• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Search

Red Tape Translation

  • Home
  • Services
    • All Services
    • Life Admin
    • Skype Coaching
    • Take a Translator
    • Written Translation
  • Resources
    • Resources
    • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Blog
  • About Us
    • Meet the Team
    • Why Choose Red Tape Translation?
    • Testimonials
  • Contact

Category Archive: Moving to Germany

Can I really register my address in Berlin by post now?

September 11, 2020 by Kathleen Parker Leave a Comment

Word on the street is that the Bürgerämter are suddenly accepting postal registrations of address (Anmeldungen). Whoa! This is a big step forward, right? Well, sort of. If you’re new in Berlin, it won’t apply to you. Here’s why.

… Read More

Filed Under: Moving to Germany, Life in Germany, Moving to Berlin

The Seven Deadly Sins of the Berlin Newbie

January 28, 2020 by Kathleen Parker 1 Comment

Moving to a new country is scary. But then you realise you’ve just violated an unspoken cultural rule and now everyone is judging you. If you’re in Germany, it’s not even silent judging, it’s excruciating public directness. Here are seven of the most common mistakes made by first-timers in Berlin and how to avoid making them!

… Read More

Filed Under: Moving to Germany, Life in Germany, Moving to Berlin

The Kita Crisis – where we’re at in summer 2019

July 10, 2019 by Kathleen Parker Leave a Comment

Back in 2014, I visited a handful Kitas while 5 months pregnant. I signed up at a few. I emailed my desired Kita every 8 weeks for a year after the initial meeting. I applied for a childcare voucher (Kitagutschein) 9 months early, the earliest possible date you can apply. When it arrived, we emailed it directly to our Kita of choice. It was a full-time voucher (7-9 hours). It seemed we ticked the right boxes, for a day after doing this, my daughter got an offer for a full-time spot. In the weeks that followed, we were offered a place in three other Kitas for the upcoming summer. I patted myself on the back for my superior organisational skills and that was that. But that was then and this is now.

… Read More

Filed Under: Moving to Germany, Dealing with Problems, Kids in Berlin

The Six-month Myth: Exchanging your foreign driver’s licence in Germany

November 14, 2018 by Kathleen Parker 33 Comments

Photo by William Kraus

You registered in Germany. You stayed a while. You’re still here. Now you want to exchange the driver’s licence from your home country for a German one. But… oh my… more than six months have gone by since you moved to Berlin (or Frankfurt, or Munich, or wherever). It says you are supposed to exchange it for a German one within 6 months of taking up residence in Germany. So will they refuse to exchange it?

… Read More

Filed Under: Moving to Germany, Life in Germany Tagged With: foreign license in germany

Summer in Berlin

June 2, 2018 by Kathleen Parker Leave a Comment

Happy summer, everyone! Here’s an update of what’s going on around here.

Nachwuchs

I’m expecting to welcome a baby girl into the world in late August or early September. This means I’m out of action from the beginning of July 2018 until … some time in the autumn, and then part-time after that. Luckily for you, the wheels will all keep on turning even while I am away and all services will still be available.

Life Admin

Our newest service is proving popular with small and medium-sized business owners who want support communicating with authorities for their employees, people who have to deal with the unemployment agency and people who receive letters they don’t understand and don’t quite have the mind space to figure out on their own. Additionally, we’ve helped people try to track down paperwork for long-lost relatives, organised specialist medical care in situations where clear communication is crucial and wrapped up affairs for expats leaving Germany (contract terminations, deregistration, etc).

The Best Ice-Cream in Berlin

Hokey Pokey

Cons: If you can’t stand long lines, Prenzlauer Berg parents and 1.60 EUR scoops, don’t go.

Pros: if you want truly sensational flavours, just give in and go. Be that Prenzlberg mum. I know I am. Now in Pankow and Prenzlauer Berg.

The Berlin Summer Card for Swimming Pools

This is an absolute bargain if you think you’ll be visiting the outdoor pools. 70 EUR (60 EUR earlybird price) for 20 pool visits. It’s a laminated card, it’s transferrable, and the best bit is that you get to jump the queue. In my opinion,  even if you and your family don’t quite make it to the pool 20 times over the summer, it’s still worth it to jump the queue. This card is only for the outdoor pools – you can find a list of them and more information here.

Wishing you all a sensationally hot summer in Berlin! This is the season when all the tourists fall in love with the city and desperately want to stay. Are you one of them?  We’re happy to help you find a way to stick around in Berlin.

Filed Under: Moving to Germany, Kids in Berlin, Life in Germany

My bank needs a statement from a court-sworn interpreter for my loan approval

March 14, 2018 by Kathleen Parker Leave a Comment

This type of request has been popping up with surprising frequency. Here’s how it usually goes down. A customer who doesn’t speak German gets approval for a loan from a bank, either alone or as part of a joint purchase, and everything is ready to go except for one thing: the bank sends the loan documents with a requirement for a statement from a court-sworn interpreter. The statement should declare that the interpreter has read out the terms of the loan to the client in English and that the client has understood them. Why is this requirement from banks causing such waves of panic in the interpreting industry?

… Read More

Filed Under: Moving to Germany, Doing Business in Berlin, Life Changes

Welcome to 2018!

February 13, 2018 by Kathleen Parker Leave a Comment

Hello friends and supporters, welcome to the new year in Germany. Enjoy the occasional thick and fluffy snow and when things get a bit slippery and scary on the icy streets, grab yourselves a pair of Yaktrax traction cleats – you won’t regret it. I spent some time abroad in the southern hemisphere facilitating valuable synergies (ie. visiting the fam in Australia). There, I received my yearly fix of Vitamin D, which is important for getting through February in Berlin.

… Read More

Filed Under: Moving to Germany, About Red Tape Translation, Life Changes, Moving to Berlin, Moving to Munich

German Visas and Permits: A Glossary

December 14, 2017 by Kathleen Parker 18 Comments

If you’re overwhelmed by all the different types of visas and residence permits available to you in Berlin and Germany, this short glossary should clear things up.

… Read More

Filed Under: Learning German, Moving to Germany, Freelance Life, Immigration and Visas, Life in Germany

I Want to Stay in Germany and I Don’t Care How

December 14, 2017 by Kathleen Parker 4 Comments

Every now and then, you fall in love with Germany. Or maybe it’s person who just happens to live in Germany. Whichever it is, time is running out and you want a way to stay as long as you can. You don’t even really care how, as long as it’s legal. Or perhaps you just need to buy some time between your Schengen Visa running out and you figuring out what happens next. I know the feeling very well, so this post is for you.

… Read More

Filed Under: Moving to Germany, Dealing with Problems, Immigration and Visas, Moving to Berlin

German Language Schools Across the Country

December 13, 2017 by Sandy Kappey 1 Comment

If you’re gearing up to get your genitive on and air out your articles in Germany, you might be looking for a good German language school in Berlin, Frankfurt or Munich. Here are some recommendations based on our clients’ experiences.

… Read More

Filed Under: Learning German, Moving to Germany

Five Great Things About German Bureaucracy

December 13, 2017 by Sandy Kappey Leave a Comment

I’ll bet you never thought you’d read that sort of blog title. But if you’re struggling with the Schnauzer, grappling with the Gesetz or whinging about waiting lines, you might want to use this post as a bit of a pro-Germany pep talk. Take it from someone who has been here for a long time – there are many reasons to stick it out and fight through the red tape. Here are five.

… Read More

Filed Under: Moving to Germany, Life in Germany

What’s the Difference Between the German Tax ID Number and the Freelance Tax Number?

December 13, 2017 by Sandy Kappey 10 Comments

You say Steuernummer and I say Steuer-ID-Nummer,

You say Umsatz-ID-Nummer and I say Sozialversicherungsnummer.

Steuernummer, StIDNr, UStID-Nr, SV-Nummer, let’s call the whole thing off.

Hmm. Not really an option. So instead, I’ll take you through it simply, carefully and lovingly. I wish everyone would sing songs about tax.

… Read More

Filed Under: Moving to Germany, Being self-employed, Doing Business in Berlin, Freelance Life, Life in Germany

Primary Sidebar

Archives

Categories

  • Learning German
  • Moving to Germany
  • Being self-employed
  • About Red Tape Translation
  • Dealing with Problems
  • Doing Business in Berlin
  • Freelance Life
  • Immigration and Visas
  • Kids in Berlin
  • Life Changes
  • Life in Germany
  • Moving to Berlin
  • Moving to Munich
  • Uncategorized

Tags

algii appointment booking berlin artists visa berlin auslanderbehorde berlin bank account berlin berlin police berlin startup blue card berlin burgeramt berlin buying property childcare berlin corona custody berlin customs berlin finanzamt berlin find a job berlin foreigner’s office berlin foreign license in germany freelance berlin freelancer insurance freelance work permit berlin getting married in berlin government grant having a baby interpreting berlin kita berlin learning german life in berlin mieterverein berlin moving to berlin notar berlin paternity berlin permanent residency berlin real estate berlin red tape translation registration berlin renting an apartment berlin standesamt berlin steuernummer berlin translator berlin vaterschaftsanerkennung visa berlin work permit berlin zollamt berlin

Search

Footer

  • Kathleen has the ability to make you relax during stressful situations…. it was all so much easier with her help.

    Lenka, Czech Republic

Sign up for the newsletter

Connect with Red Tape Translation

© 2012 - 2021 Kathleen Parker

Legal Notice Terms of Service Data Protection Policy

Website by Laura Yeffeth.

This site uses cookies: Find out more.