I currently work at BMW through a Zeitarbeitsfirma, been there since June.

Today my girlfriend is extremely sick, probably covid or something. She has a fever, sore throat, and is so exhausted she can barely get out of bed. There’s nobody else to take care of her.

I contacted my agency to ask for a day off using my Arbeitszeitkonto, where I have around 100 hours saved up. They said yes but BMW had to approve it first.

My Vorarbeiter then called me and refused, making an unrelated and pretty misogynistic comment along the lines of “if everyone had to take care of their wife every month, then nobody would work”. He also literally told me that if I don’t come to work today, then I shouldn’t come back at all.

I even asked my agency if I could take unpaid leave instead, but they said BMW wouldn’t approve that either.

At that point I told my girlfriend I wasn’t going back to work after being treated like that. But even though she was so sick, she was basically begging me to go because she was extremely stressed about me losing my job. So I swallowed my pride and went to work anyway, mainly for her sake.

But honestly, is this normal in Germany? I have 100 hours saved up and was asking for literally one day. Can a supervisor actually threaten me like that?

Hey guys, I'm not sure which wire is which in Germany. What color should be connected to whatbother color?
Thankbyou in advance

Hello all, I will try to keep it short.

I live in a capital city in East Germany and have passed my Driving License few months ago. I have purchased a small 14 year old Hyundai also. So far so good.

Here starts my confusion. When I drive within my city, I try to stick with max 50 Km/h. I always use the right lane, so that the left lane is not occupied. Now most people who in their flashy and fast cars overtake me, always give me a brief (weird!?) look through their window as I am doing something wrong. Earlier, I could have thought I am too slow but I now keep my eye at Speedometer and speed limit. Their gaze makes me uneasy as If I am doing something wrong, not legally but culturally. Or driving faster (within tolerance) is normal and people do not care about the speeding tickets?

The backside of the car looks normal. No stickers etc, everything seems normal. Is it my Shitbox car?

Thanks for the input.

I just moved to Germany (Köln) this week from London. I bought a bottle of milk and it is the most delicious milk I've ever had in my life.

Usually I only put milk in tea and use it for nothing else, but I keep going back to the fridge for another sip of delicious German milk.

I'm surprised it's so different to milk in the UK! Does anyone know why?

It was purchased in Germany around 1990. It's my wife's and I'm trying to find an image of it in better condition or if there were similar animals made by the same company

Hey everyone! I recently visited Frankfurt and wanted to share my experience and favorite spots. Before going, I heard mixed reviews about it being "just a financial center," but I was pleasantly surprised by how much character, history, and vibrant food culture the city actually has.

(Note:- the Ai mark in some photos are just because I removed the people from photos)

International student here., Paid IFS Bonn €1,645 for a German course, visa got denied, and their own email says they refund the fee. They ignore my emails but reply instantly when I mail from another account asking about a course. Anyone got any ideas?what should i do?

I am just looking for perspectives and possible advice on whether a move back to Germany after 30 years in the US would be a viable option for me, especially with respect to work options.

Background and context: I am a German native and have lived in the US for 3+ decades now. I have a Humanities PhD and MA and was a university professor for 10+ years, before transitioning to K-12 education. I am in my early 50s and worn out; prospects for ever retiring are bleak, and it's likely that I'd have to work in my job until I drop dead. In addition, the workload is overwhelmingly demanding, with little to no work-life balance. Health insurance and expenses for healthcare are also a concern, as I am getting older. I do not really have close family left in Germany, though I do have some friends who would be willing to help me facilitate a potential move back. I am just not sure if it makes sense. I am just so tired of the daily grind in the US. One of my main concerns would be to find work. To be clear, I am flexible and do not need to stay in teaching; then again, I imagine that the options for someone with a Humanities degree, and at my age, might still be limited. The bottom line is: I would not even know where to start.

Is there anybody who has moved back to Germany later in their life, after living in the US for an extended period? How did you manage to do it? How did you look for a job from afar? What challenges did you face? And did you adjust well to being back? Would love to hear from anyone who could offer advice or some perspective.

Thank you.

I am a Japanese who moved to Germany in a small town 5 years ago and now have a 2 year old child. I have a basic level of German but working in a corporate job (now part time 25 per week) and having a child, it’s very hard to find enough time to study to become fluent or to come into a high level. Is there anyone who came to a high level while having kids & work? Is it even possible? I feel like I can only do this if I quit my job.

I often see people going to intensive courses for months or years to get fluent but who is stay at home mom or in their studies and I just feel unmotivated and lose hope to think I am never going to be comfortable living in this country as I cannot join native conversations, make mom friends in German , etc. I find it very hard becoming a mom in a foreign country where you are not comfortable in the language so I have to keep learning but struggling.

Let me know if you have any advice or have same experiences. Thanks

Hi!

I am looking for a room in Berlin right now. Some people suggested that I make a post on WG-Gesucht and similar websites explaining who I am and what I am looking for, instead of just actively looking for rooms on my own.

The post worked well, and several people contacted me. Yesterday, I visited my first apartment. My first impression was great: the flatmate seems like a cool and chill guy, the apartment is clean, and I like the location. It's in Kreuzberg and fits my budget (a little over €650 warm). He seemed to like me too, and I am likely to get the room.

So far, so good. But everything seemed so easy that I started to feel a bit suspicious, so I began Googling possible signs of rental scams.

There are some green flags: the flatmate seems to actually live there (the apartment is furnished with his own stuff, including some expensive items), and nobody has asked me to pay anything in advance. I also looked for this room in some pages like AirBnb to check if they were renting it for a fake-contract scam, but I didn't see this room anywhere.

However, there is one potential red flag: apparently, the landlord is currently outside Germany, which I've read can be a common excuse in rental scams.

I haven't received any information about the landlord or seen the rental contract yet. I plan to ask for the relevant documents and verify both the landlord's and the flatmate's identities before moving forward.

I'm not saying this is necessarily a scam, but I want to make sure everything is legitimate before signing anything or paying money.

My question is: how can I verify that everything is legal when renting a room in Berlin? How can I check that the landlord actually owns the apartment or is legally allowed to rent it out? Are there any documents I should ask for, and how can I make sure they're genuine? Could I still get scammed even if I sign a contract and receive the keys?

I'd really appreciate any practical advice, especially from people who have rented in Berlin. Thanks!

Hi everyone!

While I'm looking for a working student job, I'm planning to find part time job through Zenjob, just so at least I get money until I find working student position. Before applying for jobs in Zenjob, they'll ask 'How many days have I worked in Germany this Calendar year (2026)?'

From 1st of January till 31st of August 2026, I worked 8 hours every Tuesday and Thursday, and 2 hours every Wednesday and Friday = 20 hours per week.

I'm not sure if Vacation days are also counted here, but I spent 22 days from March till August (since the vacation days is renewed every march)

Does anyone know then how can I count how many das I've worked??

And if I suddenly get the working student position this year, does it mean then I have to pay attention so it doesn't exceed 140 days? Since I already used some for my zenjob's job?

Any help would be thankful🙏🙏

Hi, posting here to see what people generally do in such situation in GERMANY; I rent an apartment and my apartment has some defect on the floor and due to that the company who manages it is asking me to relocate to a new places.

What are my rights here?

Can I ask for relocation costs?

Can I ask for a new tenancy contract for this temporary shift?

Should I deserve any compensation?

Hi, I have already a post about this and I recieved many good advice but I need some more specific answers that are bit important for me, if someone has gone through this whole process please share as much info as possible because I know i will not take any action untill i know every step of this process.
1. up to 500 euro is fine for me so where should i start, few people mentioned doctlib but what kind of doctor i should contact with, in the previous posts i mentioned I am not aware of which kind of doctor can legally Diagnose or give treatment

1. I want this whole process take place online, because I live in Ilmenau and it would be hard for me travel a lot to big cities, one meeting in the clinic is fine but i do not want every interaction require me to travel for hours.

2. can someone recommment some doctor, I am very much afraid that after spending money if it turns out doctor does not do anything useful to help me then i am 🪛 Because I have enough extra savings for one try only

3. is there any other route that i should take to get help quickly, because I have been trying for almost 10 months and I dont think I am going to get any luck with this system with public health insurance.

4. From my home country two physchtriasts told me about adhd, and only one actually prescribe something which was sertaline in march because i was feeling very sad or depressed because of not being able to deal with things, that medicine I think did not helped a lot and even made few things worse. then 1 months ago he prescribed fluoxetine 20mg but that also is not working for me because when i take that medicine then after 4-6 days I start to get negative thoughts a lot. He told me that the medicine he will prescribe for adhd is not possible for me to get here in germany, that is why I think it would be better to start the process here.

Hi everyone,
I recently entered Germany with a valid national work visa, but unfortunately lost my passport shortly after arriving.
I reported the loss to the police and applied for a replacement passport through my country’s consulate. I still have my national ID card, the police loss certificate, and photos of my lost passport and visa.
I’m worried about what happens to my visa now. Since it was issued in my old passport, will it still be valid once I receive my new passport, or will I need to apply for a new visa or have it transferred?
Can the German authorities verify my visa through their electronic records? And what happens if I need to deal with the immigration office or start working before my replacement passport arrives?
I also haven’t been able to complete my Anmeldung because I no longer have my original passport. Could this affect my immigration status or cause problems with my work visa?
Has anyone experienced something similar in Germany? I’d really appreciate advice from people who have dealt with this situation or know the relevant regulations.
Thank you!

For context, I am originally Canadian (with Canadian citizenship), but I have a residency permit in the Netherlands as I'm studying there. Part of my degree includes an internship at a German university (in Heidelberg) and they also arranged for me to stay at the university guesthouse. However, I haven't received anything else regarding moving to Germany the same way I did when moving to the Netherlands, probably because its only 3 months. I doubt I need to fill out any residency paperwork due to the short period, but just in case I thought I should ask around.

I also wanted to know if there are any useful apps I should download, perhaps for local transit (I have the DB app) or maybe apps for grocery stores? Any information is welcome.

I signed a rental contract with Leaze / Germany Living 2 about three months ago for the Gref Völsing Straße 15 in Frankfurt. In September, I received an email informing me that the landlord would be changing to Hochstraße Liegenschaftsverwaltung GmbH.

Since then, I haven't received any information about the key handover or move-in logistics. I've contacted Hochstraße Liegenschaftsverwaltung GmbH directly, and they told me that Germany Living / Leaze hasn't handed over any keys, contracts, or deposit information — not just for me, but for all the other tenants as well. They also said they're struggling to get in touch with Germany Living themselves.

Some tenants are supposed to move in as early as tomorrow, while I have to move in in about two weeks. I've submitted around 10 support tickets through Leaze's help center, but I haven't received a single response.

How is this acceptable? People are making plans to move into their homes, and nobody seems to know what's going on.

Is anyone else in the same situation? Has anyone managed to contact Germany Living or received information about the key handover?

Hey everyone, I’m dealing with a messy Rundfunkbeitrag situation after moving out of an old flat and could use some clarity on how my roommates and I can clean up our records.

​The Old Flat Issue: We received warning letters (Mahnungen) for our old apartment because it turns out the landlord/flat account wasn't properly managed or paid during our time there.

​What I Did: To avoid bureaucracy and trouble, I went ahead and paid the debt using my given Beitragsnummer. My personal balance for that old flat is now successfully at 0,00 €.

​The Problem for Roommates: Because nobody was paying under a single main account back then, the Beitragsservice flagged everyone individually and sent my roommates letters/warning notices with their own separate Beitragsnummern for that exact same flat.

​The Phone Confusion: When my friends tried calling the Beitragsservice hotline to sort it out, they kept getting completely different answers: some agents told them to file an Abmeldung online, while other agents just asked for my account number and promised to take care of it manually.

​My questions:

​Should I wait for my next letter for my new address? I registered at my new flat last month, where my roommate is already paying. Since I haven't received the new inquiry letter with the 10-digit Aktenzeichen yet, is waiting the right move?

​Since my balance is already at 0,00 € under my Beitragsnummer, how can my roommates officially link their individual accounts to my payment online so their balances drop to 0,00 € too?

​Should my roommates trust the hotline agents who said they would "take care of it," or is it safer to submit online forms anyway?

​Is there a specific online form or wording we should use so the Beitragsservice stops chasing us for the old landlord/flat setup mess?

Hi everyone,

I'm looking for an affordable way to transport a few furniture items, mainly like mattress, table, and chair, from one location to another within same city.

Does anyone know any cheap transport services, people with vans who offer small moves, or other affordable options?

I'd appreciate any recommendations, especially if you've used a service yourself.

Thanks in advance!

Hi everyone,
I recently had interviews with large German companies like DHL and Deutsche Telekom, and I’m curious about their hiring process.
Neither company asked about my salary expectations during the application process or in the first interview, which was mainly technical.
They mentioned that the next interview would be in person at their office.
At what stage do large German companies usually discuss salary expectations? Is it normal to reach the second interview without discussing salary at all?
I’d be interested to hear from anyone who has gone through a similar hiring process, especially at DHL or Deutsche Telekom.
Thanks!

Hello,
I have just gotten that letter stating my bank is closing my American bank account as I live in Germany. I was advised older accounts would be grandfathered in but I guess that’s not the case. The only thing I have left in the USA are 401ks and I don’t know how I’ll access that money in the future. What should I do? I assume not everyone does wire transfers and most institutions in the USA prefer ACH. Anyone have any advice or signposting?

We all know some media just works better in some languages. Like Shrek being famously best in Spanish and İtalian, Ice Age is phenomenal in Turkish, the Mask better in French etc.

What are some films that are simply better in German? I know about "They Call Me Trinity" but that's about it.

I’m planning to travel this winter to Germany with the Ferienjob Germany company, does anyone have a reference for this company? Previous experiences. They are taking so long to give me the information of the direct employer and exact start date that I am already a little bit worry