About us
We wrote the guide
we wished we’d had
Expat Germany Guide exists for one reason: to make moving to Germany understandable in plain English. No paywalls, no jargon, no guesswork — just the steps that actually work.
Our mission
German bureaucracy should not depend on who you know
Every year, hundreds of thousands of internationals arrive in Germany for a job, a degree or a new life — and immediately hit a wall of forms, appointments and rules written in a language and a style they have never met. The official websites are in German. The forums are years out of date. The advice from friends is specific to one city and one situation.
We built Expat Germany Guide to close that gap. Our editors have lived the relocation themselves: they registered at the Bürgeramt, opened the bank account, decoded the payslip, returned the Pfand and cancelled the health insurance when they left. They turned that experience into step-by-step guides that anyone can follow, in English, checked against the rules that apply today.
We are independent. The guides and the relocation checklist are free. We never sell your email, and we never take payment to recommend one bank, insurer or provider over another. If a guide mentions a provider, it is because newcomers actually use it.
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Guides and explainers
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Federal states covered
What we stand for
Plain English, not jargon
We translate German officialdom into clear steps anyone can follow — no Behördendeutsch, no outdated forum threads.
Fact-checked against current rules
Every guide is checked against current federal and city guidance, with a clear note when rules vary by region.
Written by people who did it
Our editors queued at the Bürgeramt, opened the bank account and decoded the payslip themselves before writing about it.
Independent and free
The guides and the relocation checklist are free. We never sell your data or take payment to recommend a provider.
Start with a track
Free download
The 90-day relocation checklist
Every deadline, document and appointment from the moment your visa is approved to your first German tax return, ordered so nothing blocks anything else.
- Pre-arrival document folder
- Week one: Anmeldung and bank account
- Health insurance and tax ID
- Utilities, internet and Rundfunkbeitrag