Germany is the single largest European origin for relocations to the United States, and the corridor is well-worn: German export customs is efficient and digital, the container ports at Hamburg and Bremerhaven are among the best-connected on Earth, and the US import side for a used-household-goods shipment is largely a paperwork exercise. This guide walks you through both halves of the move — the German Ausfuhr (export) process handled by the Zoll, and the US import process handled by CBP — with current official sources for every rule. It is written for a resident of Germany relocating to the USA; where the reverse move (USA to Germany) differs, we flag it.

Key takeaways

• Your used household goods enter the US duty-free if you have owned and used them for at least 12 months abroad, declared on CBP Form 3299, with a valued inventory (CBP Form 3299; CBP customs duty information).
• The German side is an export declaration, not a tax event. For private removal goods (Umzugsgut), a written Ausfuhranmeldung via the electronic ATLAS system is generally required once the shipment reaches €1,000 in value or exceeds 1,000 kg in weight; below that an oral declaration at the customs office is possible (Zoll — Umzug; verwaltung.bund.de — Umzugsgut anmelden).
• Ship from Hamburg or Bremerhaven. As a working estimate, port-to-port ocean transit runs roughly 10–14 days to the US East Coast and ~30+ days to the West Coast; door-to-door with consolidation and clearance is realistically 6–10 weeks. These are freight-industry estimates, not official figures — get firm dates from your carrier.
• Dogs from Germany use the simplified route. Germany is not a CDC high-risk rabies country, so a dog needs only a readable microchip, a minimum age of six months, and a CDC Dog Import Form receipt — no rabies-vaccine documentation (CDC — Dog Importation FAQs).
• Vehicles are a separate, harder project. Importing a car means EPA Form 3520-1 and DOT Form HS-7 and conformity with US safety and emissions standards; most German-market cars are not worth the conversion (CBP — Importing a Motor Vehicle).
• Cash and monetary instruments over US$10,000 carried or shipped must be reported to CBP on FinCEN Form 105 (CBP customs duty information).
• Rules change — verify before you ship. Figures below were current for 2026; confirm the detail that affects you with the Zoll and CBP directly.

1. Before anything else: your US visa determines the customs treatment

Customs eligibility for duty-free household goods follows your immigration status, not the shipping company. To claim free entry of used personal effects you must be establishing residence in the US or entering on a status that qualifies — a returning US citizen or resident, or a non-resident arriving to take up residence. CBP Form 3299 asks you to declare exactly this (CBP Form 3299). Sort your visa (an immigrant visa, or a work visa such as L-1, H-1B, O-1, or E-2) before you book a container, because the visa is what the customs paperwork hangs on. Visa questions themselves are handled by the US Department of State and USCIS, not by CBP.

2. The German export side: Zoll, Umzugsgut and ATLAS

When you permanently leave the EU customs territory, your removal goods must be presented to the Zoll for export. For private individuals this is usually straightforward.

When a formal declaration is required. German customs allows an oral export declaration for private removal goods below the thresholds, but a written Ausfuhranmeldung through the ATLAS system is generally required once the shipment reaches €1,000 in value or exceeds 1,000 kg in weight — which almost any real household move does (verwaltung.bund.de — Umzugsgut anmelden). ATLAS (Automatisiertes Tarif- und Lokales Zollabwicklungssystem) is the mandatory electronic customs platform; your moving company or a customs agent (Spediteur) files the export declaration in ATLAS and obtains the export accompanying document (Ausfuhrbegleitdokument, ABD / EAD) that travels with the container.

The inventory. There is no numbered German export form for your belongings — the document CBP relies on is simply a valued packing inventory prepared by your mover: a tabular list of item type, brand where relevant, quantity and a realistic used value. Prepare it once and carefully, because the same list is attached to your CBP Form 3299 on the US side and is what CBP will treat as your packing list. (Do not confuse this with Zoll Form 0350, which is a German import declaration — see the reverse-move note below.)

Which office. Export formalities are handled at the competent inland or border customs office; for a sea move the export is typically cleared through the office responsible for the loading port. Your mover coordinates this.

VAT. For a private individual exporting used personal belongings, there is no German VAT to reclaim — VAT was already paid when you bought the items, and export of used household goods is a customs formality, not a refund event. (VAT export refunds apply to new goods bought for export, not to your lived-in furniture.)

Reverse move (USA → Germany). Coming the other way, your goods are imported as Übersiedlungsgut. German duty-free treatment requires that your normal residence was outside the EU for at least 12 months, that you have owned and used the goods for at least six months, and that clearance happens within 12 months of moving your residence to Germany (Zoll — Übersiedlungsgut Voraussetzungen). For this import into Germany the written declaration is made on Zoll Form 0350 (Zollanmeldung für Übersiedlungsgut), downloaded from the Federal Finance Administration and submitted with proof that you have relocated your residence (Formular 0350).

3. Ports and transit: Hamburg, Bremerhaven and the ocean leg

Germany’s two great container gateways do the heavy lifting for this corridor.

• Hamburg — Germany’s largest port, with dense feeder and mainline connections to the US.
• Bremerhaven — the country’s leading vehicle and container terminal complex, frequently used for RoRo and container consolidation.

The figures that follow are freight-industry estimates, not officially published times, and they swing with carrier, service and season — treat them as planning ranges and get firm dates from whoever books your vessel. To the US East Coast (New York/New Jersey, Baltimore, Charleston, Savannah), port-to-port ocean transit from Hamburg or Bremerhaven is broadly 10–14 days. To the US West Coast (Los Angeles/Long Beach) the all-water route typically runs ~30 days or more. Those are vessel figures only. A real door-to-door move adds packing and collection in Germany, consolidation at the origin freight station, US customs clearance, deconsolidation and final delivery — so budget 6–10 weeks door-to-door, longer for shared-container (LCL) shipments that wait for a consolidation cutoff. If you are heading to the interior (Chicago, Denver, Dallas), an East Coast port plus inland rail or trucking is often faster and cheaper than the West Coast all-water route.

FCL vs LCL. A full container (20ft holds a modest flat; 40ft a family home) is exclusive and faster. Less-than-container-load shares space and costs less but adds handling time at both ends. For most German family moves a 20ft or 40ft FCL is the sweet spot.

4. The US import side: CBP Form 3299, kept simple

For a used-household-goods shipment the US import is largely one form.

Duty-free eligibility. Household and personal effects that you owned and used abroad for at least one year enter free of duty; the year need not be continuous, and the goods must not be intended for sale or for another person (CBP customs duty information). Newer items you have owned for less than a year can still ship but may attract duty on their value.

The form. Unaccompanied goods — the norm for a container that arrives separately from you — are declared on CBP Form 3299, Declaration for Free Entry of Unaccompanied Articles, the statutory declaration under 19 U.S.C. 1498 (CBP Form 3299; CBP — Moving used household goods into the US, Article 1392). Your valued inventory is attached and is treated as the packing list, to be produced to CBP on request. Your customs broker or moving agent files this; you sign it.

What raises flags. Alcohol may be included with household effects for personal use, but there is no federal quantity exemption for a shipment and large volumes can trigger a demand for a federal import licence, plus applicable state rules (CBP customs duty information). Firearms, certain foods, plants, and wildlife products are restricted or prohibited. Leave anything questionable out.

5. Pets: bringing your dog or cat from Germany

Germany is not a CDC high-risk country for dog rabies, which puts your dog on the simplest track. As of 2026 a dog arriving from Germany must:

• be at least six months old;
• have a microchip readable by a universal scanner, with the chip number recorded on its paperwork;
• travel with a CDC Dog Import Form receipt, completed online in advance (the receipt is valid for six months); and
• appear healthy on arrival (CDC — Dog Importation FAQs).

Because Germany is a low-risk origin, a dog coming directly from Germany needs no rabies-vaccination documentation and may enter through any US airport, port or land crossing — provided the dog has not been in a high-risk country in the previous six months (CDC — Dog Importation FAQs). (The extra high-risk rules — including a rabies vaccination and the requirement that the microchip be implanted before that vaccination — apply only to dogs that have been in a CDC high-risk country; they do not apply to the Germany route.) Cats are not subject to CDC dog rules, though the airline and destination state may have their own requirements. On the German export side, air travel with a pet is a commercial/airline matter rather than a Zoll export declaration. Confirm the current dog rules at CDC Importation before you fly, as they were tightened in 2024–2025.

6. Vehicles, money and the things people forget

Cars. Importing a German-registered car is a genuine project, not a checkbox. You file EPA Form 3520-1 and DOT Form HS-7 with CBP, and the vehicle must conform to US safety (NHTSA) and emissions (EPA) standards; a non-resident may temporarily import a personal-use vehicle in conjunction with their arrival, but non-conforming vehicles must be exported and may not be sold in the US (CBP — Importing a Motor Vehicle; CBP — how to obtain EPA 3520-1 and DOT HS-7, Article 1085). For most people, selling in Germany and buying in the US is cheaper and far less painful — confirm your specific vehicle’s eligibility with CBP, EPA and NHTSA before shipping.

Money. If you carry or ship currency or monetary instruments exceeding US$10,000, you must report it to CBP (FinCEN Form 105) — a reporting duty, not a tax (CBP customs duty information).

Taxes. New US residents can face reporting on foreign accounts and assets; check obligations with the IRS and, for German-side deregistration (Abmeldung) and tax, the relevant German authorities.

How Flyto handles your Germany to USA move

Flyto runs this corridor as a single door-to-door Platinum service — the only tier we offer for overseas moves, because an intercontinental relocation has too many failure points to leave half-managed. One coordinator owns the whole chain: professional packing and inventory at your German address; the ATLAS export declaration and Zoll formalities; FCL or LCL booking out of Hamburg or Bremerhaven to your nearest US port; US customs brokerage and the CBP Form 3299 filing; and final delivery, unpacking and debris removal at your US home. Pets, vehicles and storage at either end are arranged within the same plan, so you deal with one team and one price, not a chain of subcontractors. See our USA relocation hub and the [main moving guide]https://flytorelocation.com/us/moving-to-and-from-the-usa-2026-complete-relocation-guide/ for the wider picture.

Frequently asked questions

How long does a move from Germany to the USA take?
Plan on 6–10 weeks door-to-door as a working estimate. Ocean transit is roughly 10–14 days to the East Coast and ~30+ days to the West Coast; the rest is packing, consolidation, customs and delivery. These are freight-industry ranges, not official figures — your carrier gives firm dates.

Do I pay US import duty on my furniture?
No, if you have owned and used it abroad for at least a year and it is not for resale. It enters duty-free on CBP Form 3299 with your valued inventory (CBP customs duty information).

What German customs paperwork do I need?
An export declaration (Ausfuhranmeldung) filed in the ATLAS system, generally required once your shipment reaches €1,000 in value or exceeds 1,000 kg, plus a valued packing inventory prepared by your mover (which also serves your US-side CBP Form 3299). Your mover normally files the ATLAS declaration (verwaltung.bund.de; Zoll — Umzug). Form 0350 is a German import form for the reverse move, not something you need when leaving Germany.

Can I bring my dog from Germany?
Yes, and on the simplified route: microchip, minimum age six months, a CDC Dog Import Form receipt, and a healthy appearance on arrival. Germany is not a high-risk rabies country, so no rabies-vaccination documents are needed (CDC).

Should I ship my car?
Usually not. It must meet US safety and emissions standards and clear EPA Form 3520-1 and DOT Form HS-7; conversion often costs more than the car is worth (CBP — Importing a Motor Vehicle).

Which port should my container leave from?
Hamburg or Bremerhaven for almost every German move — they carry the most frequent US sailings and the best-connected consolidation services.

Do I have to declare my savings?
Only amounts over US$10,000 in currency or monetary instruments, reported to CBP on FinCEN Form 105. It is a report, not a charge (CBP customs duty information).

Sources

• Zoll — Umzug (relocation, private individuals)
• Zoll — Übersiedlungsgut, Voraussetzungen (duty-free removal goods requirements)
• Formular 0350 — Zollanmeldung für Übersiedlungsgut (import into Germany)
• verwaltung.bund.de — Umzugsgut beim Zoll anmelden
• CBP Form 3299 — Declaration for Free Entry of Unaccompanied Articles (05/24)
• CBP — Customs Duty Information
• CBP — Moving used household goods into the US (Article 1392)
• CBP — Importing a Motor Vehicle
• CBP — How to obtain EPA Form 3520-1 and DOT Form HS-7 (Article 1085)
• CDC — Frequently Asked Questions on Dog Importations
• CDC — High-Risk Countries for Dog Rabies