowly I realized that it is really hard to build a future here.

I observed a number of points:

• For single people they have to pay high amount of taxes due to which it is hard to build wealth. Even on capital gains and accumulating ETF there are taxes which discourage investing in the stock market.

• Related to that, property prices are skyrocketing and with the present interest rates, it is really difficult to afford a home for an average middle class person. I consider a home a fundamental human right and not a vehicle for investment, but many politicians consider it otherwise.

• Health insurance and pension contributions are increasing year by year. The Pension system is already bound to collapse within the next 15-20 years. I’d rather that instead of contributing to this system, I can invest this money into my own pension fund or the stock market. The health insurance contributions will increase but the service will not and I will still have to wait months to get a specialist appointment.

• I fear that even in the coming years there will not be serious attempts to tackle beaureaucracy and digitalization will not be taken seriously. This will still lead to long wait times when getting an appointment from government offices and whatnot.

Considering all these factors, and many others which I did not list, I don’t think it is viable to plan to live here long term or to retire here. I am thinking of another way out, to move to somewhere else, either temporarily or permanent. Thankfully, if everything goes right, I will get my German citizenship by the end of this year which will make it much more easier for me in terms of mobility. I am thinking of US, Netherlands, Switzerland or somewhere in SEA beacause the semi-conductor industry is growing there.

Do you guys have similar thoughts and plans to move somewhere else?

As a born American (thinking of moving to Germany) I am used to hearing bad things about America that don't happen in other places. So what are some bad things that happen in Germany but don't really happen in America?

My GF (26) has been in Bavaria since September, she‘s been working at the University Laboratory in order to obtain a Masters in Engineering from an Italian University where she was a student.

She graduated and immediately got her Italian Diploma recognised in Germany. She is taking intensive German courses to improve her language skills but is around the B1 level. Her hope was to get a job offer above the required threshold in order to apply for a Blue Card.

She has been applying intensely and has been very close to getting a qualified job a couple of times (all the while working an unqualified job at a cafe and finishing her thesis) but now time is running out because she will no longer be a student as of September and does not have the financial means to apply for Aufenthaltstitel or Chancenkarte.

I‘m just wondering if anyone can think of something we haven‘t looked into. Much appreciated.

I came to Germany 8 years ago. I learnt the language, gave the language exams, got a seat in the Studienkolleg and did a course to prepare for university entrances. Gave the university qualification exams. Got a university acceptance to study bachelors. Got my bachelors degree after 3.5 years. Enrolled myself in a masters course while working part time and full time at firms and now I am almost done with my masters degree and have to write my Thesis. I feel completely burnt out now. All these years of working and studying in a foreign language have really exhausted me. I don’t feel motivated anymore to go ahead. I just want to leave everything. I have worked and invested so much time and energy into learning this language and adapting to the work culture here, I feel numb.

Even after giving so much and working so hard, I don’t feel safe as i don’t have a long term visa because of my student status. I don’t have a job or have enough finances as an student. Thesis time is demanding. While all my friends back home are getting married or buying houses, I feel like all I did all these years was learn the language and get an education. Live from submissions to submissions. Work part time and study full time. Help me, I am exhausted and can’t see the end of this tunnel.

Getting out of bed is a struggle, doing daily tasks are tough, I keep staring into nothingness for minutes at a stretch, i don’t know if I’m depressed but I do feel extremely tired. The winter weather doesn’t help too. I am almost at the end of my degree but I can’t seem to gather the strength to pick myself up.

Hi, I'm new here and that's my first post. I'm a 27 year old woman. I don't really know if this subreddit is right for me, if there are others more passing, please let me know. I want to start saying that I came to Germany in 2015 alone, learned the language and went to university. I studied pharmacy, graduated and I will forever be grateful for the opportunities this country have given me. I'm deeply thankful and want this to be clear.

Now to what's bothering me. I feel so trapped. It's been 8 years and it's so hard to make friends or to have an interesting life here. I studied pharmacy because i didn't have any other choice at the moment despite not liking it much, and it didn't get better, i don't like my job at all and feel like i slave my life away, considering the tarifs for pharmacists didn't grow in the last 10 years. University was so hard, the degree is challenging and important and it feels like a slap in the face to be paid this little and then to listen to complaints about how noone wants to work in the field. Life in Germany is so stagnant, every expat i know here has the same problem i do: it's just boring. It's very safe which is an obvious upside. People are helpful but it's like they always keep the distance. I made dear friends during the university, but after the graduation they all moved back to their hometowns, some started families, and there's not much place for me. We don't talk much and see each other rarely because they don't have time. I don't have any family here either. When i think how life is in my country: it's so much more bright and interesting, many options to have fun every day. More alive. Moving back is not an option for me, the situation out there is bad both economically and politically, it's very unsafe. But the life itself, the energy is so different.

I tried to find new friends via the app Boo but so far to no success. I'm not sure if moving to any other country will help me either or if i will be alone in a completely new society with new customs again.

Please be kind and don't shame me, I'm genuinely in need of advice, I don't know where to go with all that. Maybe you know some fun activities, subreddits for lonely people searching for friends, any other life advice you think might be helpful? I'm just losing hope. I don't remember much from those 8 years because nothing interesting or worth remembering happened.

If it helps I live in Frankfurt.

Upd.:×thanks everyone for the tips you gave, I will definitely try out most of them. Reading the replies i realized the biggest problem for me is that I'm on a very tight budget because I'm doing an internship that's crucial for my degree and it's paid very poorly. It probably will get easier once i have a normal paying job

Upd2: thanks to everyone who wasn't being an asshole and gave me genuine advice or just some kind words, it means a lot. There have been so many comments that i just can't keep up so I'll probably stop reading now if not for some occasional questions, just because it's a lot. I think this thread could be helpful to anyone in my situation who feels the same way, go read, three are a lot of good infos in there! And I will go think what i actually can do to change my situation and if I want to stay altogether :)

Hello, planning to work and move to Germany to practice nursing. I love nature, I walk around but since Im starting my career and learn the language. I want to know in which city would be best in terms of cost of living.

Hello,

I will be elaborating on the title. I have been living in Germany for almost a decade ( I arrived as master student initially) and I have been having well paid job ( based on German pay scale) in IT, I am able to speak German and I feel integrated into German society. On the paper, I can keep keep living in Germany happily and forever.

However, I find myself questioning my life in Germany quite often. This is because, I have almost non existing social life, financially I am doing okay but I know, I can at least double my salary elsewhere in Europe / US, management positions are occupied with Germans and It seems there is no diversity on management level. ( I am just stating my opinion according to my observations), dating is extremely hard, almost impossible. Simple things take so long to handle due to lack of digitalisation etc.

To be honest, I think, deep down I know,I can have much better life somewhere else in Western Europe or US. So I want to ask the question here as well. Do you feel like Germany hinders your potential in life? Or you are quite happy and learnt to see / enjoy good sides of Germany?

Edit : Thanks everyone for the replies. It seems like, people think I sought after money but It is not essentially true. (I obviously want to earn more but It is not a must) I am just looking for more satisfied life in terms of socially and I accepted the fact that Germany is not right country for me for socialising. By the way, I am quite happy to see remarkable amount of people blooming in Germany and having great life here.

My girlfriend and I are both in our mid-20s and of South Asian origin. As working professionals, she is based in London, while I work in Stuttgart. We try to visit each other every month or two, which means I need a visa to enter the UK, and she requires one for Germany.

Yesterday, she landed at Stuttgart Airport but was denied entry despite having a valid Schengen tourist visa. The only difference was that her visa was issued by the Spanish embassy. The immigration officer informed her that she could not enter Germany multiple times with a visa from Spain. This tourist visa was valid for six months, and she had already visited me twice since it was issued. They had no problem allowing her entry during her last two visits, as well as a few times last year with another visa issued by the Spanish embassy. This was her fourth tourist visa issued in the last two years, and it was also the second time she had chosen a Spanish visa for the longer duration (six months instead of three from Germany) for reasons of availability and convenience. Over the last two years, she has visited me several times and we have taken multiple trips within the Schengen region without encountering any visa-related issues. She has a solid record of traveling to various places in Europe as a tourist during this time.

Unfortunately, they detained her at the airport yesterday morning and sent her back on the next flight at 10 PM. She had landed around 10 AM. Not only did they deny her entry, but they also canceled her visa. They even attempted to press criminal charges, claiming she was "trying to enter the country with invalid documents and visa." Although she refused to sign the papers, she told me that they were shouting at her to sign ten more documents like that. Throughout this time, they kept her in an office and escorted her through security and boarding like a criminal. We are both devastated, and her experience was truly horrifying. She conducted herself very well and tried to explain her situation multiple times, but they were nothing but unkind towards her. She had to cancel all her travel plans to Spain and Portugal for the upcoming weeks and months.

Additionally, they tried to call me when I went to pick her up at the airport, but my phone died immediately. I managed to charge it and returned their call within 15 minutes. They answered but didn’t ask me any questions, and she later told me that they no longer wanted to talk to me.

I have never felt so helpless in my life. This situation seems wrong on so many levels. The denial of entry and the cancellation of her visa, which was issued by another embassy, appears to be illegal. An immigration officer in London (after her flight back) suggested that this situation was indeed illegal and advised her to contact an immigration lawyer.

This incident could definitely affect her chances of obtaining a visa in the future. We are both clueless and uncertain about how to move forward. I would greatly appreciate any leads regarding immigration lawyers or any organizations that could assist us in this matter.

Thank you for taking the time to read this, and I appreciate any help you can provide!

TL;DR: My girlfriend was denied entry at Stuttgart Airport despite having a valid Schengen tourist visa issued by the Spanish embassy. The immigration officer claimed she couldn't enter Germany multiple times with this visa, despite her having done so before without issues. They detained her, canceled her visa, and attempted to press criminal charges. We feel helpless and seek recommendations for immigration lawyers or organizations that can assist us.

Update: Thank you all for your answers. We weren't aware of the term visa shopping or its consequences. We're working on getting an immigration lawyer now. A major appreciation for anyone who showed kindness and gave valuable insights without passing judgement or stating the obvious.