In November, carnival season kicks off in Cologne, receiving your residence permit will get easier and a new law brings a historic moment for LGBTQ+ rights. Here are the changes affecting expats in Germany this month.

1. Passports and IDs can be delivered by post

If you renew German identity documents after November 1, you can receive your new documents by post.

Previously, if you applied for a German passport, ID card, or eID residence card in Germany, you needed to return to the responsible administrative office to collect your document when it was ready. 

This second trip will no longer be necessary. You will receive the PIN letter you need to activate your eID at your initial appointment and the new identity documents can be sent to your home address for a small postage fee.

While the new policy applies from November 1, a transition period means that administrative offices have until January 2025 to begin the postal service.

2. Deadline for switching car insurance

If you would like to swap car insurance providers before your insurance plan renews on January 1, 2025, you have until November 30, 2024, to withdraw from your existing plan.

Some insured people have a little more time. If your current insurer will raise prices next year, you have a month’s window to cancel from the date they inform you of the price rise.

3. Business ID Numbers distributed to small businesses

From November, registered small businesses and self-employed people who pay VAT will be designated a business ID number (Wirtschafts-Identifikationsnummer of W-IdNr.) by the Federal Central Tax Office.

The ID numbers are being distributed to simplify communication between businesses and the tax office (Finanzamt). The distribution process is expected to take until 2026 and for now, you won’t always have to quote your ID number in correspondence with the Finanzamt.

4. Gender self-determination law comes into effect

On November 1 the Self-Determination Act will replace the 1980 Transsexual Law after Bundestag members voted through the new act in April 2024.

Under the Transsexual Law, transgender, intersex and non-binary people who wanted to change their legal gender at the registry office (Standesamt) required a medical certificate which was issued after two assessments by psychologists and court permission. These are no longer required.

Under the Self-Determination Act, people aged 14 or over can change their legal gender and first name more easily. Because changes must be prospectively registered at least three months in advance, it has been possible to book appointments at the Standesamt since August 1, 2024.

The new law follows similar legislative changes in Argentina, Belgium, Denmark, Ireland, Luxembourg, Malta, Norway, Portugal, Scotland, Spain and Uruguay.

5. Doctors can issue blanket prescriptions for shoulder treatment

From November 1, doctors in Germany will be able to issue a blank prescription (Blankoverordnung) for shoulder pain. A Blankoverordnung is a prescription which gives a diagnosis but does not suggest a specific treatment.

People with shoulder pain can take this prescription to a physiotherapist. The change means that physiotherapists are now responsible for diagnosis and determining a treatment method, its frequency and duration.

These Blankoverordnung prescriptions can only be used in physiotherapy practices that treat patients covered by statutory health insurance.

6. Pay rise for bank employees

Thanks to a new collective bargaining agreement secured by ver.di on behalf of 60.000 employees at German banks, employees at German public banks will receive higher wages starting November 1.

The 11,5 percent rise will be introduced in three stages at 63 banks in Germany.

7. Cinema subscription app to launch

Using the new Cinfinity subscription, film fans over 18 years old will soon be able to visit participating cinemas across Germany an unlimited number of times for just 12,50 euros per month.

The German company will launch its new subscription in mid-November, but a specific launch date is yet to be confirmed.

8. Carnival season begins in Cologne

Every year on November 11, 70.000 carnival merrymakers come together on Cologne’s historic Heumarkt to kick off a brand new carnival season! 

At 11.11am the crowd opens the “fifth season of the year” and Cologne Carnival transforms the city centre into a wonderland of the best and brightest fancy dress. Running through to Lent, carnival season closes in Cologne on so-called “Violet Tuesday”, which this season falls on March 5, 2025.

Is 2024 the first time you will attend the merrymaking in Cologne? Check out our definitive guide to carnival!

9. St. Martin’s Day on November 11

November 11 is a busy day in Germany, it also marks Saint Martin’s Day (Martinstag). 

On Martinstag, children in Germany traditionally walk around their neighbourhood holding lanterns and singing songs. The luminous processions celebrate the life of Saint Martin, a soldier, monk and bishop born in 316 or 334 AD, and symbolise the holy light that keeps the darkness at bay.

Probably inspired by one particular story of Saint Martin unsuccessfully hiding in a barn full of geese to avoid becoming a bishop, roasted goose (Martinsgans) is served in the evening, along with other traditional foods: red cabbage, dumplings and Martinshörnchen, a pastry that is supposed to represent the hooves of Saint Martin’s horse and his mantle.

10. Public holiday in Saxony on November 23 

On November 23, workers in Saxony and schoolchildren in Bavaria will have the day off for Buß- und Bettag (Day of Repentance and Prayer). 

Buß- und Bettag is celebrated on the penultimate Wednesday before the beginning of the Protestant liturgical year on the first Sunday of Advent, which this year falls on November 23.

Buß- und Bettag does exactly what it says on the tin, it is a formal opportunity to pray and repent. Religious people in Germany will take the opportunity to pray and consider their faith. Many churches will hold special services to commemorate the day. For non-religious people, it is a nice opportunity to have a day off work.

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