Get ready with me for SRH Hochschule. By Marta Suárez-Varela Maciá

First Steps in Germany: Anmeldung

Ok! You already got your flat, unpacked, and walked around the city. Now it is time to settle down a little bit and get ready for a long stay in Berlin.

First thing you must do once you have proper accommodation is going to one of the council offices, the so-called "Burgeramt", to register yourself as a resident. They will give you the "Anmeldung". Be careful not to lose it! You will need it for operations as important as opening a bank account, buying a German phone number or enrolling in a German language course. Moreover, if it wasn't enough motivation to do it, local authorities give students a Welcome Bonus ("Begrüssungsgeld") of  up to 100€! I will explain you later how to get them.

Let's get down to it, then!  Don't forget that it must be done within 15 days since you signed the contract for your flat or you will lose the money!

First, you should check the closest office in this link. There is one in most of the neibourghoods, so it won't take long for you to get there. Once you find your office, there are two options:

• You can make an appointment on the website. It is much quicker and easy, and you will skip the queue and all the tedious wait. However, you may find that there are no free appointments until a month later. 

• In this case, you can just go to the office very early in the morning, even before the opening time, to get a number. You might have to wait, depending on the office, for a really long time, so don't plan anything for the whole morning, just in case!

Second step is preparing all the necessary documents. You will have to take with you the rental contract from your accommodation, a certificate from University or matriculation sheet and the fulfilled registration form (Which can be downloaded here). It is possible that workers in the office don't speak English at all, so be prepared for that as well! If you don't speak German, bring a friend with you or look for a few basic words to make you understand.

And last but not least, once you have your Anmeldung, you can go to your University and ask for the Welcome Bonus! You will be given 100€ if you are staying for the whole year, and 50€ if it is only for a semester. 

What are you going to do with them? ;)