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Expat arrival checklist

Every financial box to tick when you land in Germany. Tick them off, add notes and dates, open the in-depth guide for each step, and save your progress to your email.

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Before Arriving
  • Work visa / EU Blue Card approved
  • Passport valid for at least 6 months
  • Employment contract signed
  • Temporary travel health insurance
  • German (or EU) bank account opened
  • Provisional accommodation reserved
First Weeks
  • Anmeldung (address registration) completed
  • Tax identification number (Steuer-ID) received
  • Social security number (Sozialversicherungsnummer)
  • Permanent bank account opened
  • Permanent health insurance taken out (GKV or PKV)
  • Personal liability insurance (Haftpflicht) taken out
First Months
  • Disability insurance (Berufsunfähigkeit) taken out
  • Private pension plan evaluated
  • Emergency fund of 3-6 months of expenses
  • Investment account (Depot) opened
  • Tax return (Steuererklärung) planned
  • Will / inheritance plan started
Long-term Planning
  • ETF / investment strategy defined
  • Retirement plan calculated
  • Property purchase evaluated
  • Return-to-home-country planning
  • Insurance reviewed annually
  • Expat-savvy financial advisor engaged
Save your progress

Right now your checklist is saved only in this browser (in local storage), so it will be lost if you clear your browser data or switch device. Link an email to save it for real and sync it everywhere. We send a one-tap link to confirm, no password needed.

General information for expats in Germany, not individual financial, tax or legal advice. Rules and figures change, so verify each step against the official sources linked inside its guide and against your own situation.

Get a hand with the hard parts

Some steps here, like health and liability cover, disability protection, pensions and investing, are far easier with help. An expat-savvy tecis advisor can walk you through them in plain English.