# Any Advice?



## deaniek (Mar 20, 2013)

I'm a 62 year old retired, disabled woman, planning to marry a retired German woman. We'll marry in the USA, in Maryland. Then she goes back to DE (NRW) to register us as domestic partners with the Standesamt and, a few months later, I come over and we live there for our senior years.

Aside from a long form marriage certificate for foreign use, and an apostille birth certificate for me, anyone know what else we need over there? Any advice on how simple or difficult it is to do this (paperwork, registries, etc.)?

If I have my disability deposits plus independent finances, will there be any problem financially? I'll be included with her health insurance, but due to my income will have to pay something, I know. So I need to open a bank account there. Can this be done online?

Any advice appreciated.


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## MrTweek (Jan 9, 2013)

> If I have my disability deposits plus independent finances, will there be any problem financially?


Depends on how much that is...



> So I need to open a bank account there. Can this be done online?


Probably not, but it's just a matter of a day, once you are there.


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## beppi (Jun 10, 2013)

You will only get the visa required for residency in Germany if you (or your partner) can prove you have sufficient financial resources and space to live, so you won"t be a burden to the state.
It is possible to open an account with most banks online. The mandatory ID check can be done at any German post office (for free) or at German embassies abroad (for a fee). Most banks require a German residential address. Enquire with the bank of your choice for the details.


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## deaniek (Mar 20, 2013)

*Are you saying?*

That, with a legal marriage in America I still have to prove I am financially independent as a single person? Or are you saying that _between_ us we need sufficient financial resources? (neither of which is actually a problem). But I thought Germany accepted legal marriages performed in other nations provided the paperwork was in order. And, with the renting of an apartment by my partner, I could stay indefinitely, though not yet as a citizen. Is this not so?


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## beppi (Jun 10, 2013)

I believe you need to prove sufficient resources as a family together - ask at the Auslaenderamt.
In addition, there is also a requirement to attend an integration class once you are in Germany. This is a 660-hours (compulsory and very cheap) course of language and culture and you have to pass the final exam to be allowed to stay on.


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## deaniek (Mar 20, 2013)

*Thanks, Beppi, and...*

Thanks for this information. My friend is currently a German citizen living in Düsseldorf. I don't know if that makes a difference with the financial declaration as she already lives there quite happily, and as I will be married to her when I arrive, I am also not sure about the Ausländersamt.

Do all Germans living in Germany who marry an Ausländer have to prove financial sufficiency themselves, or just the Ausländer?

As for the orientation course, i have been studying it online. I've been speaking German for 5 years (familiar with it from childhood) so that should pose no problems. But I understood I had to wait 3 years to take the citizenship test. Or do you refer to a different test?

Thanks again!


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## beppi (Jun 10, 2013)

As I said, foreigners have to prove financial sufficiency to get a residency permit. This is to prevent them becoming a burden to the state. Germans cannot be denied residency, obviously, and will get social security payments when becoming destitute. For families, the financial sufficiency is looked at altogether (since they must, in case of need, support each other before getting any state support).
The course is for residency. Citizenship is a different topic altogether and I believe the wait is 6-7 years rather than 3 (and you'd have to renounce your US citizenship).
But the Auslaenderamt (and only the Auslaenderamt) can give you definitive answers to these questions.


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