Checklist for leaving Germany - Checkliste für Auswanderer (DE)

To make sure you have thought of everything before your departure, we have prepared this emigrant checklist for you. Prepare your move abroad at your leisure and work through each item one by one so that you are well prepared for the big day!
Basic information.

Basic information

• Find out in detail about your host country: Read specialist travel guides and expat blogs to learn about life there.
• Learn the language through language courses or with a self-study program.
• Children's schooling: Inform the school about your departure and find out about schooling options abroad.

Medical preparations

• Arrange a health check for each family member (doctor, optician, dentist…). Bring your X-rays and prescriptions so you can buy the necessary medicines in Thailand.
• Vaccinations: Check the Foreign Office website to see which vaccinations are mandatory and which are recommended. Plan vaccinations that need to be repeated.
• Insurance: Remember to take out international health insurance that covers your medical treatment costs, provides assistance services, includes personal liability insurance, etc. APRIL International Expat offers comprehensive insurance cover.
• Prepare a travel medicine kit with necessary and useful medicines.
• Bring: your international vaccination certificate, blood group card, important medical reports, and X-rays.

Important administrative formalities, etc.

• Apply for a visa for your destination country.
• Inform the authorities about your move: residents' registration office, tax office, pension insurance …
• Pension: Ask your pension insurance provider how your pension entitlements will be recorded.
• Apply for an international driving permit.
• Contact your bank: Ask about the terms for transferring money and open an account abroad.
• Mail: Arrange to have your mail forwarded by a specialist company or the post office.
• Book your tickets (plane, train, ship) in advance.

Documents

• Check the validity of all family members' passports.
• Make a photocopy of all important documents: family register, birth certificates, graduation certificates… You can also scan these documents and send them to your email address so you can access them anywhere in the world.
• Have passport photos taken.
• Have your important documents translated.

Cancellations

• Cancel your subscriptions: phone, internet, sports club…
• Cancel your insurance policies: car insurance, household contents insurance and similar, supplementary health insurance, water, electricity, gas, waste collection…

Property

• House / apartment: Give notice to your landlord, or sell or rent out your apartment.
• Car: Decide what will happen to your car in Germany, and plan to rent / buy a vehicle locally.
• Moving abroad: Get several quotes to choose your international moving company. You can also put your belongings into storage.
• Sell everything you do not want to keep: Place classified ads and use online auction platforms.
• Pack your suitcases and send any excess baggage with a specialized logistics company (DHL, Fedex…).

Other

• Pets: Find out which vaccinations are required and which formalities must be completed before departure (import permit, quarantine…) as well as the transport conditions.
• Take food / feed with you (if possible) that is not available in your new country.
• Give your friends and family your new address.
• Set up a blog to share news about your new life as an expat!

Download the checklist in PDF format