Before your first payday, your employer has to register you with the tax office, social insurance and your health insurance. If details are missing, your pay can be delayed or taxed at the highest rate for a while. So have your documents ready before your first day.
What your employer needs from you
- Tax ID (Steuer-ID): an 11-digit number that arrives by post a few weeks after you register your address. Lost it? Request it again from the Federal Central Tax Office (Bundeszentralamt für Steuern).
- Social security number (Sozialversicherungsnummer): if you are working in insured employment in Germany for the first time, it is issued automatically.
- Health insurance (Krankenkasse): you choose the insurer and give your employer the membership certificate.
- IBAN for your salary – an account in any SEPA country works.
- Residence permit with permission to work, if you are not an EU citizen.
- Job-specific documents: food hygiene instruction under the Infection Protection Act for work with food, an extended police certificate for work with children, a forklift licence, certificates or recognition of your qualification.
Before your first day
- Contract: by your first working day at the latest, your employer must give you the key terms – hours, pay, probation, notice periods – in writing. What to check: employment contract checklist
- Time and place: ask for an email confirming when, where and who to report to.
- Route: try the journey beforehand and plan 10 to 15 minutes of buffer. Ask about a job ticket or a Deutschlandticket subsidy.
- Clothing: do you need safety shoes or workwear? Employers often provide them.
Bring on your first day
- ID card or passport, and your residence permit if you have one
- Tax ID, social security number, IBAN and health insurance details
- Job-specific documents
- Pen, notebook, water and something to eat in case there is no canteen
What happens on day one
- Introductions and a tour: team, manager, break rooms, changing rooms, emergency exits.
- Safety briefing: compulsory especially in warehouses, production and trades. Read what you sign.
- Forms: personnel questionnaire, data protection, sometimes a confidentiality agreement.
- Access: card, keys, computer, time recording.
- Rota and routines: where the rota is, how to request holidays, who to call when you are ill.
In the first weeks
- Check your first payslip carefully: tax class, health insurance, hours. Help: German payslip explained
- What matters during probation: probation period in Germany
Frequently asked questions
My tax ID has not arrived yet. Can I still start?+
Yes. Tell your employer and hand in the number as soon as it arrives. Until then you may be taxed at tax class VI; any tax overpaid is corrected or refunded through your tax return.
Do I choose my health insurance myself?+
Yes. You pick a statutory health insurer and give your employer the membership certificate. The additional contributions differ slightly between insurers.
Should I start without a written contract?+
A verbal contract is valid, but your employer must give you the key terms in writing by your first day. At the very least, get pay, hours and duration confirmed by email.
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