Your first steps in Osnabrück

Step 1: Sign your contract
Organise a meeting with me to sign your contract. I will be your contact person in central administration for the first couple of days after your arrival and will support you in completing some further official documents required by the university. I will also give you information on opening a bank account, getting health insurance, registering your address with the city’s authorities and extending your visa, if you are not an EU citizen. Finally, I will help you with any cultural or language issues you may encounter during your stay in Germany and help you connect to other international members of staff.

Step 2: Going to your department
Organise a meeting with your contact person in your academic department as soon as possible after you have signed your contract (preferably on the same day). They will be your first and most important contact person at the university during the first couple of days of your stay here. They will show you around the department and introduce you to other members of the department. Your contact person will also inform you about regulations pertaining to matters such as taking leave or reporting to the department when you are ill.

Step 3: Registration at the city’s Foreigners’ Office and at the city’s Registration Office

Sign your rental contract (needed for this step) and make an appointment for registration at the city’s Registration Office (EU-citizen and non-EU-citizen).

In Germany, one is obliged to register one’s place of residence with the authorities in the city where one lives. Furthermore, non-EU citizens need to apply for a residence title that permits them to work here and sometimes need to extend it during their stay. Your academic department may organise someone to accompany you to the city’s Foreigners’ Office or to the Registration Office.

A) Citizens from EU and non-EU states

Where to go: The city’s Registration Office (“Einwohnermeldeamt” in German).

Address - Registration Office: Stadthaus 1, Natruper-Tor-Wall 2, 49076 Osnabrück

What to take along:

1) Your passport.
2) A so-called “Wohnungsgeberbestätigung” showing your address and serving as official proof that you have accommodation in Osnabrück. Please ask your landlord or landlady to complete it.
3) If family members are accompanying you, you also need these documents:
a) A list with the names of all family members that have to be registered.
b) Their passports showing their valid visas.
c) Your original marriage certificate as well as the original birth certificates of all family members that have to be registered. The marriage and birth certificates need to be accompanied by certified German translations.

Costs: EU citizens do not pay any fees to register.

B) Only citizens from non-EU states

Where to go to: The city’s Foreigners‘ Office (“Ausländerbehörde” in German). Each German city has such an office. They are responsible for administrative matters pertaining to non-EU citizens living in Germany (e. g. residence title).

Address Foreigners’ Office: Stadthaus 2, Natruper-Tor-Wall 5, 49076 Osnabrück

What to take along:

1) Your passport
2) Your current residence permit
3) Document "Antrag auf Verlängerung eines Aufenthaltstitels" (we will send this document to you after the signing of your contract)
4) Document "Verdienstbescheinigung" (HR can send it to you)
5) Proof of health insurance. We will provide you with information on this during our first meeting.
6) Passport-sized biometrical photo
7) Phone number and email-adress for questions

Costs: The registration procedure at the Foreigners’ Office may cost up to EUR 147,00.

Step 4: Taking care of practical and official matters
In addition to settling in at the university, you will also need to take care of a number of administrative and practical matters once you are here, such as:

• Open a bank account: This you can only do after you have registered your address with the city’s authorities. Beside this, some banks need your residence permit as well. You can open an account with any bank
• Pass on the following information and documents to us:
  • Tax ID
    It will be sent to you, after you have been to the Foreigners’ Office or the city’s registration office.
  • Bank details: IBAN, BIC, bank address
    These will be given to you, when you open your bank account. Please do not forget to write down your bank’s physical address.
  • certificate of good conduct (Führungszeugnis)
    Ask for it when you go to the Foreigners’ Office (Ausländerbehörde) or the city’s registration office (Einwohnermeldeamt). Ask them to send it directly to the HR officer responsible for you.
  • Document stating that you have registered your address here (Meldebescheinigung)
    The Foreigners’ Office (Ausländerbehörde) or the city’s registration office (Einwohnermeldeamt) issue this document.
  • Proof of medical aid and social security
    You can either personally go to a health insurance company or register online.

Information on taking leave, sick leave and going on an official trip

For insurance, administrative and organisational purposes, it is important to do the paperwork when taking leave or going on an official trip. Below are the most important points to take into consideration.

• Applying for leave
  Should you want to go on leave, please use the orange form called an “Urlaubsantrag”. It will be handed out to you by the secretary responsible for your research group. You will be using this form to apply for and record your leave for the whole duration of your contract. Each application for leave must be approved by your supervisor.
   
• Sick leave
  Should you get ill, contact the secretary responsible for your research group – also when you are on holiday. You can phone or send an e-mail. From the fourth day onwards, you need a doctor’s certificate that should be given or sent to the secretary. Also inform the secretary when you are back at work again.
   
• Official trip
  Should you go on an official trip, e.g. because you are attending a conference or doing fieldwork, you need to complete a document called a “Dienstreisegenehmigung”. The document is available on the Intranet. Complete the document and let your supervisor sign it, before you leave on your official trip. Should you have any questions or need any help in completing the document, do not hesitate to contact me or to get the administrative member of staff supporting your research group to help you.