Founder coaching for internationals
Start your business in Germany, with the funding you already paid for.
Free 1:1 founder coaching in English, paid through an AVGSAktivierungs- und Vermittlungsgutschein: the voucher that pays for your coaching, with a founder who has done it himself.
Online · in English or German · max. 2 new founders a month
Before you hesitate
It's insurance you paid into.
Insurance, not welfare
Arbeitslosengeldunemployment benefit, paid from the insurance you contributed to is unemployment insurance. You paid into it with every salary. Claiming it is not charity; it is your contract.
Normal and expected
Asking the Arbeitsagenturthe employment agency for founder coaching is a routine request with a form behind it. The voucher exists for exactly this. You are not asking for a favour.
In English, online
The coaching is live, 1:1 and in English, from wherever you are in Germany. We go through German letters and forms together.
Who it's for
For people who want to build something, full-time.
The voucher and the grant are tied to unemployment insurance, so the fit depends on your situation more than on your idea.
This is for you if
- You went to university and you are an international living in Germany.
- You are employed with notice, your contract is ending, or you are already unemployed.
- You have at least 12 months of insured work in Germany within the last 30 months.
- You have a business idea, or a skill you want to sell, and you want to do it full-time.
This is not for you if
- You want a side business next to a job.
- You hold a Chancenkartethe opportunity card for job-seekers from outside the EU: it comes without the benefit the voucher needs.
- You do not have the right to work in Germany.
- You are already self-employed. The coaching comes before you start.
What you walk away with
A plan that holds up, and a business that's set up.
- A validated idea. Tested in real conversations with the people who would pay for it.
- A business plan and a financial model that hold up in the expert review for the Gründungszuschussthe start-up grant: your unemployment benefit plus €300 a month while you launch.
- The grant application prepared with you, step by step, before you start the business.
- Your German admin set up: tax office registration, health insurance, invoicing.
- A 90-day plan to your first customers.
The grant is discretionary; your caseworker decides.
How it works
Four stages, one launch.
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Today
Fit Call
Twenty minutes: your situation, your timing, the next step.
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Weeks 1–3
Voucher
You ask the Arbeitsagentur; we prepare the conversation with you.
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About 12 weeks
The program
Validation, business plan, financial model, admin set up.
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Launch
Your business
Grant application submitted, first customers in sight.
Meet Alex
A founder who used this funding himself.
Alexander Hecking worked in Canada, studied marketing and finance in the Netherlands and spent a semester in Singapore. Then he settled in Germany. He was an early employee at an Insurtech that built its own BaFin-licensed insurer, later acquired by Allianz, where he ran operations and marketing.
When he started his own business in Germany, he used founder coaching himself. After the grant came through, he kept his coach for a monthly accountability session for another year. They are still in touch.
Founder stories
How this is funded
The Arbeitsagentur pays. You pay nothing.
The Arbeitsagentur pays an AZAV-certified partner provider directly through your voucher. You pay nothing, and nothing is for sale during the coaching. It is the unemployment insurance you paid into, used for what it is for.
After the program, monthly accountability sessions are an optional paid extra; nobody needs them to finish.
Questions
The questions everyone asks first.
Does the coaching really cost nothing?
Yes, if the Arbeitsagentur approves a voucher. It pays the AZAV-certified partner provider directly. You never see an invoice.
Do I need to speak German?
No. The coaching is in English, or in German if you prefer. Some forms are in German; we go through them together.
Is claiming unemployment benefit the same as welfare?
No. Arbeitslosengeldunemployment benefit is insurance you paid into through your salary. Using it for founder coaching is one of the things it is for.
Can I get this while I am still employed?
Only if your job is ending: notice received or a contract that runs out. Register as job-seeking first, then ask for the voucher.
What if I quit to start my business?
Usually a Sperrzeita block of up to 12 weeks without unemployment benefit and less benefit overall. Read the quit-or-wait guide → before you decide.
Am I guaranteed the Gründungszuschuss?
No. The grant is discretionary; your caseworker decides. A plan that holds up in the expert review improves your chances.
How long does it take?
About 12 weeks of coaching once the voucher is approved. The approval itself can take a few weeks.
I am on a Blue Card. Can I do this?
Possibly, but self-employment may need permission from the Ausländerbehördethe foreigners' office first. Ask them or an immigration lawyer before you plan around it.
How many hours of coaching do I get?
The Arbeitsagentur decides for each voucher, in units of 45 minutes. The Hours Guide → gives you a starting point and a sentence to justify it.
Who delivers the coaching?
Alex coaches you. The voucher is redeemed with an AZAV-certified partner provider, whose name you will find on the offer you hand to the Arbeitsagentur.
Two minutes tell you where you stand.
Five questions, no email needed. You get one of three answers: Good fit, Act now or Not yet, and the next step for each.