Moving from the UK to Germany (2026): Complete Guide

Moving from the UK to Germany is one of the most established relocation corridors in Europe — but it is no longer the free-movement move it was before 2021. Since the UK left the EU customs union and single market on 1 January 2021, British nationals moving to Germany are treated as third-country nationals for both customs and immigration purposes. That means real customs and immigration steps apply that didn’t exist before — but they are well-defined, well-precedented, and built with generous relief for people transferring their home rather than importing goods commercially. This guide is written for a UK resident planning a permanent move to Germany and covers exactly what changed after Brexit, what didn’t, and what to actually do at each end.

Key takeaways

• Your household goods can move duty- and VAT-free under Germany’s "Übersiedlungsgut" (transfer-of-residence) relief — but this is not automatic like it was pre-Brexit. You must have had your normal residence outside the EU customs territory for the previous 12 months, have owned/used the goods for at least 6 months, and file customs declaration form 0350 with German customs, with the goods entering Germany within 12 months of your move (zoll.de).
• You do not need a visa to enter Germany for a short stay as a British citizen. If you’re moving long-term, check which visa or residence permit you need before you leave the UK; if that isn’t arranged in advance, you must book an appointment at the local Ausländerbehörde (Foreigners’ Authority) within 90 days of arrival to regularise your status (gov.uk – Living in Germany).
• You must register your address (Anmeldung) with the local Bürgeramt within 14 days of moving in, wherever in Germany you settle (Service Berlin).
• You should notify HMRC you’re leaving using form P85 (unless you’re filing a Self Assessment return for the year you leave), which settles your UK tax position for the departure year (gov.uk).
• Your UK GHIC/EHIC does not cover you as a resident of Germany — once you register, you need German statutory or private health insurance from day one, unless you qualify for a UK-funded S1 (typically UK State Pensioners or certain benefit claimants), which gives you access to German statutory healthcare on the same basis as German citizens (gov.uk – healthcare in Germany).
• Pets need an Animal Health Certificate, not the old EU pet passport — GB-issued pet passports are no longer valid for entry into the EU (gov.uk).
• Your car needs formal export and re-import handling on both sides: a DVLA permanent-export notification in the UK, and — if it qualifies as part of your Übersiedlungsgut — a separate vehicle-tax declaration in Germany (gov.uk, zoll.de).

1. What actually applies: this is a third-country move, not free movement

Before Brexit, a UK-to-Germany move was pure intra-EU free movement — no customs, no import declarations, no residence permit. That changed on 1 January 2021. The UK is now outside the EU customs union and the single market, so a move to Germany is legally a relocation from a "third country," and real customs and immigration rules apply — just with generous relief built in specifically for people transferring their home, not for commercial imports.

Customs on your household goods. German customs (Zoll) exempts genuine removal goods ("Übersiedlungsgut") from import duty and import VAT under Art. 3 ff. of the EU’s customs relief regulation, provided: you are transferring your normal residence to Germany; your normal residence was outside the EU customs territory for at least the 12 months before the move; non-consumable goods have been your property and in your use for at least 6 months; and the goods are declared and physically enter Germany within 12 months of your move. You declare this on customs form 0350, and the goods stay under a 12-month restriction after import — you can’t sell, lend, hire out or give them away during that period without notifying customs (zoll.de – Übersiedlungsgut overview, conditions in detail). Excise-type consumption taxes (e.g. on alcohol above household quantities) are not covered by this relief and must still be declared.

Immigration. British citizens can enter Germany without a visa for a short stay. If you’re moving to live and work there long-term, official UK guidance is to check in advance which visa or residence permit applies to you — ideally arranging this with the German mission before you leave the UK. If that wasn’t possible, you must book an appointment at your local Ausländerbehörde (Foreigners’ Authority) within 90 days of arriving to regularise your status (gov.uk – Living in Germany). You generally cannot start employment until you hold the appropriate permit or visa authorising it, so confirm the requirements with your employer and the German mission before you travel. If you were already legally resident in Germany before 1 January 2021, different Withdrawal Agreement protections apply instead — you’ll need an Aufenthaltsdokument-GB rather than going through the standard process above (gov.uk – residence documentation for UK nationals in Germany).

Planning the move itself as well? Costs, transit times and how to choose a mover are covered on our page about international movers in the UK.

2. The UK side: closing things down properly

• Tax residency. Tell HMRC you’re leaving using form P85 (you don’t need this if you’re filing a Self Assessment return for the year you leave instead) — this settles your tax position for the departure year and can trigger a refund if you’ve overpaid (gov.uk P85). Separately, review how UK tax residency rules apply going forward once you’re settled abroad (gov.uk – tax if you leave the UK).
• NHS. Once you’re a resident of Germany you’ll be covered by German health insurance, not the NHS — tell your GP practice you’re moving permanently so your NHS registration is closed out correctly, since your UK GHIC/EHIC only covers temporary visits, not residence, abroad (gov.uk healthcare in Germany).
• Voting. If you want to keep voting in UK elections from abroad, register (or renew registration) as an overseas elector — registration must be renewed every 3 years (gov.uk – voting when living abroad).
• Vehicle. If you’re taking your car for 12 months or more, this counts as permanent export: complete the "permanent export" section of your V5C, detach it, and send it to DVLA Swansea — you keep the rest of the log book to register the car in Germany, and you may be due a UK vehicle tax refund, usually within 4 to 6 weeks (gov.uk – taking a vehicle out of the UK).
• Driving licence. You can keep driving on your UK licence in Germany for up to 6 months after you register your residence there; after that you must exchange it for a German one. No driving or theory retest is required, but expect to need an eye test and a medical certificate, and processing can take time, so apply well before the 6 months is up (gov.uk – Living in Germany).

3. How your household goods actually move (freight-industry estimates)

Most UK-to-Germany household moves travel by road, crossing the Channel by ferry (Dover–Calais/Dunkirk) or the Eurotunnel shuttle, then running the road network through Belgium or the Netherlands into Germany. These are Flyto operational estimates based on typical routing and load type, not regulatory figures:

• Full-load (FTL), direct door-to-door: roughly 2–4 days transit once loaded, depending on origin and destination city in Germany and ferry/tunnel scheduling.
• Groupage/shared-load moves: typically 1–3 weeks, since the vehicle collects and delivers multiple households along a route and consolidates at a hub.
• Rail-assisted intermodal options exist for parts of the Germany leg on longer-distance or bulkier moves, mainly to reduce road-only transit on very long domestic legs within Germany.

Whichever route is used, your goods still need the German Übersiedlungsgut customs declaration described in Section 1 before or on arrival — this is a paperwork step, not a border delay, provided the documents are ready.

4. The Germany side: registering and setting up

• Anmeldung (address registration). Within 14 days of moving into your German home, you must register at the local Bürgeramt (citizens’ registration office) — this applies to everyone living in Germany, EU citizens and non-EU nationals alike. You’ll need your passport and a landlord confirmation (Wohnungsgeberbestätigung), which your landlord must provide in writing; a lease agreement alone does not substitute for it. Missing the deadline can trigger a fine (Service Berlin – registering your address).
• Residence permit. If you didn’t already arrange a visa or residence permit before leaving the UK, book an appointment at your local Ausländerbehörde within 90 days of arrival (gov.uk – Living in Germany).
• Tax ID. Once you’re registered, your data is passed on so that the Bundeszentralamt für Steuern (Federal Central Tax Office) can issue your eleven-digit Steuer-ID by post — it’s a fixed, lifelong number that doesn’t change even if you move again within Germany (BZSt).
• Health insurance. You must have valid health cover from the moment you’re resident in Germany — either statutory (gesetzliche Krankenversicherung) or private, depending on your employment situation and income. This is a legal requirement tied to having your residence or "centre of life" in Germany, not to nationality. If you receive a UK State Pension or certain exportable UK benefits, ask the NHS Overseas Healthcare Team about an S1 form, which entitles you to German statutory healthcare on the same basis as German citizens, funded by the UK (gov.uk – healthcare in Germany).
• Driving licence exchange. As above — you have 6 months from registering residence to exchange your UK licence for a German one at your local vehicle licensing authority (Straßenverkehrsamt/Führerscheinstelle); no driving test, but expect an eye test and a medical certificate (gov.uk – Living in Germany).

5. Moving pets

Since Brexit, GB-issued EU pet passports are no longer accepted for entry into the EU — including Germany (Northern Ireland-issued passports are treated differently). Instead you need an Animal Health Certificate (AHC) for each trip:

• Your pet must be microchipped before, or at the same time as, its rabies vaccination — otherwise it will need to be vaccinated again.
• After a first rabies vaccination (or the last of the first course), you must wait at least 21 full days before travelling; a booster with no break in cover doesn’t require a fresh wait.
• The AHC must be issued by an official vet no more than 10 days before travel for entry into the EU; once issued, it remains usable for onward travel within the EU and for your pet’s return to Great Britain for up to 6 months.
• A GB-issued pet passport cannot be used instead — you need a fresh AHC for each journey (gov.uk – taking your pet abroad).

Check with your vet well ahead of your move date, since the certificate timing has to line up precisely with your travel date.

6. Money, banking, and things people forget

• Steuer-ID and Meldebescheinigung first, everything else follows. You’ll typically need your Steuer-ID and Anmeldung confirmation (Meldebescheinigung) to open a German bank account, register for work, or sign a phone contract — so get registered promptly.
• Keep both banking systems running during the transition. UK direct debits, pensions and any remaining income often keep flowing to a UK account for a while — don’t close it the day you land.
• Sort out your UK tax position early, even if it feels premature — the P85 process is far easier done as you leave than retrospectively.
• Vehicle paperwork is a two-country job. Between the DVLA permanent-export step in the UK and the German customs/registration process, this is one of the most commonly underestimated parts of the move — start it well before your move date.
• Health insurance is not optional in Germany and needs to be arranged essentially immediately on arrival, not "when I get around to it" — see Section 4.

How Flyto handles your UK to Germany move

Flyto operates its own offices, warehouses, vehicles and moving crews across Northern, Central and Southern Europe, and we run this corridor regularly — so your move is planned by people who know the real Dover–Calais/Eurotunnel routing, the German Übersiedlungsgut paperwork, and what a realistic delivery window into a German city actually looks like. Where it makes sense — a specific ferry slot, a local delivery crew, or capacity on a particular week — we bring in carefully vetted partner hauliers and agents from our subcontractor network, coordinated end-to-end by your Flyto move manager so you deal with one point of contact throughout.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a visa to move from the UK to Germany?
Not for a short stay. For a long-term move, check with the German mission in the UK which visa or residence permit applies to your situation before you leave. If you weren’t able to arrange this in advance, you must book an appointment at the local Ausländerbehörde within 90 days of arrival (gov.uk – Living in Germany).

Will I pay customs duty or VAT on my furniture and belongings?
Not if you qualify for Übersiedlungsgut relief: your normal residence was outside the EU for the prior 12 months, you’ve owned and used the goods for at least 6 months, and everything is declared to German customs and arrives within 12 months of your move (zoll.de).

Can I still use my UK GHIC/EHIC for healthcare once I’ve moved to Germany?
No — GHIC/EHIC only covers temporary visits. Once you’re resident in Germany you must be enrolled in German statutory or private health insurance, unless you qualify for a UK-funded S1 (gov.uk).

Do I need to exchange my UK driving licence?
Yes — you can drive on your UK licence for up to 6 months after registering residence in Germany, then you must exchange it. No driving or theory test is required, but you’ll typically need an eye test and a medical certificate; apply well before the 6-month deadline since processing takes time (gov.uk – Living in Germany).

Can I still bring my dog or cat on a pet passport?
No — GB pet passports are no longer valid for EU entry. You need an Animal Health Certificate for each trip, issued by an official vet no more than 10 days before travel (gov.uk).

What happens to my UK tax position when I leave?
Notify HMRC using form P85 (or via your Self Assessment return), which settles your position for the year you leave and may trigger a refund (gov.uk).

Sources

• Customs exemption for Übersiedlungsgut (transfer-of-residence goods) – conditions – German Customs (Zoll)
• Übersiedlungsgut – overview – German Customs (Zoll)
• Visa and residence permit FAQ for Australian, Canadian, Israeli, Japanese, New Zealand, South Korean and US nationals – German Federal Foreign Office (background on the post-arrival permit process; UK nationals follow the separate route described in the gov.uk guidance below)
• Living in Germany – visas, registration, driving licence and healthcare for UK nationals – gov.uk
• Registering your address (Wohnsitz anmelden) – Service Berlin (official municipal e-government portal)
• Steuerliche Identifikationsnummer (Tax ID) – Bundeszentralamt für Steuern
• Driving licence in Germany – German Federal Foreign Office (UK mission)
• Get your Income Tax right if you’re leaving the UK (P85) – gov.uk / HMRC
• Tax if you leave the UK to live abroad – gov.uk / HMRC
• Healthcare for UK nationals living in Germany – gov.uk
• Voting if you move or live abroad – gov.uk
• Taking a vehicle out of the UK – gov.uk / DVLA
• Taking your pet abroad – gov.uk / APHA
• Living in Germany – UK help and services – gov.uk / FCDO
• Residence documentation for UK nationals in Germany – gov.uk / FCDO