Upon your arrival in Stuttgart

Both EU and Non-EU citizens are required to register at one of the residents’ registration offices (Bürgerbüro, Rathaus) of the town they have taken up residence. This must be done within the first fourteen days after having moved into an apartment or house if the stay in Germany is intended to last longer than 90 days. If you have not found a permanent place yet, you may also register with the address or your temporary accommodation at the residents’ registration offices of Stuttgart.

For residents’ registration the following documents must be provided:

• Your passport or ID card (EU citizens only)
• Filled in and signed form for residents' registration (Anmeldung), filled in and signed by you (download of the form in Stuttgart, instructions on how to fill in the form are also available
• Form confirming that you have moved into an apartment/house (form Wohnungsgeberbestätigung (in German)).

To participate in the cash-free transfer of money, to pay for rent, health insurance and similar transactions, we recommend you open a personal checking account (Girokonto) in Germany. If you have a checking account in one of the countries of the SEPA region, you may also use this account.

Health Insurance

A valid health insurance is compulsory in Germany from the very first day of your arrival until the day of your departure. Different conditions apply depending on your status and country of origin, length of your stay, etc.

If you will be employed by the University of Stuttgart, you will be insured through German statutory health insurance. Only if you earn more than about EUR 64.500 gross salary/year, you may opt out and become a voluntary member of statutory health insurance or take out a private insurance (see below). If you are the only earner in your family, your spouse and children usually can be covered without increase in costs. There are several German statury health insurance providers where you can take out statutory health insurance. Costs and benefits the providers charge/offer are roughly the same, only minor differences exist.

If you will join the university as a visiting scholar, one has to distinguish between EU citizens and Non-EU citizens:

• EU citizens: If you are entitled to a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) issued by the public health insurance system of your home country, please make sure that you bring it with you to Germany. With this card you can access the public German health system. If you are not entitled to an EHIC, you will have to take out private health insurance (like NON-EU citzens).
• Non-EU citizens: If your research stay is funded privately or through a scholarship, you usually must take out private health insurance which offers more or less the same benefits as German statutory health insurance. The monthly fees are dependent on age, type of job, desired benefits and sometimes on your state of health, too. Visits to doctors, hospital stays and medicine must be paid by yourself first and are re-imbursed by your private health insurance provider after submission of the invoices. Each familiy member needs his/her own insurance policy. Please check the website of the PKV in order to find a suitable private health insurance for you and your family members.

Detailed information on the German health insurance system can be found on the webpage on Informed Health and on the pages of the Welcome Center Stuttgart.

Personal Liability Insurance

Unlike health insurance, personal liability insurance (Haftpflichtversicherung) is not compulsory in Germany. However, we strongly recommend to purchase such an insurance since it covers damage caused by you or your family members to persons or objects (e.g. a rented apartment). Some policies even include the loss of keys. Check whether you already have a personal liability insurance which covers incidents in Germany. If not, you are welcome to contact the Welcome Center for International Scholars, we can help you find a suitable personal liability insurance.

As a non-EU citizen, you have to apply for a residence permit at the Foreigners’ Registration Office in your place of residence if the following applies: Your visa is not valid for the entire period you wish to spend in Germany or you intend to stay longer than 90 days after entering the country without a visa.

In both cases, you have to apply for a new visa/ an extension before your visa expires or before the time span of 90 days is over. You usually need to make an appointment via e-mail with your local Foreigners’ Registration Office. If you live in Stuttgart, e.g., you need to make an appointment at the Foreigners' Registration Office Stuttgart, before you go there. In other towns, it might be possible to go there without prior arrangement. Please note that you can only apply for a residence permit after you have completed your residents' registration (see above).

You must present the following documents to obtain a residence permit:

• Filled in and signed application for an extension of your residence permit (form for Stuttgart as download)
• Passport
• Residence permit that is about to expire
• Up-to-date biometrical photo (information about biometric photos)
• Registration certificate
• Up-to-date proof of health insurance
• Up-to-date residence certificate ("Wohnraumnachweis"), to be filled in and signed by your landlord (download of the form for Stuttgart (in German))
• Up-to-Date rental contract
• Hosting Agreement signed by yourself and the university if you want to extend your residence permit for research
• Confirmation letter of your institute expressing the wish to employ you further
• Proof of sufficient funds (scholarship letter or your last salary slips and bank statements of the last three months)
• Other documents depending on your personal circumstances, e.g. marriage certificate, birth certificate(s), etc.
• If you want to apply for an EU Blue Card (first check whether you meet the criteria!), instead of a hosting agreement, you need a ‘declaration regarding a contract of employment’ ("Erklärung zum Beschäftigungsverhältnis"). Your institute and the HR department of the University of Stuttgart must complete this document.

Scan all of these documents and send them to the Foreigners‘ Registration Office via e-mail, asking for an appointment for an extension (e-mail for the city of Stuttgart: auslaenderrecht@stuttgart.de). Save the e-mail as a proof of having contacted them in time. Your timely application to the Foreigners’ Registration Office already has a fictitious effect according to §81, 4 German Residence Act and entitles you to legal residence in Germany until the Foreigners’ Registration Office contacts you again.

If your visa/residence permit is due to expire in less than 7 days, you can make an emergency appointment (Notfall-Termin) with the Foreigners' Registration Office. Please inform your supervisor, as you may need to visit the Foreigners' Registration Office at short notice after receiving their e-mail in the morning.

You will be given an appointment to receive an up-dated version of your electronic residence permit (“eAT”) or you will receive a ‘provisional paper residence permit’ (“Fiktionsbescheinigung“) by mail. The handling charge is around EUR 93. Hand in your new residence permit at the HR department so that your contract can be extended correspondingly.