Moving to Germany? We'll Show You How

It depends on your citizenship. EU/EEA citizens have freedom of movement and need no visa. Citizens of a small number of countries (US, UK, Canada, Australia, Japan, South Korea) can enter without a visa and apply for a residence permit after arrival. Everyone else — including Egypt, India, Pakistan, Nigeria, Bangladesh, and most of Africa, the Middle East, and South/Southeast Asia — needs a national visa before traveling.

A blocked account is a special bank account you open before your visa appointment to prove you have enough money to support yourself in Germany. The required amount is set annually by the German government (around €11,904 per year at the time of writing — verify the current figure before applying). The money is released month by month after you arrive. Popular providers are Fintiba and Expatrio, both fully online and accepted by all German embassies.

Anmeldung is the German address registration process. Within 14 days of moving into your flat you must register at the local Bürgeramt. The certificate you receive (Meldebescheinigung) is not optional — you cannot open a bank account, get a SIM card, or apply for a tax ID without it. It is usually one of the first tasks on your checklist after finding housing.

The tool asks five questions: EU citizenship status, current country, visa type, age range, and budget. Based on your answers it includes only the steps that apply to you. For example, students from India see an APS certificate step that does not appear for Egyptian applicants; family reunion applicants see sponsor-based steps instead of blocked account steps. The order also changes to reflect what you should do first.

Yes. The tool is completely free and requires no account. Creating an account is optional — it lets you save your checklist across devices. The site recommends products and services at certain steps (bank accounts, health insurance, blocked account providers) and may earn a referral fee, but the recommendations reflect what actually works for newcomers and the checklist content does not change based on that.