BTU overview
Welcome Centre for International Researchers

Checklist

Near the end of your stay at BTU and before your departure from Cottbus/Senftenberg, there are a few organisational tasks that you should keep in mind. Many contracts in Germany have a standard notice period of three months. This means that you should start planning your departure no later than three months before you leave. The following steps are designed to help you plan your transition smoothly. The staff of the Welcome Centre is also very glad to answer any further questions that you might have.

Three months prior to your departure
  • Submit a notice of termination of your rental contract. The Welcome Centre can prepare a letter of notice for your lessor.
  • Enquire with your lessor in due time about whether you will be expected to conduct any renovation work.
  • Terminate your private health insurance (privateKrankenversicherung) or inform your statutory health insurance (gesetzlicheKrankenversicherung) and any additional insurances (e.g. indemnity insurance, accident insurance, etc.) that you are leaving Germany.
  • Deregister your children from day care facilities and schools.
  • Terminate your cable television and telephone contracts, public transportation tickets, newspaper and magazines subscriptions, memberships in organisations, etc.
  • Enquire whether it is advisable or mandatory for you to submit a tax return form.
  • If you had an employment contract with BTU and paid social security contributions, enquire about your pension rights at the Welcome Centre.
Shortly before your departure
  • Deregister from your temporary residence address at the City Administration Office Cottbus/Senftenberg. The City Office (Stadtbüro) will issue a written confirmation of deregistration, which you will need for other administrative purposes.
  • Send a copy of your confirmation of deregistration to the Central German Broadcasting Service (Rundfunkzentrale).
  • Close your German bank accounts if you do not need them anymore, only do so after you have received your last payment/salary/scholarship instalment.
  • You may submit a forwarding request at the nearest post office branch, so that the postal service can send any future/late correspondence to you.
  • Last but not least please inform the Welcome Centre of your date of departure from Cottbus/Senftenberg and Germany, and provide us with your new contact details, so that we can contact you in the future if necessary.
On the date of your departure
  • Write down in the handover protocol the counter readings from your electricity, gas and water meters and have your lessor sign them.
  • Depending on the requirements of your lessor, you might be expected to clean your apartment/room/house before you move out.
  • Return your keys and hand over your empty apartment/room/house to your lessor.

Reimbursement of pension/social security contributions

If you move back to a country that has a social security system in place, you may have your social contribution, which you have paid in Germany, reimbursed under specific circumstances. After a waiting period of two years, you may submit a request for reimbursement of your social contribution at the German Pension Insurance (Deutsche Rentenversicherung).