Arrival and first steps

Depending on the country you arrive from to Saarbrücken, different quarantine regulations may apply to you. You may also have to inform several authorities. Please check our website for more and regularly updated information:

Click here to read more information

Depending on your point of entry to Germany, we provide several different travel routes to Saarbrücken for you here:

Flughafen Frankfurt Main (FRA)
Flughafen Frankfurt-Hahn (HHN)
Flughafen Karlsruhe / Baden-Baden (FKB)
Flughafen Luxemburg (LUX)
Flughafen Saarbrücken (SCN)

Arriving by bus or car
by bus
by car

going by car to Saarbrücken
Arrival by bus

If you will be staying in Germany for more than three months, you (and the members of your family) will need to register at the local Residents' Registration Office after your arrival. If you move to new accommodation within Germany, you must register at your new and deregister at your old place of residence. You must also deregister your residence status when you leave Germany.
Please make an appointment to register: www.saarbruecken.de/terminebuchen 

Residents' Registration Offices in Saarbrücken (Bürgerämter)

In order to register, you will need to present a valid passport or personal ID document and written confirmation (Wohnungsgeberbestätigung) from your landlord or their agent that you will be resident at the specified address.

About six to eight weeks after registering, you will be sent a letter with your tax identification number (TIN). If you have an employment contract with Saarland University or one of the on-campus research institutes, please communicate your TIN to the university's Human Resources department.

When you move to Germany for the first time, your tax number will be created for you after you register at the Bürgeramt. This happens automatically and you will receive a document with the tax number by post. This usually takes a few weeks. In urgent cases, you can ask for the tax number at the Bürgeramt about a week after registration (at the earliest). The cost for this is around 8€.

The tax number is issued once and remains the same for your entire life. Therefore, please keep the document in your files.

You will need a bank account with a German bank in order to pay your bills or to be able to rent a room in a student dormitory. We advise opening a 'Girokonto', which is equivalent to a British current account or an American checking account. Most banks in Saarbrücken offer current accounts, though conditions and prices may vary. For students a current account is usually free of charge.

While the visa allows you to enter Germany, the residence permit allows you to stay longer than three months. Unless you are a national of an EU state, you must apply for a residence permit at the Ausländerbehörde (Foreigners' Registration Office).
From a few states it is allowed to arrive without a visa and to apply for the residence title after arrival in Germany. If you are unsure which applies to you, please feel free to contact our Welcome Center.

It is best to make an appointment to apply for your residence title six to eight weeks before your visa expires. Please make an appointment for this at the Ausländerbehörde. It is generally not possible to visit the Ausländerbehörde without an appointment.
Contact: Ausländerbehörde, Dillinger Str. 67/2, 66822 Lebach. Saarbahn stop: "Lebach-Jabach".
Email: zab(at)lava.saarland.de.

With your appointment confirmation you will receive a list of documents you need to bring with you.

You can find an overview of the different types of residence titles here: Types of residence titles

The Welcome Center will be happy to help you with any questions you may have. Please also contact us if you do not receive any response to your inquiry at the Ausländerbehörde for a longer period of time.

Health insurance (mandatory)
You will need to take out health insurance for the duration of your stay. The type of health insurance cover will depend on whether or not you have an employment contract with Saarland University or one of the on-campus research institutes:

• Health insurance information if you have an employment contract with Saarland University or an on-campus research institute
• Health insurance information if you do not have an employment contract with Saarland University or an on-campus research institute

Additional insurances included for enroled students
Students enrolled at Saarland University automatically receive personal accident, theft and public liability insurance cover through the Studentenwerk.

Other insurance policies (recommended, not mandatory)

• Personal liability insurance: Covers accidental loss of or damage to other people's property if caused by you outside the University
• Contents insurance: Covers damage to or loss of personal possessions or fixtures and fittings in your room or apartment
• Car insurance: If you own a car and will be staying for an extended period in Germany, you must register your car with the local authorities and take out car insurance.

EU member states or EEA countries
Driving licences issued in EU member states or in EEA countries are valid in Germany for an unlimited period. If you have not been issued with an international driving permit in your home country, you may need a translation of your driving licence. Further information is available from the website of the German Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure.

Driving licences issued in non-European countries are usually valid for a period of six months after entering Germany, provided an authorized German translation is available for inspection. If you wish to continue driving in Germany after that period, you must convert your licence to a German driving licence at the local Public Order Office (Ordnungsamt). If you plan to convert your driving licence, please submit your application in good time before the end of the six-month deadline. Depending on the country that issued the permit, you may have to take additional driving lessons or pass an exam.

Non-EU countries
Driving licences issued in non-European countries are usually valid for a period of six months after entering Germany, provided an authorized German translation is available for inspection. If you wish to continue driving in Germany after that period, you must convert your licence to a German driving licence at the local Public Order Office (Ordnungsamt). If you plan to convert your driving licence, please submit your application in good time before the end of the six-month deadline. Depending on the country that issued the permit, you may have to take additional driving lessons or pass an exam.

During your stay in Saarbrücken you will receive a letter from the „ARD ZDF Deutschlandradio Beitragsservice“.
You can find information on their service in 6 languages online: www.rundfunkbeitrag.de/welcome

What is the “ARD ZDF Deutschlandradio Beitragsservice”?
This is a service that collects the fee for radio, TV and internet which every German citizen has to pay – even if you do not own any of these devices!
The monthly payment is €17,98 (as of July 2014)* and usually the money is being paid on a 3-month basis (€53,94).

Who has to pay?
Every person living in Germany, regardless of nationality, even Erasmus students and other exchange students.
If you live in shared housing, then it depends on the exact form of housing whether you have to pay by yourself or if you can share the payment with your flatmates.

 How exactly does the system work in single apartments / shared?

• Single apartments are counted as single residences. Here, every individual inhabitant has to pay the contribution fee of €17.98 per month.
• Double apartments (“Dublette”) and the so-called residential groups (i.e., shared apartments “WG”) are each considered as one residence, meaning only one student per apartment has to pay.
• In the dormitory buildings - which have a shared kitchen and/or bathroom for everyone on that floor, the legal situation is not quite clear. The “ARD ZDF Deutschlandradio Beitragsservice” will probably try to define each room as a “residence”, meaning that all inhabitants would have to individually pay the whole contribution fee. You can nevertheless try to claim your whole floor as one residence.

What do I have to do?
Once you have received the letter: attached you will find a paper to register for the service. On this paper you have to mark the date of your move into this room and you can choose to transfer the money every three months yourself or to give them your bank account and let them take it (we strongly advise the first option!)

If you live with other people in a house which has shared facilities (“WG”), then all members of the apartment will be considered to live in one household.

In this case, one of the roommates will have to register and pay the full fee. You then have to share the costs for fee amongst all inhabitants of the flat. If the other flat mates receive this paper as well, you can fill in the field on the document that is marked with „someone else is already paying for our apartment“. This way, only one student per household pays the fee and you can share the costs.

Bitte beachten Sie, dass alle Service-Einrichtungen aufgrund der Corona-Pandemie aktuell für Publikum geschlossen sind. Bitte nehmen Sie daher per Email oder Telefon Kontakt auf.

Welcome Center
Building A4 4, ground floor
Opening hours: daily, 09.30 - 12.30 and 13.30 - 15.00

Studierendensekretariat
Building A4 2, ground floor
Opening hours: Mo, Do: 13.30 - 15.30 Uhr, Di: 10 - 11.30

Kartenbüro
Building A4 4
Opening hours: daily, 8 - 12.00

Studentenwerk - Wohnraumabteilung
Building D4 3
Opening hours: Mo - Do: 10 - 11.30

Psychologisch-Psychotherapeutische Beratungsstelle (PBB)
Building B6.2
Opening hours: open consulation hours Wednesday 12 - 13, or upon appointment

IT Service Desk
Building A4 4
Opening hours: daily, 09 - 12 and 13 – 16.00

Internationales Studienzentrum Saar
Building A3 2