Change your place of residence

If you move, you must register at your new place of residence. Even if you move within the same city, municipality or administrative community, you must register with the registration office within two weeks of moving into your new home.n.

For children up to the age of 16, the person whose home the children are moving into must register them. The consent of the legal guardian may be required.

Late re-registration can be punished with a fine.

Personal registration:

• Fill out a registration form and sign it.
• Present this to the registration office, together with your identity card, recognized and valid passport or passport replacement document as well as confirmation from your landlord or the corresponding allocation feature. If the registration register is kept automatically, you do not need to fill in the registration form if you appear in person at the registration office and confirm the accuracy and completeness of the data collected by the registration office with your signature on a printout. You can also be represented at the registration office by another person by submitting the necessary documents (registration documents and power of attorney).
• Family members and members of a civil partnership should use a registration form together if they move from a shared home to a new shared home on the same day; it is sufficient if one of the persons obliged to register makes the registration.
• Newborns born in Germany only need to be registered if they are taken into a home other than that of the 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.
• Once you have registered, you will receive a confirmation of registration.

Electronic registration:

• First identify yourself in the online service via the BundID account using your identity card or eID card for (non-German) EU citizens. You will then be shown the data stored about you by the previous registration authority.
• The next step is to add the new address, the move-in and move-out dates and details of the landlord (and owner, if applicable) of your new home to this data and upload the landlord confirmation. You now have the option of checking the transfer blocks you have entered or setting up new transfer blocks.
• Finally, check your details again and send the registration to the new registration office.
• As a rule, you will receive the registration confirmation a few days later as a downloadable PDF. In the case of a random sample of addresses, a confirmation code is sent by post to the new address 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 of your new home.
• Once you have completed the registration process, you will need to update your ID card and passport (if you have one) to include the new address or place of residence so that you can continue to use the eID function for electronic administrative services without any problems:
  • If the online service offered by your municipality supports the change of ID documents, you can also do this directly online. After you have re-identified yourself with your ID card or eID card, the online service can save the new address on the chip of your ID card or eID card. In addition, you will receive an address/residence sticker by post, which you can affix to your ID card and passport (if applicable) according to the instructions provided.
  • Alternatively, you can have these documents updated at any time at the citizens' office in your new municipality.
• Please note: If the electronic registration process is interrupted for technical reasons or the registration office cancels the electronic registration during the verification process, you will receive a notification. Please contact your new municipality in person to complete the registration process and to change your ID card, passport or eID card.

Please contact the registration office of your municipality.

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

Personal registration:

• Identity card or passport, if the person required to register has reached the age of 16, or eID card
• Identity documents of family members who are registered together on one registration form
  • for children: Children's passport or birth certificate
• Confirmation from the landlord
• Completed and signed registration form (registration form is available from the registration office)
• The registration office may request the submission of further documents to verify the information (e.g. birth certificate, marriage certificate, divorce decree).

Electronic registration of residence:

• ID document with activated online ID and the corresponding PIN
• Suitable smartphone with NFC interface or card reader
• Federal ID card app (free of charge) for the smartphone or PC
• User account, for example BundID

There are no fees. However, if you do not comply with your obligation to re-register or do not do so on time, you are committing an administrative offense which can be punished with a fine.

You must register your new home with the registration office within two weeks of moving in.

Registrations are usually processed immediately.

Forms on the Internet: depending on what the municipality offers

Online procedure possible: depending on the municipality's offer

Written form required: yes

Personal appearance required: generally yes

To be able to vote in an election in the municipality, you must have lived in the municipality for at least three months and be eligible to vote. If you register with a municipality as your main place of residence, you will automatically be entered in the electoral register for the next upcoming election or vote. Special rules apply to the European elections for foreign EU citizens.

In addition, only German nationals and EU citizens with an eID card can currently register. The registration of third-country nationals with an electronic residence permit is currently being planned.

The text was automatically translated based on the German content.

Thuringian Ministry of the Interior and Municipal Affairs

15.10.2024