Germany · Guide
What this move costs
Nobody tells you the numbers before you go, so here they are. Every figure on this page comes from an official source, with a link. We add nothing up and we guess at nothing.
The biggest number is the one we cannot give you
Rent depends on the city and the flat, and we have no official source for it. So we do not print a number. Look at real listings for the city you are moving to — that is the only honest answer, and it takes ten minutes.
Money that leaves once
Nearly all of it lands in the week you take a flat.
The flat deposit
At most three months' rent, not counting heating and running costs — and you may pay it in three parts.The official wording The deposit (Kaution) may be at most three months' rent excluding operating costs (cold rent), and you are entitled by law to pay it in three equal monthly instalments — the first at the start of the tenancy. Source ↗
The estate agent
Usually nothing. The landlord pays, not you.The official wording On an ordinary rental you do not pay the estate agent. An agent may only charge the flat-seeker if you commissioned them yourself and they approached the landlord solely because of your commission (the Bestellerprinzip, in force since 2015). If the listing was already on the market, the commission is the landlord's to pay. Source ↗
The paid credit certificate
Around 30 €, and only if you choose it. The free copy is your right.The official wording The free Datenkopie is a different product from the paid SCHUFA-BonitätsAuskunft (around 30 euros) that many landlords prefer, because the paid one is formatted to show to third parties. The free copy is your right; the paid certificate is optional and up to you. Source ↗
Getting a qualification recognised
Several hundred euros, and it depends on the job. The office that decides tells you your exact figure.The official wording Several hundred euros, and it varies by profession. The federal portal states plainly that the cost of a recognition procedure varies greatly, that it can run to several hundred euros, and that the competent authority — not the portal — will tell you your exact figure. Translations, certified copies and any adaptation measures are additional. Source ↗
Money that leaves every month
Once you are working and housed. Most of it comes off your pay before you see it.
Rent, and the part hidden under it
The price in the advert is not the price you pay. Heating and running costs come on top.The official wording German listings quote two rents. Kaltmiete is the rent for the flat alone; Nebenkosten (operating costs) are added on top, and the two together are the Warmmiete you actually pay each month. The law lists exactly which running costs a landlord may pass on — property tax, water, heating, street cleaning and refuse, building insurance, caretaker, lift, and a handful of others. Anything not on that list is the landlord's own cost. Source ↗
The broadcasting fee
18.36 € a month for a private home.The official wording For private households the fee is 18.36 euros per month. Source ↗
Health insurance
14.6% of your gross pay plus a small fund top-up — and your employer pays about half.The official wording The statutory health-insurance contribution is 14.6% of gross pay plus a supplement set by your individual fund, and it is split roughly half-and-half between you and your employer — which is why KV appears on your payslip. Source ↗
The rest of the deductions
Pension, care and unemployment come off too. Your employer pays about half of each.The official wording Social-insurance contributions fund five branches: pension (Rentenversicherung, 18.6%), health (Krankenversicherung, 14.6% plus a fund-specific supplement), nursing care (Pflegeversicherung, ~2.6–4.2%), and unemployment (Arbeitslosenversicherung, 2.6%) — each split roughly half-and-half between you and your employer. Accident insurance (Unfallversicherung) is paid by the employer alone. Source ↗
Church tax
Only if you belong to a religious community that collects it. That is why the registration form asks.The official wording Church tax (Kirchensteuer) is only deducted if you are registered as a member of a religious community that levies it — which is why the registration form asks your religious affiliation. It is 8% of your income tax in Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg, and 9% in the other federal states. Source ↗
Things that cost nothing
Some of these people pay for by mistake. Not one of them should cost you a cent.
Registering your address
Free. What costs money is doing it late.The official wording Registering itself is free. Berlin's official service page lists the fee as 'keine' — none. Fees are set municipally, so confirm on your own city's page; what can actually cost you is the fine for registering late, not anything at the counter. Source ↗
Your credit record
Free, by law. Paid sites appear first in search — skip them.The official wording You have the right to a free copy of the data Schufa holds on you — the 'Datenkopie nach Art. 15 DSGVO'. It is free of charge; do not be misled by paid offers that appear first when you search. Source ↗
Health cover for your family
Your husband, wife or children may be covered at no extra cost, if they earn little or nothing themselves.The official wording Family members can be covered at no additional contribution (Familienversicherung): a spouse or registered partner and children living in Germany, provided they are not otherwise insured and their own income stays under the legal limit. Children are covered to 18, to 23 if not employed, and to 25 while in education or training. Source ↗
A second broadcasting fee
There isn't one. One home, one fee, however many of you live there.The official wording The rule is one dwelling, one fee: if several people live together in one dwelling, only one person pays. Flatmates do not each pay their own fee. Source ↗
Filing your tax return
Free on the official website. You only pay if you want someone to do it for you.The official wording The tax office (Finanzamt) decides, and the filing itself happens in ELSTER — the tax administration's own online portal, which is free to use. Nothing you pay for is required to file; what costs money is having someone prepare it for you. Source ↗
Fixing a mistake in your credit record
Free. A plain letter saying what is wrong is enough.The official wording If your Schufa record contains wrong or unlawfully stored data, the bureau must correct, delete, or restrict it free of charge. An informal letter stating exactly which data is incorrect is enough to request this. Source ↗
Every figure checked on or after 2026-07-14
Numbers change. We check them and print the date above, so you can see how fresh this is. Every line links to the office that set it, so you can check us.