What to Do Before You Travel to Germany

You are getting ready to move to Germany, and you want a clear list of what to do before you travel. This page walks through what to finish before you leave, what is worth starting from home, and which German steps wait until you have an address.

Before you leave, finish the entry permission if you need one, plus the money proof and health cover that permission asks for, and keep copies of the documents you will need again after you arrive. You cannot register an address, get a tax number, or open a normal bank account until you are in Germany. If you are from the EU, EEA, or Switzerland, you skip the visa, but you still do that after-arrival admin.

Which permission you need before you travel

If you are not from the EU, the EEA, or Switzerland, a planned move for work, study, or family usually needs a national visa in your passport before you travel. A short tourist stay is not a stand-in for that visa. You apply at the German embassy or consulate that covers where you live now, and in some countries the appointment wait runs for months, so book once you know which visa type fits.

Which visa you need follows why you are coming. A signed job can be a skilled-worker visa or an EU Blue Card. No job yet, while you are still abroad, often points to the Opportunity Card. A university place is a student visa. A spouse or child joining someone who already lives in Germany is family reunification. Which Visa Do You Need in Germany puts these side by side. If you are from the EU, EEA, or Switzerland, you do not need a visa for your own stay. EU Citizens Moving to Germany covers the address and insurance steps after you arrive.

If you are coming from India, China, Turkey, Russia, Ukraine, or Iran, we have written a specific guide for your country on transfer, travel, and document issues. A protection claim is a different process, and it starts after you are in Germany. That path is in Asylum in Germany.

Proof of money, health cover, and documents

Some visas ask you to show you can pay for the stay before anyone stamps the passport. A blocked account (Sperrkonto) is the usual proof when you do not yet have a German salary. You deposit a set amount, and the bank releases a monthly slice. For a typical one-year student visa the deposit is €11,904, about €992 a month. A scholarship or a formal sponsorship declaration can replace that deposit on some visa types. A work contract that already shows enough pay usually means you skip the blocked account. The figure changes by visa and by year, so confirm it with your embassy before you transfer. Student amounts and providers are in Student Visa for Germany. Opportunity Card figures are in Opportunity Card in Germany.

Cover for the journey and the first days is separate from the German health insurance you join once you live here. Student visas typically want incoming travel health insurance, and you switch to a German student policy after arrival. EU citizens can use a European Health Insurance Card for medically necessary care while they are between systems. That card is only a bridge, so it is not long-term cover once you work in Germany. The public-versus-private choice, and what employees pay, is in Health Insurance in Germany.

Put your civil documents in one folder before you leave. You will show them more than once: a passport that still meets the visa rules, a birth certificate, a marriage certificate if you have one, degree certificates, and a police clearance if the embassy asks for it. Many offices want a sworn translation. Papers from some countries also need an apostille or legalization before a German office will accept them. Follow the embassy checklist for the visa, keep scans, and keep paper copies with you when you travel. If your job is regulated in Germany, such as medicine, nursing, teaching, or many skilled trades, start recognition before the embassy date. Qualification Recognition in Germany covers the degree database, the statement of comparability, and why a partial result can still help a visa.

What is worth doing from home

None of this is required before you travel, but it is usually easier to start from home than after you arrive.

Learning German. Daily life, many jobs, and several visas expect at least a basic level, and you can start with a course or an app while you are still at home. Levels, certificates, and what B1 is used for are in Learning German in Germany. The subsidized integration course is usually something you join after you arrive. That program is in Integration Course in Germany.

Choosing a city and a budget. Rent changes the month more than groceries do, so Munich and a smaller eastern city are not the same plan. Monthly costs are in Cost of Living in Germany. How the “best city” lists behave once you pay the rent yourself is in Best Cities in Germany if You Already Have a Degree. If the plan is a degree rather than a job, the university shortlist is in Best Cities in Germany for Studying. If you are still deciding whether Germany is the right country, the comparison with the Netherlands, Switzerland, and the English-speaking options is in Is It Worth Moving to Germany.

Finding a job, if you do not have one yet. Applications from abroad are slower, and many employers set aside files that need visa sponsorship. What tends to work better than a cold application on a jobs portal is in Finding Jobs in Germany as a Foreigner.

Planning for children. Daycare waits in tight cities can run a year or more, so register interest as soon as you know the city, even if the place itself is assigned after you have an address. The legal right from age one, and how the portals work, is in Finding Kita Childcare in Germany. School is mandatory from about age six, and enrollment needs a registered address, so you cannot finish it from home. Tracks and welcome classes are in Schools in Germany.

Bringing a pet. From outside the EU, the rabies vaccination usually has to be given at least 21 days before travel, and the animal needs a microchip plus an official health certificate. Start that well before you travel. Import rules, and what a landlord can refuse, are in Owning Pets in Germany.

Your driving license. A holiday is not the same as living here. Many non-EU licenses stay usable for six months after you register your address, and some countries can exchange a license without the full German test. An official translation, or an international driving permit where your country needs one, is worth sorting before you pack a car. The deadline and the exchange cases are in Driving License in Germany.

Investments you already hold. If your current country barely taxes investment gains, moving can leave you with a much higher German tax bill on the same holdings. Germany generally taxes the gain from what you originally paid, not from the value on the day you move. When the amounts are large, read Investing in Germany before you sell or before you move, and talk to someone who knows both tax systems.

Learning the culture. It is also wise to dig into everyday habits before you arrive: how direct people are, quiet hours, and when people pay cash. German Etiquette covers that side of the move.

Where you will sleep at the start

A normal German flat is often empty, sometimes without a kitchen. Landlords usually want German payslips and a credit report you will not have yet. Signing a long lease from abroad, or sending a deposit to someone you have never met, is a common way to lose money. View the place in person, and pay by bank transfer only after you have a real contract. Finding an Apartment in Germany covers the search, the deposit cap of three months’ cold rent, and the usual scams.

From home, book something temporary: a furnished sublet, a serviced flat, or a room. Prefer a place whose landlord will confirm the address so you can register. Without that registration, your first-month paperwork stalls. Short stays and which ones will confirm an address are in Furnished Apartments in Germany.

What waits until you have an address

Address registration (Anmeldung) happens at the citizens’ office after you move in. Your landlord signs a confirmation of that address, and you have 14 days from the move-in date. Your tax ID is mailed after that first registration. You cannot apply for it from abroad. The appointment and the form are in Address Registration in Germany.

The visa sticker in your passport lets you enter. The residence card is a separate step at the local immigration office after you arrive. Book that for your first weeks in Germany, not for the week before you leave.

A German bank account is much easier once you have arrived. A few online banks will open one before your address is registered; most branch banks wait for registration. You will want a German account number in the first weeks for rent, salary, and health insurance. Opening a Bank Account in Germany compares the options.

German public health insurance, a family doctor, and school enrollment also wait until you have an address. You cannot finish them from home. Finding a doctor is in How to Find a Family Doctor or Specialist in Germany.

Common questions

What should I do before moving to Germany?

Finish the visa if you need one, plus the money proof and travel health cover that permission asks for. Put civil documents and any required translations in one folder, and book temporary housing you can register an address from. Learning German, choosing a city, and similar prep help, but none of that is required before you leave. Address registration, a tax ID, and a normal bank account wait until you are in Germany.

How much money do I need to move to Germany?

There is no single number. Visa money proof, if you need it, is only one piece, and the amount depends on the visa type and year. On top of that you need cash for temporary housing, the first months of rent, and living costs, which vary a lot by city. Cost of Living in Germany helps with the monthly side; confirm any visa deposit figure with your embassy.

Can I rent a flat in Germany before I arrive?

You can book temporary furnished housing from home. A normal long-term lease is hard before you are in the country, because landlords want a viewing and German income proof you will not have yet. Do not send a deposit to someone who will not show you the flat.

Do I need German health insurance before I travel?

You need cover for the journey and the first days. For many student visas that means travel health insurance, and you join a German public or private policy once you live here. EU citizens can use a European Health Insurance Card as a short bridge, not as long-term cover after they start work.

Useful links

• Make it in Germany: visa Quick-Check
• Make it in Germany: housing and address registration
• Anabin: foreign degree database
• Make it in Germany: learning German