Abstract: A method of processing an optical fiber for coupling an external optical signal. The optical fiber has a longitudinal axis, an optical core, and an optical cladding. The method includes processing the optical cladding with a laser beam at a coupling point of the optical fiber along the longitudinal axis between a start and an end region. During the processing, an effective axis of the laser beam is arranged skew with respect to the longitudinal axis of the optical fiber so that the optical cladding is processed via an edge region of the laser beam, and the effective axis of the laser beam is guided along a movement axis which is parallel to or substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of the optical fiber.