The days and weeks after the birth of a child are a whirlwind of emotion, sleep deprivation, cooing, family visits, and nappy changes. Many nappy changes.
At the same time there is a huge amount of organisation that you have to get done.
The most important piece of advice that anyone can give is to get as much of the paperwork printed, filled out and ready to send off before your baby arrives.
You aren’t allowed to send any of it in until your child has been born, but you'll find that you have precious little time or energy to cope with the mountain of admin coming your way afterwards.
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Registering the birthÂ
The first thing that you need to do after the birth is make it official by registering it with your local Standesamt (registry office). You don't have much time to do this: you'll need to do this within the first week.
There are a whole bunch of supporting documents that you need to provide, such as your own birth certificate. It is a very good idea to get all these together in advance.
Importantly, you will need to give them certified translations of any documentation that is not in German such as birth and marriage certificates. This translation needs to be done by a certified translator and will cost you upwards of €50 per document.
Inform your employer and health insurer
This is another one that you should do immediately after the birth but it only applies to the mother of the child.
German laws on Mutterschutz mean that you are not allowed to work for the first eight weeks after the birth. Both your employer and your health insurer need to be made aware of the birth as they both pay a part of your salary during this time.
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Find a paediatrician
In some circumstances you should have found a paediatrician before the birth. For example, if you are planning on coming home on the same day as you give birth, you will need to provide the hospital with proof that you have found a doctor to do the second check up - your baby’s so-called U2 (Untersuchung Zwei). The U1 will be done by a midwife immediately after the birth.
Depending on where you live, you might have to call up quite a few Kinderärzte before you find one who has space. Your midwife can also help you with recommendations.
Going to the U2 will probably be the first time you leave the house with your child - a nervous experience for first-time parents!
Once you have the U2 behind you and you are safely back home you can take a deep breath. The immediate flurry of paper work and appointments is now behind you. You now need to wait for the birth certificate before the next round of bureaucracy can be dealt with.
Apply for health insurance
One of the next key steps once the birth certificate arrives is putting your baby on your health insurance scheme. If you and your partner are both on statutory health insurance either one of you can set up a Familien-Krankenversicherung that has your child on it.
You will then receive a health insurance card for your baby which you will need to present at subsequent doctor's visits.
Register the baby's address
This is an important one to try and get done as soon as you can once the brith certificate has arrived. It's done at the BĂĽrgeramt who will then inform the tax office and other authorities that there is a new little German in the world.
Soon after, your baby's tax number will arrive in the post, while the health office will also get in touch to provide support on other administrative details.
During this meeting with the BĂĽrgeramt you can also get a passport for your baby (see below).
READ ALSO: An American's view of having a baby in Germany
Apply for Kindergeld
Another key bit of paperwork you will want to deal with is the application for Kindergeld (child benefits), which you receive from the state as help for the costs of raising a child. For each of your first three children you receive €204 a month and for the fourth onwards you receive €235.
You apply for this aid with the Agentur fĂĽr Arbeit. The form you need to fill out can be downloaded from their website HERE. You will also need your child's tax number to complete the form.
Apply for Elterngeld
The other form of state subsidy you are entitled to as a new parent is parental allowance. This is money you receive from the state during the time you take off work to care for your child.
Elterngeld is a complicated business - there are companies that exist solely to advise you on what type of Eterngeld to apply for and when.
However you want to organise your parental leave, make sure you apply for this allowance within three months of the birth, otherwise it won’t be paid retrospectively back to the first month.
You should also keep in mind that you need to give your employer at least three weeks' notice before you start your parental leave.
READ ALSO: Elterngeld - How Germany is changing the rules around parental allowance
Apply for passports
Whether you are applying for a German passport, one from your country of origin or both, you’ll need to wait for the birth certificate to arrive before you can do this.
In terms of a German passport, make an appointment with your local Bürgeramt. If you bring along all the necessary documents, as well as biometric photos (and your real life baby), they’ll make a Kinderreisepass for your baby on the spot.
In terms of obtaining a foreign passport, you should consult your local consulate about the steps you need to take.
Kita spots
Last but not least, you might want to start thinking about securing a Kita spot for your child. In some major cities, spots in child care are more precious than gold, leading parents to start looking for a Kita spot before the child has been born.
Ultimately though, you can only apply for a Kita spot nine months before you plan to make use of it. Depending on your family plan you might not have to start thinking about this until a few months down the line.
READ ALSO: More childcare and less paperwork - how Germany can make it easier for foreign parents
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