Your annual calendar
| When | Task |
|---|---|
| January | New rates apply (minimum wage, contributions, Kindergeld, tax allowances). Check the January payslip. Vorabpauschale deducted from your brokerage account |
| End of February | Employer sends the Lohnsteuerbescheinigung (annual tax statement) — data appears in ELSTER |
| March | Unused holiday from the previous year usually expires on 31 March (if your employer reminded you). Easter: switch to summer tyres ("O bis O") |
| Spring | File your tax return. Mandatory returns are due 31 July. Voluntary returns can still be filed for 4 years |
| Summer | Nebenkosten statement usually arrives — check it within 12 months. Pension value rises on 1 July. Plan holidays around state school holidays |
| September/October | Kita and school registration windows for next year. Winter tyres by October |
| October–December | Health insurers announce add-on contributions — switch if yours rises. Car insurance switching deadline: 30 November. Check that your Freistellungsauftrag covers your expected interest and dividends, and plan remaining holiday days |
| Any time | Permit, passport and licence expiry: put each in your calendar with a reminder 8 weeks before |
Master document folder
Keep paper originals in a folder system and encrypted scans in the cloud, sorted the same way: 01 Identity (passports, birth/marriage certificates + translations) · 02 Immigration (visa, eAT, Fiktionsbescheinigung, correspondence) · 03 Registration (Meldebescheinigung, Wohnungsgeberbestätigung) · 04 Housing (lease, handover protocol, Nebenkosten statements) · 05 Work (contracts, payslips, Arbeitszeugnisse) · 06 Tax (Steuer-ID, Lohnsteuerbescheinigung, Steuerbescheide, receipts) · 07 Health (insurance, vaccination records) · 08 Insurance (policies, claims) · 09 Family (Kindergeld, Elterngeld, Kita, school) · 10 Vehicle (licence, registration, TÜV) · 11 Finance (bank, depot, SCHUFA copy) · 12 Contracts (phone, internet, gym, electricity — with cancellation dates).
Keep payslips and tax documents for at least 10 years, pension and social-security records permanently.
German–English survival glossary
Anmeldung — address registration · Ausländerbehörde — immigration office · Bescheid — official decision · Bürgeramt — citizens' office · eAT — electronic residence permit card · Einspruch — objection (tax, fines) · Familienkasse — child-benefit office · Fiktionsbescheinigung — interim certificate keeping your status · Finanzamt — tax office · Frist — deadline · Kaltmiete / Warmmiete — base rent / rent incl. service charges · Kaution — deposit · Krankenkasse — health insurer · Kündigung — termination · Mahnung — payment reminder · Meldebescheinigung — registration certificate · Nachweis — proof · Nebenkosten — service charges · Steuer-ID — tax ID · Termin — appointment · Unterlagen — documents · Widerspruch — objection (administrative) · Wohnungsgeberbestätigung — landlord's confirmation for registration · Zuständig — responsible
Official source directory
| Topic | Website |
|---|---|
| Immigration, recognition, working | make-it-in-germany.com · anerkennung-in-deutschland.de · bamf.de |
| Visas | auswaertiges-amt.de · digital.diplo.de (Auslandsportal) |
| Government services online | verwaltung.bund.de · id.bund.de (BundID) · your city / district website for local matters |
| Tax | elster.de · bzst.de · bmf-steuerrechner.de |
| Work and benefits | arbeitsagentur.de · arbeitsagentur.de/familie-und-kinder |
| Pension | deutsche-rentenversicherung.de |
| Health | 116117.de · gesund.bund.de · bundesgesundheitsministerium.de |
| Consumers | verbraucherzentrale.de |
| Tenants | mieterbund.de |
| Credit record | meineschufa.de |
| Discrimination | antidiskriminierungsstelle.de |
2026 changes at a glance
- Minimum wage €13.90, Minijob limit €603, Kindergeld €259, basic tax allowance €12,348.
- Deutschlandticket €63.
- Commuting allowance €0.38 from the first km.
- Blue Card threshold €50,700 / €45,934.20.
- Grundsicherungsgeld replaced Bürgergeld (1 July 2026).
- Aktivrente: €2,000/month tax-free for working past retirement age.
- New SCHUFA score (100–999), free to view.
- Citizenship only after 5 years (fast track abolished October 2025).
- Rundfunkbeitrag unchanged at €18.36 (an increase is under discussion for 2027).
Germany Newcomer Bible • 2026 Edition