First Steps in Mainz

General

• www.immobilienscout24.de
• www.immowelt.de
• www.studenten-wg.de
• www.wg-gesucht.de

Please note that most flats are not furnished unless it is mentioned in the description.

Temporary Housing

• www.airbnb.de
• www.zwischenmiete.de
• privatanbieter.info-mainz.de/
• www.city-home.de
• www.hc24.de/de/möblierter-wohnraum-in-mainz.htm
• www.city-residence.de
• www.myhomeagency.de
• www.cnb-mainz.de
• www.bed-and-breakfast.de/regional_e/mainz

For professional support by an estate agent you can contact for example these companies:

• www.lichtenberg-mainz.de
• www.lehrmann-mainz.de/
• ap-immo.biz
• www.kueppers-immobilien.de

The address of the Bürgeramt/ Bürgerservice is:

Bürgeramt
Stadthaus Kaiserstraße
Kaiserstraße 3-5
55116 Mainz

Citizens of other cities need to register at their city's office. After registration you should receive a Anmeldebestätigung (confirmation of registration).

Important: Mainz-Amöneburg, Mainz-Kastel and Mainz-Kostheim belong to Wiesbaden, not Mainz. Furthermore, don't be mislead by their train station's names, Bischofsheim and Ginsheim-Gustavsburg also do not belong to Mainz.

You can register easily and for free but you need to bring the following documents:

• Passport (eAT is not sufficient)
• Wohnungsgeberbescheinigung (landlord confirmation)
• Residence Permit/Visa (if applicable)
• Marriage Certificate (if married, the original document and a certified translation into German)
• Birth certificate (if you have children, the original document and a certified translation into German)
• Visas and passports of spouse and children (if applicable)

You can either make an appointment in advance or just go there and take a number and wait. The last numbers are usually given out 30 minutes before the end of business day. The Welcome Center is happy to assist you with the requirements for your registration.

1. Go to the appointment homepage of the Mainz Citizens' Office. Unfortunately it is only available in German. Therefore, you'll get instructions in English in the following on how to make an appointment online.
2. Choose "Bürgerservice".
3. Choose "Anmeldung (Zuzug aus dem Ausland)". Tick „+“ for the number of people that will be registered with you.
4. Click on the button in the end which says "Weiter".
5. Then you click "OK" in order to confirm your choice. The information box tells you to not forget the confirmation of your landlord.
6. Then you choose an appointment (date and time).
7. Then you enter your personal data (female, male; first name; family name; email address; repetition of your email address; telephone number; birth date; address (not mandatory) and than there is room for any comments ("Bemerkungen") from your side), you answer the security question and tick the first box and - if you like - also the second one in the end of the page.
8. Then you click on the button "Termin reservieren.
9. Next you will get an email with a confirmation link which you have to click before your request can be processed.
10. Usually within a few minutes, you get the appointment confirmation with more details.
11. Don't forget to note your appointment in your daily schedule.

In case your stay is funded by a scholarship or by yourself, you will need to take a private health insurance. In this case, you will also need to take care of any family member individually. The Welcome Center will gladly assist you in your search of a suitable private health insurance.

You will also find valuable information about the health insurance system in Germany at the website of Euraxess Germany.

Civil servants and employees with an annual salary above the insurance threshold can choose whether they want to be insured privately or by a public health insurance. Due to the high number of providers and as individual conditions are considered (age, gender, health status, required coverage), we recommend comparing the different rates.

Social security in Germany covers health insurance, pension schemes, unemployment benefit, accident insurance (at work) and nursing care insurance (German: "Pflegeversicherung").

In Germany, social insurance (German: "Sozialversicherung") is mandatory for all employees who enter into a contract beyond the limit of marginal employment (€ 450 per month). Therefore, also researchers who are employed in Germany based on an employment contract (not on a fellowship) take part in the German social security system and contribute to it. The employer and the employee each pay approx. half of the contributions while your half amounts to a total of around 20% of your gross salary.

Our Human Resources Department will need you to provide them with your “social security number”. As the health insurances form part of the statutory social security contributions, your health insurance provider can gladly apply for your social security card which contains the required number. Please feel free to ask your health insurance provider to take care of this step.

In order to get more background information about the social security system in Germany, please feel free to visit the website of our network coordinator EURAXESS.

The Third-party Private Haftpflichtversicherung (Liability Insurance) covers physical injury or material damage to others caused by you (or your children). Therefore, it is customary to get insured for occasions in which any claims could arise from unintentionally caused damages. When taking out a liability insurance make sure that it at least covers all private liability claims and if possible also business-related liability claims. However, most insurances only cover the former, thus, there are also providers for workplace liability insurances for people who work with expensive equipment, e.g. in a lab. If you are a motor vehicle owner you are required by law to have a motor vehicle liability insurance. Additionally, there are also liability insurance policies especially for animal owners.

If you are employed in Germany and, therefore, pay for social security (see above) you are already insured against accidents on the way to and from, and at, your workplace. A Private Unfallversicherung (private accident insurance) can be taken out to be insured against income losses to you or your family caused by permanent physical damage due to an accident in private circumstances, e.g. private sports acivities. It should not be confused with health insurance which covers medical treatment. Permanent physical damage is normally defined as a condition which lasts longer than three years. It takes effect when e.g. your loss in salary caused by the accident or costs for household help and therapies, which are not covered by your health insurance, cannot be covered by yourself.

The Hausratversicherung (household contents insurance/ home insurance) covers your furniture, clothing, work and household equipment against burglary, fire and weather damages. If the event occurs in which the insurance has to take action it will assume the costs of the repairs or the replacement of your household goods and, in case that the event prevents you from staying at home, often pays for a hotel room or similar. Since the insurance will most likely ask for prove that you owned the damaged or stolen goods, it is advisable to keep receipts or photographs of objects of high value in a different location than your home. Make sure to examine the policies of the household insurance closely before taking one out.

Occupational disability can happen either through illness or an accident. In case that you can no longer work, e.g. due to health problems like chronical back pain, psychological conditions like burnout or severe illness which permanently limits employment, an Occupational Disability Insurance protects you from facing the threat of not receiving income anymore.

In general, you are subject to taxation rules where the center of your life is located. In order to avoid situations in which you are taxed in both Germany and your home country, there exist double taxation agreements with several countries, which specify exactly where you will have to pay your taxes. In order to find out about specific agreements between Germany and your home country, please visit the website of the Federal Ministry of Finance to get further details.

In order to receive professional advice on taxation issues, there are a number of local tax consultants that can advise you individually. There also exist tax support associations which can help you on these matters.

The Welcome Center has a list with English-speaking tax consultants in Mainz and can also gladly give you information about tax associations in case you are interested.

In Germany there are six Steuerklassen (tax categories) which apply to people depending on their marital status and/ or if they have children. In the following you can find an overview on the categories and whom they apply to:

Tax category I: Applies to those who are single or seperated who are not single parents, and those who are divorced.

Tax category II: Applies to those who are single or seperated, with a child, and therefore, are entitled to child's allowance.

Tax category III: Can be chosen by married people if one partner/spouse is not employed or earns significantly less money than the other partner/spouse. The other partner then falls into tax category V. You must explicitly apply for this combination (see below: "Changing Your Tax Category").

Tax category IV: Applies to married people if both of them earn about the same amount. Both partners/spouses are automatically assigned to this tax category if not chosen differently.

Tax category V: Applies to married people who would normally fall into tax category IV but whose spouses or partners have selected tax category III.

Tax category VI: Applies whenever a person has more than one employment relationship and, therefore, receives income from other or several different tax cards (German: "Lohnsteuerkarte").

It can happen that you get assigned the wrong tax category, e.g. you got assigned to tax category VI but according to your status you should be in category I. Then you should contact the tax office as soon as possible to make sure they allocate you to the correct one, otherwise you may have to pay too much tax deducted from your salary.

As you can see in the section above on "Tax categories" there are two options for married couples, too:

1. Both partners or spouses are in tax category IV.
2. One partner or spouse is in tax category III and the other one in tax category V.

Usually, as a married couple, you will both be automatically assigned to tax category IV.

If your status changes, e.g. you get married, you have a baby or you get divorced, you can request a change of your tax category at your responsible tax office.

In Germany it is possible to get a part of your income tax back if you have paid too much beforehand. Therefore, you can apply for a tax refund at your responsible tax office. If the evaluation of your Steuererklärung (income tax declaration) by the tax office leads to the conclusion that you have overpaid, the surplus will be refunded to you.

Who is required to hand in an income tax declaration?

• People with an additional income (not from salary) superior to 410€, e.g. from rental income
• People who had more than one employer in the year
• People with more than one salary e.g. a full-time job and a minijob with the Tax Category VI
• People who are married with the tax categories III and V, or both IV "mit Faktor" (i.e. additional agreement within tax class IV)
• People who got divorced and re-married the same year
  

Who could possibly profit from voluntarily handing in an income tax declaration?

• People who have only been employed for part of a fiscal year
• People whose tax category changed during the year, to their advantage
• People who had special expenditures or extraordinary liabilities in a year, e.g. commuting costs to the office which are not financed by the employer

How to file a tax return?

The easiest way to submit your tax return is to do it online at the ELSTER Portal (only available in German) which communicates directly to your local tax office. Depending on the software you are using you will additionally have to send your supplementary supporting documentation by mail. When your filed tax return has been proven by the tax office you will receive your Steuerbescheid (tax statement) which will inform you about how much you owe or how much you will get refunded. How long the process in between will take depends on your tax office and cannot be generalized.

Depending on the level of complexity of your own tax situation you might want to consult a tax advisor who helps you to file your tax return.

Deadlines

The deadline for submitting your tax return is the 31st July every year (since 2019). Please make sure to check on this deadline at your local tax office.

There are two main types of bank accounts in Germany:

• Girokonto - current account / checking account
• Sparkonto - savings account

If you stay in Germany only for a limited time, the savings account might not be very interesting for you since interest rates tend to be low. A Girokonto, however, can be used for money transfers and includes a girocard which is the German version of a debit card. Depending on the bank you might be charged a monthly fee for the service.

Most banks will require a confirmation of registration from the “Bürgeramt/Bürgerservice” before giving you the opportunity to open an account. Besides, you should take the account management fees of various banks into consideration. The Welcome Center will gladly provide you with a list of different banks in Mainz including their contact information.

In most cases it is possible to open a bank account online, too. For the verification of your identity you would then have to use a webcam, a verifying code sent by email or POSTIDENT by Deutsche Post Germany.

Your bank card and documents will be sent to the registered address you gave to the bank once the account is opened. This may take up to two weeks.

You might want to check if your home bank has a partner bank in Germany which could simplify money transfers.

In general, one can say that Bargeld (cash) is still the main type of payment in Germany. Thus, on the arrival in Mainz, visitors should have enough money at their disposal, either in cash or they should possess an ATM card which is valid in Germany. As a general rule, ATM card holders can only withdraw a limited sum of cash from an ATM each day using credit cards or other accepted bank cards. Fees may apply for the use of ATM cards. However, because of the high relevance of cash in Germany you find plenty of ATMs in the city center. Most of them can be operated in several languages, such as English, German, French and others.

Generally, all common credit cards can be used for payment of purchases above 10 Euro but this strongly depends on the shop/ restaurant/ etc. and is up to the owner of the location. Smaller stores and restaurants might not accept credit cards.