PhD Handbook

34 • Make sure that you also cancel contracts for telephone, internet, cable TV, magazine subscriptions, club member ships, etc. • You might want to cancel your German bank account. Make sure, however, that it will be active long enough to settle and receive all outstanding payments. • When you came to Germany, you had to register with the city/town registration office. Now you are required to deregister with them. • In some cases it is also recommendable that you inform the foreigners‘ registration office. Every case is different; so no general advice can be given here. • Inform your children‘s school or kindergarten in time. • Make a list of the people who should be informed about your new address. • Deutsche Post offers to forward your mail after you moved. Conditions and prices can be found here: www.nachsendeauftrag.de • Please contact those people at your institute that need to know that you are leaving. • You have probably been contributing to unemployment, retirement, health and long-term care funds. Especially in case of pension insurance, it is possible that the pension rights you acquired in Germany remain valid after you leave the country. As every case is different, no general advice can be given here. Please check with your human resources department at your institute or the insurance fund directly. It may be helpful to obtain written proof of your contribu- tions. It will probably be a long time before you actually retire, and documents are sometimes harder to obtain after lots of years have passed. • It is possible that you still owe taxes in Germany or are entitled to a refund. For further and more specific questions about your situation, please ask a tax consultant as every case is different and no further general information can be given here. 5.25 HELPFUL LINKS • Goethe Institute - Meet the Germans ;-) www.goethe.de/ins/gb/lp/prj/mtg/typ/uno/en2668760.htm • Discover Germany www.research-in-germany.de/main/2220/discover-germany. html • Deutsche Verbindungsstelle Krankenversicherung – Ausland (DVAK) – information health insurance www.dvka.de/oeffentlicheSeiten/Fremdsprachen/Englisch.htm • How to Germany - information on German regulations, taxes, etc. www.howtogermany.com • Euraxess - Germany for researchers www.euraxess.de • Toytown Germany – English Language news and chats www.toytowngermany.com • Angloinfo - provides a good database for those wishing to come to Germany and their section on driving and road rules covers many if not all of the key points. www.germany.angloinfo.com • Brian’s guide to getting around Germany - website dedicated to travel in Germany www.gettingaroundgermany.info/regeln.shtml • Common mistakes www.german-way.com Language/dictionaries/translations: • www.dict.cc • www.leo.org

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