Abmeldung: how to deregister your address when you leave Germany

Who needs to deregister, and who does not

The Abmeldung is only for people who move out of an address and do not take a new one in Germany (§17 Federal Registration Act). That distinction trips up many expats.

• Leaving Germany for good: yes, you must deregister (§17 Abs. 2 BMG).
• Moving to another German city: no Abmeldung. You simply register at the new address within 2 weeks (Anmeldung, see Anmeldung in Germany), and the new registration office deregisters the old address for you.
• Going abroad temporarily and keeping your apartment: no Abmeldung. A semester abroad, a six-month project or a long trip does not require it, as long as the apartment stays yours.
• Giving up your apartment and travelling for months before settling elsewhere: yes. The rule is about the German address, not about where you land next.
• Keeping a second German address: if you give up your main residence (Hauptwohnung) but keep a secondary one, the secondary one becomes your main residence. Deregister only the address you actually leave.

Deregistering is not a formality you can skip because you are leaving. Your registration is what links you to the tax office, the broadcasting fee, the Familienkasse and the foreigners' office.

Step by step: how to do the Abmeldung

1. Pick your date. You can deregister from 7 days before your move-out date up to 14 days after it. The register is updated to the actual move-out date either way.
2. Get the form. It is called "Abmeldung bei der Meldebehörde" and is on your city's Bürgeramt website. Many cities have it as a fillable PDF. It asks for your personal details, the address you are leaving, the move-out date, and your new address abroad (the country is enough if you do not have one yet).
3. Include everyone moving with you. One form can cover family members at the same address; list each person.
4. Submit it. Choose whichever your city allows:

• In person at any Bürgeramt of the city. In big cities this needs an appointment, which can be weeks away.
• By post, with a copy of your passport or ID card. Berlin, for example, explicitly accepts postal Abmeldungen at any Bürgeramt.
• Online, where offered. Some municipalities have an online form, but it often requires the eID function of a German ID card, which most non-EU expats do not have. Check your city's page.

1. Receive the Abmeldebestätigung. This deregistration certificate comes by post or at the counter. Make several copies and scan it: you will need it repeatedly.

The Abmeldung is free everywhere in Germany. You do not need a confirmation from your landlord (Wohnungsgeberbestätigung): that is only required when you move in.

If you have already left, you can still deregister by post from abroad. Do it as soon as possible, and send the form with a copy of your passport and your date of departure.

Deadline and what happens if you forget

The law gives you 2 weeks after moving out (§17 Abs. 2 BMG). Missing it is an administrative offence with a fine of up to €1,000 (§54 BMG). In practice, fines for people who forgot are rare and usually small, but the real costs come from the things that keep running while you are still registered:

• Rundfunkbeitrag: the €18.36 monthly broadcasting fee keeps being billed, and unpaid fees go to enforcement.
• Tax office: you may still be treated as resident, with letters and deadlines going to an address you no longer read.
• Residence records: a future return to Germany, a citizenship application or a pension claim is easier with a clean, dated exit record.

If you realise months later that you never deregistered, send the form anyway with your real move-out date and proof such as a rental termination or a new foreign address registration. Registration offices can backdate the Abmeldung to the actual date.

What the Abmeldebestätigung unlocks

The certificate is the proof that you have left, and it is the key to ending your German obligations cleanly. Use it for:

Your rent is the exception: the special termination right does not apply to leases. You still need to give the normal notice of 3 months, so hand in the Kündigung early.

Your residence permit after the Abmeldung

For non-EU citizens, leaving Germany has consequences beyond the address. Under §51 of the Residence Act, a residence permit lapses when you leave for a reason that is not temporary, or when you stay abroad for more than 6 months. The Abmeldung is strong evidence that your departure is permanent.

• Most residence permits: expire once you leave for good. If you might come back, speak to your Ausländerbehörde before leaving; it can set a longer period for a temporary absence.
• EU Blue Card holders: the absence limit is 12 months instead of 6.
• Settlement permit (Niederlassungserlaubnis): usually lapses too, but people who lived in Germany legally for 15 years or more, with a secured livelihood, can keep it despite leaving.
• EU permanent residence (Daueraufenthalt-EU): lapses after 12 months outside the EU (24 months for former Blue Card holders), or after six years away from Germany.

Planning to come back one day? Read Permanent residency (Niederlassungserlaubnis) and EU Blue Card Germany before you deregister, because the order of steps can decide whether you keep your status.

Taxes in your departure year

Deregistering does not end your German tax affairs on its own. Two things matter:

• Tax residence follows your home, not your registration. If you keep an apartment in Germany that remains available to you, you can stay fully taxable here even after deregistering. Giving up the apartment is what ends it.
• File a return for the year you leave. Payroll withheld tax as if you would earn your salary all year, so leaving mid-year usually means a refund. Foreign income earned after you left is not taxed in Germany, but it can raise your German tax rate (Progressionsvorbehalt). Our tax refund calculator handles both cases.

Your Steuer-ID stays the same for life, so you can file the return from abroad through ELSTER or tax software. See The German tax return for the full process.

The Abmeldung in the order of leaving

Timing matters because some steps need the certificate and others need your German address to still work.

1. 2-3 months before: give notice on your apartment (3-month notice period), and check your residence-permit situation with the Ausländerbehörde if you might return.
2. 1 week before to 2 weeks after moving out: do the Abmeldung.
3. Right after receiving the certificate: cancel the Rundfunkbeitrag, phone, internet, gym and insurances, and inform the Krankenkasse and Familienkasse.
4. Before you go: set up mail forwarding abroad with Deutsche Post and give your bank and employer your foreign address.
5. After leaving: keep the bank account until your final salary, deposit and tax refund have arrived; file the departure-year tax return; claim the pension refund after 24 months if you are eligible.

The complete exit checklist, including selling furniture, moving money and closing accounts, is in Leaving Germany.

Frequently asked questions