Change of the main residence

If you have and live in several apartments, one apartment is your main apartment, all others are secondary apartments. If there are any changes, you must inform your registration office.

If you have several residences in Germany and the status of your residence has changed (main residence is now used as a secondary residence or secondary residence is now used as the main residence without any move-in or move-out to a new residence or from a previous residence), you are required to notify the relevant registration office.

Main residence is:

• If you are married or in a civil partnership: the predominantly used home of the family or the civil partnership. This also applies if you are only temporarily living apart from your family or civil partner.
• If you are married or in a civil partnership and live permanently separated: Your predominantly used home.
• If you are a minor: the predominantly used home of your parents or foster parents. If they live separately, the main residence is the residence in which you mainly live.
• Only if the predominantly used dwelling cannot be determined beyond doubt, the focus of the living relationships is to be taken into account. Indications for this are, for example, the type of dwelling, personal ties, social and communal political activities as well as membership in clubs and other organizations.

At the same time, you are required to inform the registration office of any other residences (secondary residences) you have in Germany in addition to your main residence.

A secondary residence is any other residence in Germany. You can therefore have one main residence and several secondary residences.

The registration office for the new main residence is responsible

Please bring a personal document (for example, identity card or passport as proof of identity and to change the apartment details).

Some registration authorities offer forms on the Internet.

• Online procedure possible: generally no
• Written form required: possible
• Personal appearance required: in principle yes

You have -at least 2 residences in Germany.

Your previous main residence is used by you as a secondary residence or your previous secondary residence is used as your main residence.

The final decision will be made by the registration office, which will check the information you have provided if necessary.

Personal appearance at the competent registration office is mandatory.

You are obliged to notify the relevant registration office of the change of status of your residence within two weeks.

The period begins with the day on which a change of the previous residence has taken place.

none (the change of status is entered directly in the population register at the registration office)

none