How to do ‘Anmeldung’ in English

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Have you just arrived in Germany? Welcome! Perhaps you’re temporarily staying in a sublet. Or you have already moved into your own apartment?

In either case, you must do your Anmeldung (registration).

This means that you must register in Germany within 1-2 weeks of your arrival. In this article we explain to you step by step how to register in English once you’ve moved to Germany…

Do your Anmeldung in English if you want to register in Berlin, Bremen, Cologne, Dortmund, Dresden, Dusseldorf, Frankfurt a.M., Hamburg, Leipzig, Munich, Nuremberg or Stuttgart.

Just fill out our English registration form online and do your Anmeldung today!

#1 Do I need to register (anmelden) in Germany?

Yes, everyone who moves to Germany to live, work or study must register.

So if you want to reside in Germany for more than three months, you must register.

You also have to register, if you do an internship. For signing any kind of contract, you must provide a registration confirmation. So to open a bank account in Germany, you also need to register.

You do not have to do your Anmeldung in Germany, if you are a tourist and visit Germany for a holiday.

#2 When do I have to do my ‘Anmeldung’ in Germany?

In Berlin you have 2 weeks to take care of your Anmeldung / registration after you’ve moved into your residence.

In most other cities, you officially only have one week to register your new address in Germany.

You have to pay a fine, if you miss this date. This is at least what the official website says.

However, I have not heard of anyone having to pay a fine…

At least not, if you can prove that you have made an effort to make an appointment at the registration office within 1 or 2 weeks.

Especially in cities like Berlin or Munich, the registration offices are often booked out.

As such, make sure you get an appointment as quickly as possible.

#3 Do I need to register if I only have a temporary flat or stay in a hostel?

If you are living in a Airbnb room, a hostel or something similar then you don’t need to register.

You must register, if you stay work in Germany or stay longer than 3 months.

So make sure to find a place with a rental agreement as soon as possible.

You can only register once you have a tenancy agreement or your own property in Germany.

#4 Get all documents for your German ‘Anmeldung’

What documents do you need to take for registration in Germany (Anmeldung)?

You need to take the following documents to your appointment at the registration office (Bürgeramt/ Meldeamt):

1. your passport

2. landlord confirmation (Wohnungsgeberbestätigung)

3. filled-in registration form (Anmeldeformular)

4. your visa (only if you have one).

5. marriage certificate, if you have one and your partner registers with you; children’s birth certificates if they register with you (these documents are not obligatory, but they will make sure that you get the correct income tax bracket in Germany, see our section on “tax” for more information!)

6. don’t forget our free German language guide “At the registration office”.

#5 How to do your ‘Anmeldung’ in English

The first step to register in Germany is to fill out the registration form. It only exists in German – but you you can fill it out in English on our website – and it will be automatically translated into German.

Attention! If you don’t want to pay German Church tax, you have to leave the ‘confession’ field blank.

Yes! It is true.

In Germany, the state still collects church tax through your income! If you write down “Protestant”, for example, then roughly 8-9% of your income tax goes to Church activities.

This happens automatically.

For example, if you pay 1000 Euros income tax every month, then you pay an additional 8% of 1000 Euros to church every month, i.e. roughly 80 or 90 Euros per month.

Do you want to register in Stuttgart, Berlin, Bremen, Cologne, Dortmund, Dresden, Dusseldorf, Frankfurt a.M., Hamburg, Leipzig, Munich, Nuremberg? Then you can register online. Just fill out the Anmeldung online.

#6 Where do I register? Can I make an online appointment?

Great, you have got all the documents? The registration form? The landlord confirmation?

What is the next step?

Now take your paperwork to a local registration office (Bürgeramt or Einwohnermeldeamt).

Usually, you must make an appointment at the registration office. In some cities you can even make an online appointment.

If it is urgent, you can just go without an appointment. Be prepared to wait for a long time though!

To find the address of your closest registration office, google “Bürgeramt + ‘your city’”.

Download our FREE guide “Registration Offices in Germany”

In the guide you can find the website links of the registration offices in Cologne, Dortmund, Dresden, Dusseldorf, Frankfurt a.M., Hamburg, Leipzig, Munich, Nuremberg or Stuttgart, Berlin, Bremen.

On the websites you are directly linked to the addresses, opening times and telephone numbers of the registration offices.

#7 At the Registration Office: get your number, see the official, done!

So here is what you do next:

Take the registration form to the registration office, together with your passport, your rental contract/lease/tenancy agreement and visa (if you have one).

If you’re married and your partner lives with you in Germany, bring your marriage certificate and register together with your spouse; if you have children who live with you in Germany, bring their birth certificates and the children to the registration.

Why?

Because this way you will get assigned a different tax income classification (Steuerklasse). Single people have to pay more income tax than people who are married or have children!

Check the opening times of the registration office before you go, if you do not have an appointment!

2 Once you’re at the registration office, ask the receptionist where to go for ‘Anmeldung‘.

She will probably point you towards a machine which gives you a waiting number. Then you need to wait, unless you have booked an appointment beforehand.

If you have booked an online appointment, be sure to have your appointment number at hand. Make sure to be on time. Otherwise your appointment might be given to someone else.

Once it’s your turn, you will go and see a German official.

If everything works out fine, the official will give you your registration confirmation (Anmeldebestätigung/ Meldebescheinigung) right away.

Make sure to check the confirmation and don’t lose it!

This is it! Congrats on becoming an official German resident :)

#8 I have a ‘residence registration confirmation’ (Meldebescheinigung)

Great! You’ve registered in Germany now! Now enjoy the moment… After registering in Germany, you still need to do a number of steps…

get a tax id
open a bank account
get health insurance
have a mobile phone contract
get your social security number

#9 What happens, if I move away? How to deregister in Germany?

If you move to another place in Germany, you need to change your address at the registration office (Ummeldung).

In order to change your address within Germany, you just repeat the process of registration.

If you leave Germany permanently, you must deregister (Abmelden). You can fill out the deregistration form on our website!

Want to add something? We do our best to keep this article up-to-date. Nevertheless, if you spot anything that’s unclear or inaccurate, then please contact us.

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