Category: Money, Banking & Tax
Tax ID, basic bank account, child benefit and the money side of living in Germany.
-
German tax returns: when filing is compulsory — and the deadlines
You are not obliged by default — but five situations reverse the rule, and one of them refunds you.
-
Germany’s six tax classes: who falls into which, and why
Your class is not a free choice — the statute assigns it, and real choice exists in one place only.
-
Kindergeld in Germany: entitlement by residence permit, not nationality
Entitlement turns on your residence permit, not your nationality. Which permits qualify, which do not, the exceptions for students who work and for refugees — and why the tax ID comes first.
-
Basiskonto: your legal right to a basic bank account in Germany
Banks are obliged, not free to choose. Who is entitled, the ten-business-day deadline, and why a verbal refusal at the counter is not a decision you have to accept.
-
German tax ID (Steuer-ID): how it reaches you and what to do if you lose it
Issued once for life, sent automatically by post after your address registration. Where to find it if the letter is gone, how to request it again — and why “instant online” offers are a scam.