Leaving Germany: What to Deregister and Cancel – and When

The move to Sweden is decided and the excitement is building – but there is still plenty of German paperwork to deal with. What matters is not just what you need to do, but above all when. Cancel too late and you might keep paying for things you no longer need for months. Cancel too early and you may find yourself in Sweden without a working bank account, without a phone number for your TAN codes or without health cover.

We have been through this ourselves. This post is for everyone moving from Germany to Sweden: we show you the order that works in practice – and where the law sets fixed deadlines.

The order that works

In our experience, the transition goes most smoothly like this:

1. Organise the move – and do everything that has to be done before you move out.
2. Deregister at the registration office – around the time you move out, because there is a legal deadline.
3. In Sweden, apply for your personnummer (personal identity number) at Skatteverket.
4. With your personnummer, apply for a Swedish ID card (id-kort) at Skatteverket.
5. With the ID card, open a Swedish bank account.
6. Set up BankID.
7. Only once everything works in Sweden: cancel or switch your German current account, phone contract and remaining contracts.

Important: this order applies to everything you still need for the transition. It does not postpone any legal obligations. Deregistering at the registration office and duties to report, such as to the Familienkasse, have fixed deadlines – and they always come first.

Before the move: what you can already sort out

Give notice on your rental contract

The statutory notice period for tenants in Germany is usually three months. Plan in good time so you don't end up paying rent twice.

Check your driving licence

Your German EU driving licence remains valid in Sweden. But pay attention to the German exchange deadlines for old licences: all licences issued before 19 January 2013 must be exchanged by 19 January 2033 at the latest – depending on the year of issue or year of birth, earlier deadlines apply and many have already passed (German Federal Government: licence exchange, in German). If you still have an old paper licence or an early card licence, it is best to exchange it in Germany before you move. That is easier than sorting it out from abroad later.

Check your pension record

The pension contributions you have paid so far don't expire. Within the EU, insurance periods from several countries are added together when it comes to your pension entitlement, and your German pension can later be paid out to you in Sweden.

• Check your insurance record (Versicherungsverlauf) for gaps before you move and have them clarified while you are still in Germany.
• If someone in your family already receives a pension, the Deutsche Rentenversicherung (German pension insurance) recommends informing them of the new address and bank details about two months before the move.

More information is available from the Deutsche Rentenversicherung on moving abroad (in German).

Set up mail forwarding

Deutsche Post also offers a mail forwarding service (Nachsendeservice) to other countries. Order it at least five working days before the desired start date. Note: parcels, registered mail and advertising mail are not forwarded abroad, and the foreign postal service may charge extra fees (Deutsche Post: mail forwarding FAQ, in German).

Sort your contracts: cancel now or later?

Go through all your contracts and split them into two groups:

• Cancel now: internet and landline – if your provider cannot offer the service at your new home, which is the case in Sweden, section 60 of the German Telecommunications Act allows you to cancel with one month's notice. Electricity and gas end when you move out – report your meter readings and moving-out date. Add streaming, magazines and subscriptions you no longer need. Gyms and clubs: moving does not automatically give you a right to cancel early, but many are accommodating when you move abroad.
• Don't cancel yet: your German current account, your mobile contract or German number (TAN codes, two-factor logins), anything that covers you during the transition and – if you move with your own car – its registration and car insurance.

Send cancellations in a way you can prove, for example by registered mail, and enclose the deregistration certificate if requested.

Car

If you sell the car, deregister it before the move – that also ends vehicle tax and insurance. If you take it with you, keep it registered and insured in Germany at first, drive to Sweden and re-register it there. We explain in detail how that works in Sweden in our post on importing a car. Check with your German vehicle registration office (Zulassungsstelle) and your insurer beforehand about how and when to deregister the vehicle in Germany.

Around moving day: deregistering at the registration office

The legal deadline

If you move out of your home and don't move into a new one in Germany, you must deregister (Abmeldung). This is set out in section 17(2) of the Federal Registration Act: you must deregister within two weeks of moving out (§ 17 BMG). As a rule, you can do this at the earliest one week before you move out.

• The responsible office is the Bürgeramt or Einwohnermeldeamt (residents' registration office) of your current town.
• Many municipalities also let you deregister in writing or online.
• Give your Swedish address as your new address if you already know it.

Our tip: Deregistration is the one step where you can't wait for Sweden. Schedule it firmly for the week around moving out.

The deregistration certificate

Make sure you get a deregistration certificate (Abmeldebescheinigung). Many offices only issue it if you explicitly ask for it. You'll need it for your health insurer, the broadcasting fee, contracts and sometimes in Sweden too. Make several copies straight away and scan it.

Report immediately: the Familienkasse

If you move to Sweden with children, you must notify the Familienkasse (the family benefits office) immediately – there is no waiting here. Under EU rules, the country where a parent works takes priority; if no one works, the country of residence is responsible. So after the move you will usually receive Swedish child benefit (barnbidrag) from Försäkringskassan (the Swedish Social Insurance Agency). German child benefit or a top-up amount (Differenzkindergeld) may still apply, for example if one parent keeps working in Germany – this depends very much on the individual case. If you don't report the move, you will have to pay back any child benefit paid in excess.

Health insurance: sort out the transition

If you have statutory health insurance, your membership usually ends when you move away or when your employment subject to compulsory insurance in Germany ends. In Sweden you are covered by the Swedish system once you live there and are folkbokförd (registered as a resident).

• Tell your health insurer about the move early on and send them the deregistration certificate.
• When moving abroad permanently, the usual minimum membership periods generally don't apply.
• There are exceptions, e.g. for pensioners receiving a German pension or cross-border commuters: here the German insurer may remain responsible and issue form S1.

Make sure you have continuous cover for the weeks until you are folkbokförd in Sweden. Check with your insurer whether you are still covered or need interim insurance – and only end that cover once your registration in Sweden is complete. If you have private health insurance, check whether a dormant policy (Anwartschaftsversicherung) makes sense in case you might return.

Cancelling the broadcasting fee

The German broadcasting fee (Rundfunkbeitrag) does not end automatically. You can deregister your account if you move abroad permanently and give up your German home completely. As proof, you need the deregistration certificate (Rundfunkbeitrag: living abroad). You can deregister online with your contribution number (Beitragsnummer). If other people still live in the home, one of them must register the home in their name. You can take care of this as soon as you have the certificate.

Arriving in Sweden: personnummer, ID card, bank account, BankID

Why shouldn't you cancel your German account and phone straight away? Because in Sweden the key steps build on each other – and each one takes time:

1. Personnummer: You register with Skatteverket (folkbokföring – entry in the Swedish population register). Only then do you get your personnummer, which often takes several weeks.
2. ID card: With your personnummer, you apply for a Swedish ID card (id-kort) at Skatteverket.
3. Bank account: In our experience, in practice you won't get a bank account without a Swedish ID card – not even with a German passport.
4. BankID: The electronic identification that almost everything in Swedish daily life depends on is set up through your Swedish bank.

Until this chain is complete, you need your German current account for payments and your German phone number for TAN codes and two-factor logins. That is exactly why you cancel both at the very end. We explain each step in detail in our posts on the personnummer, the ID card, opening a bank account and BankID.

Once everything works in Sweden: wrap things up in Germany

As soon as your personnummer, ID card, Swedish account and BankID are working, you can tidy up in Germany.

German current account: keep or close?

Keeping a German current account often makes sense – for pensions, refunds, ongoing payments in Germany or online purchases. Give your bank your new address. Some banks only offer accounts to customers living abroad on a limited basis, so ask. Also make sure that your TAN method and online banking still work from Sweden. If you want to close the account, move all standing orders and direct debits to your Swedish account first.

Mobile contract and German number

Before you cancel your mobile contract, register a new number for TAN codes and two-factor logins with your bank, online services and government portals. Otherwise you may lock yourself out. Check your contract's notice period so you don't pay longer than necessary.

Remaining insurance and contracts

Anything you kept for the transition can now be cancelled or switched. For the car: once it is registered and insured in Sweden, deregister it in Germany as agreed with the registration office and your insurer.

Tax office and taxes

When you move away, your unlimited tax liability in Germany usually ends. If you continue to have income from Germany afterwards – rental income from a property, for example – you become subject to limited tax liability (beschränkte Steuerpflicht) and may have to declare that income in Germany. Germany and Sweden have a double taxation agreement that governs which country may tax what.

• Tell your tax office (Finanzamt) that you have moved away and give them your new address.
• In many cases, you will still need to file a German tax return for the year you move.
• You keep your tax ID (Steuer-ID) – it is valid for life.
• Tell your bank promptly: a tax exemption order (Freistellungsauftrag) requires unlimited tax liability.

Tax law can get complicated quickly when you emigrate, for example with property, company shareholdings or larger assets. It is worth talking to a tax advisor with experience in international cases. We cannot and do not want to replace tax advice here.

Pension insurance and voting rights

Let the Deutsche Rentenversicherung know your new address. And if you want to keep voting in German federal elections: as a German living abroad, you have to apply to be entered in the electoral register.

The checklist in the right order

Before the move

1. Give notice on your rental contract in good time (usually three months)
2. Check your driving licence and exchange it in Germany if necessary
3. Check your pension insurance record
4. Order mail forwarding at least five working days in advance
5. Cancel contracts you no longer need (internet, electricity, gas, subscriptions)
6. Sell and deregister your car, or coordinate the move with the registration office and your insurer

Around moving day

1. Deregister at the registration office – within two weeks of moving out – and take the deregistration certificate with you
2. Notify the Familienkasse immediately
3. Inform your health insurer and make sure you are covered until you are folkbokförd
4. Deregister from the broadcasting fee

In Sweden

1. Register with Skatteverket and receive your personnummer
2. Apply for an ID card at Skatteverket
3. Open a Swedish bank account
4. Set up BankID

Once everything works in Sweden

1. Register a new number for TAN codes and two-factor logins, then cancel your mobile contract
2. Switch or close your German current account
3. Cancel remaining insurance, deregister your car in Germany
4. Inform the tax office and the pension insurance
5. Keep your right to vote: apply to be entered in the electoral register

Our conclusion

Leaving Germany isn't rocket science – what matters is the order. Deregister at the registration office on time around moving day, and notify the Familienkasse immediately. Everything you need for the transition – your current account, phone number and health cover – you keep until the chain of personnummer, ID card, bank account and BankID is in place in Sweden. For tax questions and special cases such as child benefit, it pays to ask the responsible authority directly.