Information about
Germany

Germany is a wonderful country and is located in western and central Europe. It has nine neighboring countries, with Denmark bordering to the north, Poland and the Czech Republic to the east, Austria and Switzerland to the south, France and Luxembourg to the southwest, and Belgium and the Netherlands to the northwest.

In the south, Germany borders the Alps (Alpen), in the north the North Sea (Nordsee) and the Baltic Sea (Ostsee). Major rivers are the Rhine (Rhein), the Danube (Donau) and the Elbe. The largest German islands are Rügen, Usedom and Fehmarn in the Baltic Sea, and Sylt and Föhr in the North Sea. 

Germany’s climate is moderate and generally without sustained periods of cold or heat. Climate in Germany is influenced by the NDA (North Atlantic Drift) as well as the extension of the northern Gulf Stream. There is no obligatory dry season which rainfalls occurring year-round. The summers are generally warm, while winters are mostly mild and cloudy with snowfall, especially in the higher regions of the country.

Please be aware that on holidays almost all offices, public authorities, supermarkets, shops, doctor’s offices, etc. are closed.

Countrywide holidays

Compared to other European countries, the cost of living in Germany is quite reasonable. The prices for food, accommodation, clothing, cultural events, etc. are basically in line with the EU average.

An apartment can be rented furnished or unfurnished. Unfurnished means that there’s no furniture in the apartment at all. There will not be any lamps, curtains or other furniture. Sometimes unfurnished apartments are with a kitchen, but often there’s not even a kitchen included. If the pictures show furniture but it says unfurnished anyway, it means that this furniture belongs to the current tenant, but the apartment will be empty for the next tenant. Sometimes there’s the option to buy some of the current tenant’s furniture.

The rent is normally given as a basic rent, also called cold rent ("Kaltmiete"). That means electricity, water, gas, telephone and internet, (sometimes garage) still come on top of that.

Rent in Germany is usually charged monthly. Rent can be indicated in two figures:

Kaltmiete (“cold rent”, i.e. rent without utilities), which is the base rent for the accommodation, while Warmmiete (“warm rent”) means base rent plus extra costs for water, heating, waste disposal, etc. These ancillary expenses are called Nebenkosten. It is important to check whether the Kaltmiete or the Warmmiete is stated, as the Kaltmiete does not indicate the final rental fee.

Properties can be rented or bought via a real estate agent (Immobilienmakler) or directly from the landlord (Vermieter). If you rent/buy with a real estate agency, please be aware that agency fees may be applicable (on average two months’ base rent plus VAT) and at this moment in time paid by the tenant, not the landlord (depending on the monthly rent). The law has changed in 2015 to the “ordering principle” (Bestellerprinzip), which states that whoever orders the real estate agent has to pay for its fee. Although in most cases this is the landlord, there are certain cases where the agents offer new apartments, which have not yet hit the market and charge their provision for these. Generally, we will do our best to spare you any additional agency costs, if possible.

Whether pets are permitted in the property or not depends on the landlord. Small animals such as fish, small birds, hamsters and guinea pigs are generally allowed by law. Permission for other house pets such as cats and dogs has to be attained from the landlord.

Water costs are in most cases included in the ancillary expenses (Nebenkosten) paid to your landlord together with the rent. Costs are based on your actual water consumption and there may be multiple water meters installed in your home, particularly if laundry or other washing facilities are located in a common cellar area.

Water coming from your tap is suitable for domestic use as it is permanently controlled by the state authority. There is usually no chlorine added to the water.

There are two types of health insurance in Germany: statutory health insurance (gesetzliche Krankenversicherung) and private health insurance (private Krankenversicherung).

Statutory health insurance is mandatory for every German citizen unless their salary exceeds a certain level, at which a citizen is able to choose between statutory or private health care. Private health care is more expensive but offers certain amenities, e.g. the waiting time for appointments with doctors will be shorter, you may receive a single-bed room when in hospital, etc. However, you may experience difficulties when wanting to go back to a statutory health insurance provider.

A visit to the doctor’s office usually requires an appointment (Termin). If you go to doctors and you do not have an appointment, you will in most cases have to wait until all patients with appointments have been treated, which may take hours.

As every practitioner’s office has its own schedule, it is important that you call the office or check its website beforehand so you don’t stand in front of closed doors. Doctor’s offices also advise their office hours on a sign on or near the entrance door.

For emergencies outside of office hours that are not life-threatening and don’t require hospital attendance, there is a “doctors on call” emergency medical service (ärztlicher Bereitschaftsdienst). Their country-wide emergency number is 116 117.

When first entering a doctor’s office, you have to show your health insurance card at the reception desk, otherwise you will not be treated. If it is your first visit to the office, you will also be asked to provide personal data so you can be added to the patient files.

Inhouse Mobility can support you in finding English-speaking or other non-German-speaking doctors close to where you live.

Every pupil nation-wide is required to attend school for a minimum of 9 years. Generally, children of age 3 – 6/7 may attend Kindergarten. Starting at age 6 or 7, all children attend elementary school together for 4 – 6 years. After finishing elementary school, the teacher recommends a type of High School to the parents based on the pupil’s abilities and grades:

• Hauptschule/Mittelschule (name may differ in some regions): Prepares pupils for vocational education and ends with the 9th grade and a basic secondary education diploma (Hauptschulabschluss). Students may choose to continue going to school and switch to a Realschule.
• Realschule: Ends after 10th grade with a secondary education degree called Realschulabschluss or Mittlere Reife. Students may choose to continue going to school and switch to a Gymnasium.
• Gymnasium: Ends after 12th or 13th grade (depending on school and state) with the secondary education diploma Abitur, which allows university entrance.

In Germany, traffic drives on the right side of the road. The German Autobahn (high-speed motorway) is famous (and infamous) for its sections without speed limits. However, in sections with difficult terrain (e.g. tight curves, steep slopes) or near cities, the speed is limited, usually to 100 kph (~60 mph) or 120 kph (~75 mph). German Autobahn routes are marked with an “A” and a number in their name. The signs are always in the colours blue and white.

Autobahn signs display the distances in km to the next cities/towns and are always in blue. As of 2013, there is no road charge to be paid for the Autobahn, with the exception of freight vehicles (trucks).

National roads which don’t belong to the Autobahn network are called Bundesstraßen (federal roads), connecting cities, towns and villages with a fixed speed limit of 100 kph (~60 mph). For Bundesstraßen, the same naming system as for Autobahn routes is used, i.e. the federal road’s name starts with a "B" followed by its number (e.g. B1).

To open a bank account, you will have to appear in person at the bank. We will accompany you to the bank and provide you with all the necessary paperwork.

German banks issue a bank card (EC-Karte) with every account, which enables their customers to obtain cash from ATMs and account statements from a bank’s account statement machines (usually located near ATMs in a bank branch). If you lose your bank card or it gets stolen, you have to notify your bank and have the card cancelled immediately. Most banks have an emergency number available for these situations which you should save in your phone.

Credit and charge cards are referred to collectively as credit cards (Kreditkarten). Most German credit cards operate like charge cards: payments for purchases are due when billed and cannot be put on hold for months or years. Most credit cards allow you to withdraw cash from ATMs that are part of the bank’s network. If you withdraw cash from an ATM from a bank other than yours, you have to expect to pay charges for transactions.

All German banks offer online banking services. Some German banks, notably Deutsche Bank, have their online banking service available in English.