February 3, 2015 at 12:50Looking back, or what would I have done differently, having moved to work in Germany now. Part 2
The first part is here .
So, you’ve settled somewhere and are already celebrating the move. It's too early to rejoice. It doesn’t matter where you live, you need to register - in fact, this is an analogue of Russian registration, only a stamp is not put in the passport, but a special piece of paper is issued (yes, in Germany “you’re without a piece of paper ...” you know yourself). Go to your Rathaus (city hall, village council, etc. - generally a local government body), bring Mietvertrag with you (when re-registering in the event of a change of housing in the same locality, I have never been asked for it, but at the first, when you are only from the plane - yes) and ask you to register at this address. If you come with a family - present the whole family, as it is necessary to put a signature, and adult children are given a separate piece of paper.
After that (depends on theweather on Mars and the moon phasethe speed of your Rathaus and ABH), your registration information will go to ABH. In theory, everything happens in electronic form, but in our case, when we changed the apartment, the data in ABH got on me and my wife a week later, and on an adult son only 3 weeks later (he had to dangle twice, and our ABH didn’t close - 60 kilometers will be). You make a term and go to your beber on the appointed day and time to apply for a residence permit / blue card, as initially you entered on a short-term visa (3-6 months). All ABH beraters speak English, so if you don’t have an assistant-relocator from your new employer (which I strongly recommend having at first - it will greatly simplify adaptation in a new place), then calmly speak English there, if German is not very / absent as a class.
Before starting work directly (you can, of course, also in the process, but before receiving the first salary) you need to open an account (account) in a bank, as the salary will be transferred there - no “envelopes”. Again, the banks are full of English-speaking beraters (I even got one Russian). I won’t give any advice on which bank to choose - everything is individual here. Just look at the largest (Sparkasse, Deutsche Bank, Commerzbank, Volksbank, etc.). Over time, you will understand the intricacies of the banking system and you can easily change your account for payroll. Opening the account itself does not cost anything - in 1-2 weeks you will receive an envelope with a PIN code in the mail, in a week - the card itself. Depending on the bank (and your salary in the contract), you may immediately be offered to issue a credit card (MasterCard). For the first year or two, as a rule, it is free. In principle, it is not particularly useful here, but if you do not have a car yet, but want to travel around the country, you will rent it. And without a credit card, no one will give you a rental car. So think for yourself.
I had a relocator who helped in everything, communicated with all organs in German, and with me in English. On the one hand, it’s good, but on the other hand, you miss a lot of nuances without knowing the language, and the “assistant” may forget to translate something. In this case, I recommend going to ABH with a friend who speaks both Russian and German (if there is one) - it will be much easier to settle all the nuances and not miss anything.
I recommend studying the “ATM card” of banks located in the city where you are moving. There are several groups of banks in the network of which I will not charge cash for interest. When withdrawing, there will be a commission in a “foreign” bank. Plastic is not as widespread as it might seem. Credit cards are not accepted for payment anywhere except McDonalds (maybe even where they are accepted, but in our area I have never seen precedents anywhere else). As a rule, in small stores only with a purchase amount of 10 euros or more you can pay EC Karte (Maestro), to which your account is tied. If the purchase amount is less than 10 euros, they either refuse to pay with a card or are extremely reluctant to do so. So cash you still need it.
Smokers also note - cigarette vending machines are located almost on every corner (Germany is a very smoking country in general). To buy them, you need either Ausweis (which you will not have for a long time) or EC Karte with a chip. The bottom line is that on Ausweis and on EC Karte (in the chip) your age is flashed. If you are under 18, the machine will politely send you. Then, either deposit cash or pay with Geldkarte (the same chip). You can top up Geldkarte at an ATM - money is written off to it from your account.
Germany, I think, is a paradise for shopaholics. If you let your wife go, say, “take a walk” along the Zeil in Frankfurt with a card attached to your account ... You can say goodbye to money (just kidding, of course). This area of Frankfurt is also called "5th Avenue of Germany" or "Golden Mile". But the prices, of course, are there.
On the other hand, there are a lot of discounters where you can buy anything at really very low prices (discounts reach 70-90%). More than once I watched the crowds of Russian "shuttles" devastating such discounters, sweeping away everything in their path. Then, at Frankfurt Airport, they also receive a tax refund. In Russia, I think they sell it as “brands from Europe” in their respective boutiques - they are not badly welded.
Grocery stores also vary greatly in price categories. For example, Aldi, Penni, Real, Kaufland, Lidl, Netto - large discounter networks where people are bought for a week or two in advance. But they are usually located on the outskirts or in industrial areas, so without a car / bicycle it is often not possible to get there. Shops, the so-called "walking distance" such as Edeka, REWE, Toom are quite expensive, often not high-quality products. Sometimes they even cheat at the checkout.
Almost every city has Russian or Turkish shops with their own national assortment and very often with much higher quality vegetables / fruits. Yes, the taste and color ... But personally, we avoid buying vegetables at discounters - they are completely tasteless. Even such bioproducts, popular among Germans, also do not shine with taste qualities (and sometimes cost twice as much as usual). For example, in Darmstadt, we have normal white cabbage, from which you can make normal sized cabbage, can be bought either in a Russian store (Lackmann) or in a Turkish one (Yazgülü). In MixMarkt, I don’t advise going to ours - either spoiled, or rude as in a scoop.
As already written in a previous post - you need to study the map of your city, high and / or nearby cities before breaking into the first store you get. Otherwise, then you will bite your elbows.
Do not be afraid to buy things (not products) on the Internet - this is everywhere. Technique, clothes, but anything. As a rule, if something doesn’t fit, you send back without any problems for free - the seller pays the return. In this case, you pay for the delivery to you. For example, Otto has friends, and we often take our clothes ourselves - they deliver a bunch of boxes, measure something, leave something, return something. Payment for what was left is done only later. Those. in fact, they deliver you "to measure", and pay later.
That’s the trouble with it, it’s with the Internet. I have never met symmetrical speeds anywhere. Those. you can have both 10 and 100 Mb / s speed to you, but from you it usually does not exceed 2.5-5 Mb / s. So you don’t really shake the torrents - the rating will fall (sarcasm).
If you came here with your handy (cell phone), then I think that in the beginning you will not want to change it and therefore you will have to use prepaid tariffs. You can buy Sims in many mobile stores, as well as from the largest mobile operators (and even in just supermarkets at the checkout and at gas stations). I got the impression that it’s more profitable to take from retailers than from the mobile operators themselves - it comes out much cheaper. Forget about unlimited on the mobile Internet. More precisely, it seems to be unlimited, but the speed is cut to 64Kb / s after 100, 200, 500, 1000 Mb of traffic (depending on the tariff).
It is often very beneficial to connect your home phone, TV, Internet and handy to one operator - you always get discounts.
DSL is very common (hello, 90s!). Cable Internet is not everywhere, therefore, when searching for an apartment, I advise you to check in advance on the sites of cable providers whether this house is connected to their network.
As I was advised in due time - I repeat this advice here - if you connect TV, do not put Russian-language programs at least in the first year - watch and listen only to German ones. Otherwise, why did you come here?
In our first apartment, we were connected to O2 via DSL. Then I did not know yet that cable Internet is not particularly widespread here and that when renting a house you should first check if this house is connected to the network of any cable provider (Unitymedia, Kabel Deutschland).
At first, I bought a couple of SIM cards at a gas station - then it turned out that the tariff was just draconian (15 cents a minute, 10 cents sms). By the way, tariffing is everywhere minute by minute. Constantly tormented with the purchase of cards in order to replenish the balance (going to the Euroset salon and throwing a couple of rubles into the account will not work here). Cards are sold at gas stations and at supermarket checkout counters. Balance can be replenished by 10, 15, 20 or 50 euros. After finally taking new handies with a contract for himself and his wife, it became easier to live, life became more fun. About 60 euros are spent per month to pay for the contract, but an unlimited number of calls and SMS for anything is already included. I still have 1GB of mobile Internet enabled (4G is almost everywhere), my wife has 200MB - we have enough (well, yes - I have more, but I need to read Geektimes with the hub, somehow?).
This is the passion of this country. Together with beer, sausages, potato salad (muck), apple wine (another muck) and football. Almost everyone has cars, even those who sit on the social. If someone doesn’t have a car, either he doesn’t have money yet to buy it, he doesn’t have rights yet, or he is a very strange type (a joke).
A car to drive the first time or, say, to go shopping or to bring children to kindergarten / school (but not for long trips) can be bought for 500 euros. Even for 100. She will not be killed - don’t worry (you will never get through with a dead machine, but oh, how strict it is with that). For the purposes described above - it’s suitable for all 100. Yes, yes, I did not seal it and you see exactly the amount of 100 (one hundred) euros.
Diesel is extremely popular, but there is a double-edged sword: the tax on a diesel car is higher than on a gasoline one and therefore, if you are not going to drive it long distances, it is better to take the gasoline version. Otherwise, the diesel engine simply will not pay off. We don’t have a car yet (previously I wrote about how I “went wrong” with the rights), but according to the stories of colleagues and friends, say the Opel Zafira diesel “costs” 2,500 euros of taxes and insurances per year (of course, the amount of insurance depends on the total experience and trouble-free, as well as from a specific make and model of car). Consider it yourself - if you drive only from home to work and to the store once a week, it might be better to take a hybrid (I read that by 2020 they plan to significantly increase the number of power stations and also make various bonuses to owners of electric hybrids).
To be continued (there will be a separate post about kindergartens and schools - I hope it’s not very long, because it is very important for us)
UPD: following the advice of batja84 , I specifically indicate: all the tips, cases, “facts” apply to my region Accommodation - Bundesland Hessen, Landkreis Darmstadt-Dieburg. In other regions, and especially lands, there may be peculiarities .
Great and terrible ABH (Ausländerbehörde)
So, you’ve settled somewhere and are already celebrating the move. It's too early to rejoice. It doesn’t matter where you live, you need to register - in fact, this is an analogue of Russian registration, only a stamp is not put in the passport, but a special piece of paper is issued (yes, in Germany “you’re without a piece of paper ...” you know yourself). Go to your Rathaus (city hall, village council, etc. - generally a local government body), bring Mietvertrag with you (when re-registering in the event of a change of housing in the same locality, I have never been asked for it, but at the first, when you are only from the plane - yes) and ask you to register at this address. If you come with a family - present the whole family, as it is necessary to put a signature, and adult children are given a separate piece of paper.
After that (depends on the
Before starting work directly (you can, of course, also in the process, but before receiving the first salary) you need to open an account (account) in a bank, as the salary will be transferred there - no “envelopes”. Again, the banks are full of English-speaking beraters (I even got one Russian). I won’t give any advice on which bank to choose - everything is individual here. Just look at the largest (Sparkasse, Deutsche Bank, Commerzbank, Volksbank, etc.). Over time, you will understand the intricacies of the banking system and you can easily change your account for payroll. Opening the account itself does not cost anything - in 1-2 weeks you will receive an envelope with a PIN code in the mail, in a week - the card itself. Depending on the bank (and your salary in the contract), you may immediately be offered to issue a credit card (MasterCard). For the first year or two, as a rule, it is free. In principle, it is not particularly useful here, but if you do not have a car yet, but want to travel around the country, you will rent it. And without a credit card, no one will give you a rental car. So think for yourself.
What would I do differently now:
Abh
I had a relocator who helped in everything, communicated with all organs in German, and with me in English. On the one hand, it’s good, but on the other hand, you miss a lot of nuances without knowing the language, and the “assistant” may forget to translate something. In this case, I recommend going to ABH with a friend who speaks both Russian and German (if there is one) - it will be much easier to settle all the nuances and not miss anything.
Bank
I recommend studying the “ATM card” of banks located in the city where you are moving. There are several groups of banks in the network of which I will not charge cash for interest. When withdrawing, there will be a commission in a “foreign” bank. Plastic is not as widespread as it might seem. Credit cards are not accepted for payment anywhere except McDonalds (maybe even where they are accepted, but in our area I have never seen precedents anywhere else). As a rule, in small stores only with a purchase amount of 10 euros or more you can pay EC Karte (Maestro), to which your account is tied. If the purchase amount is less than 10 euros, they either refuse to pay with a card or are extremely reluctant to do so. So cash you still need it.
Smokers also note - cigarette vending machines are located almost on every corner (Germany is a very smoking country in general). To buy them, you need either Ausweis (which you will not have for a long time) or EC Karte with a chip. The bottom line is that on Ausweis and on EC Karte (in the chip) your age is flashed. If you are under 18, the machine will politely send you. Then, either deposit cash or pay with Geldkarte (the same chip). You can top up Geldkarte at an ATM - money is written off to it from your account.
The shops
Germany, I think, is a paradise for shopaholics. If you let your wife go, say, “take a walk” along the Zeil in Frankfurt with a card attached to your account ... You can say goodbye to money (just kidding, of course). This area of Frankfurt is also called "5th Avenue of Germany" or "Golden Mile". But the prices, of course, are there.
On the other hand, there are a lot of discounters where you can buy anything at really very low prices (discounts reach 70-90%). More than once I watched the crowds of Russian "shuttles" devastating such discounters, sweeping away everything in their path. Then, at Frankfurt Airport, they also receive a tax refund. In Russia, I think they sell it as “brands from Europe” in their respective boutiques - they are not badly welded.
Grocery stores also vary greatly in price categories. For example, Aldi, Penni, Real, Kaufland, Lidl, Netto - large discounter networks where people are bought for a week or two in advance. But they are usually located on the outskirts or in industrial areas, so without a car / bicycle it is often not possible to get there. Shops, the so-called "walking distance" such as Edeka, REWE, Toom are quite expensive, often not high-quality products. Sometimes they even cheat at the checkout.
Almost every city has Russian or Turkish shops with their own national assortment and very often with much higher quality vegetables / fruits. Yes, the taste and color ... But personally, we avoid buying vegetables at discounters - they are completely tasteless. Even such bioproducts, popular among Germans, also do not shine with taste qualities (and sometimes cost twice as much as usual). For example, in Darmstadt, we have normal white cabbage, from which you can make normal sized cabbage, can be bought either in a Russian store (Lackmann) or in a Turkish one (Yazgülü). In MixMarkt, I don’t advise going to ours - either spoiled, or rude as in a scoop.
What would I do differently now:
As already written in a previous post - you need to study the map of your city, high and / or nearby cities before breaking into the first store you get. Otherwise, then you will bite your elbows.
Do not be afraid to buy things (not products) on the Internet - this is everywhere. Technique, clothes, but anything. As a rule, if something doesn’t fit, you send back without any problems for free - the seller pays the return. In this case, you pay for the delivery to you. For example, Otto has friends, and we often take our clothes ourselves - they deliver a bunch of boxes, measure something, leave something, return something. Payment for what was left is done only later. Those. in fact, they deliver you "to measure", and pay later.
Internet, handy, tv
That’s the trouble with it, it’s with the Internet. I have never met symmetrical speeds anywhere. Those. you can have both 10 and 100 Mb / s speed to you, but from you it usually does not exceed 2.5-5 Mb / s. So you don’t really shake the torrents - the rating will fall (sarcasm).
If you came here with your handy (cell phone), then I think that in the beginning you will not want to change it and therefore you will have to use prepaid tariffs. You can buy Sims in many mobile stores, as well as from the largest mobile operators (and even in just supermarkets at the checkout and at gas stations). I got the impression that it’s more profitable to take from retailers than from the mobile operators themselves - it comes out much cheaper. Forget about unlimited on the mobile Internet. More precisely, it seems to be unlimited, but the speed is cut to 64Kb / s after 100, 200, 500, 1000 Mb of traffic (depending on the tariff).
It is often very beneficial to connect your home phone, TV, Internet and handy to one operator - you always get discounts.
DSL is very common (hello, 90s!). Cable Internet is not everywhere, therefore, when searching for an apartment, I advise you to check in advance on the sites of cable providers whether this house is connected to their network.
As I was advised in due time - I repeat this advice here - if you connect TV, do not put Russian-language programs at least in the first year - watch and listen only to German ones. Otherwise, why did you come here?
What would I do differently now:
the Internet
In our first apartment, we were connected to O2 via DSL. Then I did not know yet that cable Internet is not particularly widespread here and that when renting a house you should first check if this house is connected to the network of any cable provider (Unitymedia, Kabel Deutschland).
Handy
At first, I bought a couple of SIM cards at a gas station - then it turned out that the tariff was just draconian (15 cents a minute, 10 cents sms). By the way, tariffing is everywhere minute by minute. Constantly tormented with the purchase of cards in order to replenish the balance (going to the Euroset salon and throwing a couple of rubles into the account will not work here). Cards are sold at gas stations and at supermarket checkout counters. Balance can be replenished by 10, 15, 20 or 50 euros. After finally taking new handies with a contract for himself and his wife, it became easier to live, life became more fun. About 60 euros are spent per month to pay for the contract, but an unlimited number of calls and SMS for anything is already included. I still have 1GB of mobile Internet enabled (4G is almost everywhere), my wife has 200MB - we have enough (well, yes - I have more, but I need to read Geektimes with the hub, somehow?).
Cars
This is the passion of this country. Together with beer, sausages, potato salad (muck), apple wine (another muck) and football. Almost everyone has cars, even those who sit on the social. If someone doesn’t have a car, either he doesn’t have money yet to buy it, he doesn’t have rights yet, or he is a very strange type (a joke).
A car to drive the first time or, say, to go shopping or to bring children to kindergarten / school (but not for long trips) can be bought for 500 euros. Even for 100. She will not be killed - don’t worry (you will never get through with a dead machine, but oh, how strict it is with that). For the purposes described above - it’s suitable for all 100. Yes, yes, I did not seal it and you see exactly the amount of 100 (one hundred) euros.
Diesel is extremely popular, but there is a double-edged sword: the tax on a diesel car is higher than on a gasoline one and therefore, if you are not going to drive it long distances, it is better to take the gasoline version. Otherwise, the diesel engine simply will not pay off. We don’t have a car yet (previously I wrote about how I “went wrong” with the rights), but according to the stories of colleagues and friends, say the Opel Zafira diesel “costs” 2,500 euros of taxes and insurances per year (of course, the amount of insurance depends on the total experience and trouble-free, as well as from a specific make and model of car). Consider it yourself - if you drive only from home to work and to the store once a week, it might be better to take a hybrid (I read that by 2020 they plan to significantly increase the number of power stations and also make various bonuses to owners of electric hybrids).
To be continued (there will be a separate post about kindergartens and schools - I hope it’s not very long, because it is very important for us)
UPD: following the advice of batja84 , I specifically indicate: all the tips, cases, “facts” apply to my region Accommodation - Bundesland Hessen, Landkreis Darmstadt-Dieburg. In other regions, and especially lands, there may be peculiarities .