Residence; registration

If you move into an apartment, you are obliged to register with the relevant registration authority (municipality, town or administrative community) within two weeks of moving in. This also applies if you move within your municipality or town.

Spouses, life partners and family members with the same previous and future residences should use a joint registration form; it is sufficient if one of the persons obliged to register makes the registration.

Persons under the age of 16 must be registered by the person whose home the persons under the age of 16 are moving into. If a minor has several residences in Germany, the main residence is the residence primarily used by the person(s) with custody.

Newborns born in Germany only need to be registered if they are taken into a home other than that of their parents or mother.

If a carer or guardian has been appointed for an adult person who can determine their place of residence, they are responsible for registration.

If you do not register within two weeks of moving in, you are acting in breach of the regulations. In this case, you can be fined up to 1,000 euros.

Information on submitting the landlord's confirmation of residence, applying for an information block or transmission block and applying for a change of address and place of residence on the ID card, passport and eID card can be found in the service descriptions under "Related topics".

Exceptions:
Persons who live abroad and are not registered in Germany are only required to register after three months.

If you are registered in Germany and move into another home for a stay of no longer than six months, you do not have to register temporarily. However, if you continue to use the additional home after the six months, the two-week period for registration begins. When registering, you must decide which of the apartments is your main residence and which is your secondary residence. If it is clear from the outset that you will be using the additional apartment for longer than six months, you must register it as soon as you move in.

Actual occupation of the new apartment (this apartment is used permanently or at least with a certain regularity, primarily for living or sleeping).

You must register with the relevant registration authority (municipality, town or administrative community). You can register in person at the registration office or electronically via the Internet:

1. personal registration

To register in person, you must fill in and sign a registration form and present it to the registration authority together with your identity card, recognized and valid passport or passport replacement document and confirmation from your landlord or the corresponding assignment feature on site. If the registration register is kept automatically, you do not need to complete the registration form if you confirm the accuracy and completeness of the data collected by the registration authority by signing a printout. You can also be represented by a person when registering by submitting the necessary documents (registration documents and power of attorney).

2. electronic registration

Note: Registration is currently possible for German nationals and EU citizens with an eID card; the registration of third-country nationals with an electronic residence permit is still being planned.

• To use electronic registration, first identify yourself in the online service via a BayernID or BundID account using your ID card or as a (non-German) EU citizen using an eID card.
• You will then be shown the data stored about you at the previous registration authority. Spouses, partners and children who are registered at the same address will also be displayed. You can select whether they should also move with you and register accordingly.
• The next step is to add the new address, the move-in and move-out dates and the details of the landlord (and owner, if applicable) of your new home and upload the landlord confirmation. You now have the option of checking the transfer blocks you have entered or setting up new transfer blocks (see "Related topics"). Finally, check your details again and send the electronic registration form to the new registration authority.
• (In a small number of cases, a confirmation code will be sent by post to the new address as a random check to verify the address. If this is the case, log in to the online service again and enter the confirmation code to complete the registration).
• As a rule, a forgery-proof digital registration confirmation with an electronic and visual seal (similar to a QR code) will be available for you in the online service a few days later.

After completing the electronic registration process, you still need to update your ID card and (if available) passport or eID card with the new address or place of residence. This also applies to the ID cards and (if available) passports or eID cards of the family members registered during the electronic registration process.

• To do this, you must re-identify yourself with your ID card or eID card so that the online service can then save the new address on the chip of your ID card or eID card. This is possible with the help of the six-digit Card Access Number (CAN) printed on the front of the ID card and the eID card to the right of the validity date.
• In addition, you and any family members registered with you will each receive an address sticker/residence sticker by post, which must be affixed to the ID card and passport (if available) in accordance with the instructions provided.

If the procedure is interrupted for technical reasons during electronic registration or the subsequent updating of the ID documents, or if the registration authority cancels the electronic registration during the verification process, you will receive a notification of this. Please then visit your new municipality in person to complete the registration and update your documents (ID card, passport or eID card).

Registration must take place within two weeks of moving in.

Personal registration: immediately

Electronic registration: about one week

• In particular, the following documents are required:
  
  • Completed and signed form for registration with the registration office (registration form - available from the registration office)
  • Identity card and/or passport or passport replacement document (for identification and for changing the address or place of residence in the identity card and passport) of all persons to be registered
  • eID card for EU citizens (for changing the address on the chip) - if available
  • Confirmation from the landlord or - in the case of electronic confirmation from the landlord to the registration authority - the corresponding allocation feature (for further information, see "Related topics" - "Landlord confirmation; template")
  • If applicable, an (informal) power of attorney for the joint registration of other persons at the personal visit. (A power of attorney is not required for the joint registration of spouses, civil partners under the LPartG and/or family members).

• Declaration of status for several apartments
  Declaration of which dwelling is the main residence and which is a secondary residence
• Civil status certificates and other evidence, if applicable
  

  Please also submit civil status certificates (birth or marriage certificate, death certificate of husband) and, if necessary, further evidence (e.g. legally binding divorce decree, certificate of change of name, naturalization certificate, certificate of late repatriation, certificate of release from another nationality) to prove special data (e.g. marital status) so that your application can be processed in full.

• Doctoral certificate, if necessary with official translation into German
  If you wish to have a doctorate entered in the civil register.
• Landlord confirmation

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