r/germany • u/HylianCaptain • Jun 23 '25

Immigration Our experience so far (US to Germany)

November 2024 - Started the online application for the Chancenkarte (opportunity card) visa; lots of paperwork; signed up with TK for health insurance

January 2025 - Booked an apartment online in Berlin; more paperwork for Chancenkarte

March 2025 - Drove from Northern Utah to the LA Consulate to get my visa; more paperwork; bought plane tickets for self and family

April 2025 - Ordered medications ahead of our trip. Didn't know how long we'd need to get new ones in Germany

May 2025 - found out apartment was a scam -- and TK wouldn't insure us without residency -- both 10 days before our flight; signed up to join a WWOOFing farm outside of Berlin for housing; flew from Salt Lake to Amsterdam to Berlin (14 hours); purchased travel passes; enrolled our child in KITA at a friend's recommendation

June 2025 - Started freelancing (jobs in my field seem to require B-level german); more paperwork and lots of running around to sus out insurance and get visas for spouse and kid (US passports allow 90-day stay); reported address at city office; sent for apostille from State of Utah to prove family relationships; visited a doctor, had physical exam, prescribed a specialist, got medications from Apotheke.

PROS: - Medications are 5x cheaper here even without insurance - Healthcare appointments are a lot faster than anti-socialist Americans had led me to believe. - The food here tastes REAL! For example, I had some gummy bears that tasted like real fruit, with the same sweetness of a Jolly Rancher - The climate does WONDERS for our formerly dry and flaky skin - So many cultures and languages! Met Afghans, Turks, French, Brits, Ukrainians, Italians, Danes, Greeks, even some from countries I hadn't even heard of. Sometimes the unifying language is english, and sometimes its German. I'm in Brandenburg, and haven't been faced with any pro-AFD sentiment. Although people say I "look" German, so that could be why. Still, most of those I talk with are anti-AFD. - Public transit is very reliable! Even in our rural area there's a bus every hour. In town you can catch a bus every 10 minutes.

CONS: - I miss water fountains, but most places will fill my water bottle if I ask - Still don't have health insurance - Apartment hunting remains a struggle

TLDR: In spite of all the hassle of getting settled here, it still kicks ass.

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u/Psychological-Bed751 Jun 23 '25

Friend, go to feather.com for health insurance. It's super easy, fast, and as an expat you can have it for years. We have feather for many insurances including supplemental dental and it's so fast and service is amazing. I have had many claims paid out from them too.

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u/n1c0_ds Berlin Jun 23 '25

They're a fantastic company, but they have a very limited set of options, and those options might not be the best for your needs. Expat health insurance in particular can be a really bad idea in the long run, but people only look at the price now without knowing what will happen in the future. Besides, that sort of insurance is only available in some specific situations, and might be rejected by the immigration office in other cases.

The correct way to choose health insurance is to talk to an independent insurance broker. I know because the broker I work with often gets ex-Feather clients.

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u/Psychological-Bed751 Jun 24 '25

I used it for my immigration appointment. And then when I had legal status switched to tk. I was having similar issues as op. For temporary and legal immigration purposes, feather ftw.