Before leaving Germany please remember the following formalities:

• Deregister your residency in Germany;
• Terminate your health insurance and any additional insurances;
• Terminate your rental agreement (please note your cancellation period);
• Terminate any related contracts such as electricity, gas, internet, and phone; 
• Terminate payments of the mandatory broadcasting fee (GEZ);
• File your tax return (by the end of May of the current year for tax returns of the previous);
• Deregister your children from all day-care facilities;
• Deregister your car;
• Close your bank account;
• Set up a mail forwarding service.

Further tips about bank formalities

We recommend closing your bank account in person at a local branch of your bank. Please also make sure that your credit card will be deactivated at the same time and that there is no pending balance. If you cannot arrange this in person, we recommend contacting your bank ahead of time and informing them about your new address and bank details.

Further tips on mail forwarding services

We recommend organizing a mail forwarding service to redirect all mail to your new address or to a safe address in Germany. By doing so, you will avoid losing track of important documents. You can request mail forwarding services in person at a local branch of Deutsche Post or online.