Rushrush

Life in Dusseldorf wrote a piece on this as well. More information here

Ah yes thanks!

Wow @PandaMunich you are just amazing thank you. I'm going to have to dig up her old pension statements and such and see what I can find. I booked an appointment with pension people on some unrelated stuff, so while I'm there I'll enquirer exactly where she's at. I'll update when I hear back!

Is there a minimum pension payout?   My wife is going back to work and she'll just make it past the 5 year mark, which I understand correctly means she'll get a pension. I guessing it might like 50 Euros a month or something like that. Thanks

A bit off topic but a friend posted this on a FB expat group. Wondering if someone else has had this issue or not.    

Can't seem to get the quote function but regarding fixed term leases, isn't that just an agreement that you will rent the property for a period of time, say 24 months which at the end you will move out. The landlord can extend the lease but he doesn't have to. No eviction necessary as the lease for agreed in advance to be for a specific period of time and you must move out. This verse a normal lease where there is no end date. 

@PandaMunich Thank you so much 😇 you connected the dots in a way I wasn't able to!     Here is a post you made where you gave 3 examples   3 examples of Healthcare costs in retirement

That was interesting but not quite what I was after. My understanding is this. As I've been publicly insured my whole life (i.e. never opted for private over public) I will only have to pay my portion of healthcare cost on my German pension only not on any other income (but I still will owe income tax). I will have to fill out a form   What I'm worried about is reading stories how some retirees get hit with the full amount, 18% on all income in other words the pension people won't be paying the "employer" portion of healthcare. What I'm trying to figure out is what triggers this? Why are some 6 million a year  getting hit with this. 

I searched but couldn't find anything, will have to look again. Any idea what triggers the extra insurance costs? From what you said I'm assuming it's those who were privately insured at some point, or?   Edit: looks like not only was it discussed on another thread but I asked a similar question. Must be getting old or something!

I'm hoping someone can clarify a point for me. I'm on the countdown to retirement and I keep hearing about how retirees are getting hit with massive healthcare costs. According to the pension people and I'll be paying my portion of healthcare just on my German pension, as I was in the public system my whole life. But apparently under certain situations a pensioner is  responsible for the full hit on healthcare costs. Once you add in nursing home costs it works out to an 18%!  I've done a ton of digging and asking and can't seem to get any clarification on this. Even more surprising is it's never been discussed here. I've seen some articles in German but they don't really explain what or why.   If you google "Doppelverbeitragung von Betriebsrenten" you'll get a bunch of hits   Betriebsrenten: Sechs Millionen sind von Doppelverbeitragung betroffen   https://www.presseportal.de/pm/58964/4335732   PS perhaps someone could edit the title to better reflect the issue

I'm facing the same issue, got a good dentist but she seems to want to go for the Cadillac plan. The dentist is going to give me a quote on two crowns if I visit a another dentist will they be able "beat that price"?

Www.pickwicks.de or www.internations.com would be a good starting point

    Final inspection  Had the same issue, paid someone to come in and paint ( was new when we moved in and they used flat paint, perfect for marking the walls. Anyways they painted and polished the floor. It was one of the advertisers here, English speaking contractors. Can't remember the name off hand.      Some tips I read online somewhere   When moving out, the handover procedure is the reverse of when you move in. You meet with the landlord or his/her representative and they do an inspection to see if the property has been returned to the condition in which it was originally rented. The landlord will do an inspection, take the meter readings and give you a copy of the handover protocol. Please keep a copy of this. A tiny minority of landlords will take advantage of foreigners who aren’t familiar with the rules to assess unfair damage to the rent deposit. One person said he received an email six months after moving out, stating that there was mould in the bathroom and it would cost 6000€ to fix and he was responsible. If you’re concerned that your landlord might take advantage of your situation, there are several things you can do. First, bring along a German-speaking friend who can translate for you. Secondly, make sure you note any issues on the handover document.    Remind the landlord that you’re a member of the Mieterverein and you have an appointment today (even if you don’t). Finally, ask the landlord how long will it take to return the deposit. A good landlord will return in within a few days, minus, of course, a small amount for nebenkostenabrechnung at the end of the year. Finally don’t forget to keep a copy of the handover document.

Update: She more or less admitted that they screwed up. The tax return wasn't filed on time and neither was the extension request on time. Unfortunately  Finanzamp took the money before sending the warning letter. I'm waiting for the boss to get back but I wrote him and basically said you screwed up you pay the bill. So we'll see what happens

I just went through this with my local post office, I get the same guy each time so he know me. So the first time he let it go, he put a note on the package. The second time I opened it and sealed it right there. But the other other box I taped lightly shut so I could open. It was busy so he said he'd check it later. Now here's the part I don't get. How can you ship an open box? I assume he checks it and reseals it.   Thanks