Bringing nursing staff from abroad to Germany – we support you as an employer

Have you decided to hire a caregiver from abroad and would like to ensure your future employees receive the best possible support on their journey to Germany? That's where we come in! We provide professional support throughout the preparation phase, providing you with all the necessary steps.

PROGEDO itself is not a placement agency or carries out any such activities, but works with such agencies and is happy to establish contact.

We can support you with the following steps on the way to your first day of work:

Applying for a work visa

If a residence permit is required to start work, PROGEDO will support you through this process. We will inform you of all the necessary steps and check whether the requirements for applying for a work visa are met and whether all required documents are available. We will also inform you about the procedure for booking an appointment with the relevant embassy or consulate.

PROGEDO does not provide legal services within the meaning of Section 2 Paragraph 1 RDG!

Applying for German health insurance

Compulsory health insurance applies to all persons residing in Germany.

With the help of our long-standing partners, we can arrange health insurance membership before your arrival.

Important to note: Health insurance only becomes valid upon the contractually agreed start of employment with your German employer. Therefore, it is advisable to take out travel health insurance in your home country for the duration of your journey up until your first day of work. We are happy to assist with this as well.

Relocation

If your new employee plans to travel with all their belongings, the move must be organized. Especially for overseas moves, it's important to create a schedule, as the containers typically travel by ship for several weeks. PROGEDO works with several German freight forwarders, who, together with their international partners, ensure that everything runs smoothly. And if something does go wrong, the responsible contact person is located here, not abroad.

You can find out more about our services in this regard and all other PROGEDO settlement-in services here. https://www.relocation.de/relocation/relocation-pakete/#toggle-id-4

Temporary accommodation

Before your new employee begins their journey, we will email you a selection of temporary accommodations tailored to your needs and budget. We have a large network of furnished apartments and shared rooms and can find the right accommodation for every budget. We will handle the rental agreement, coordinate the deposit and rent payments, and move-in. Upon request, we can also purchase an initial supply of groceries.

Meet & Greet

Upon arrival at the new location, we will personally pick up your new employee from the airport or train station and take them by the hand.

If you wish, we can also immediately arrange a monthly ticket for public transport, which will allow you to use it unlimitedly at any time.

We'll then drive together to the rented accommodation and hand it over. Your new employee will also receive an introduction to our German customs (house rules, waste separation, behavior and interaction with neighbors, proper heating and ventilation, handling of electrical appliances, etc.) upon moving in.

Information about the place of residence

Upon arrival, he will also receive a welcome folder with all the important information about his new living environment:

• map
• Doctors
• Emergency numbers
• Authority guide
• Supermarkets
• public transportation
• Leisure tips

If desired, we can show him the surrounding area, especially the shopping facilities, the nearest public transport options and other previously individually coordinated locations that are of interest to him.

Registration

In Germany, registration is mandatory: every new arrival from within Germany and abroad must be reported to the responsible municipal registration authority.

On the first day after arrival, we can register your new employee at their new place of residence. We will prepare all the necessary documents for them in advance.

Anyone registered in Germany is automatically assigned a tax ID by the relevant tax office. This is important for payroll processing – we can obtain it with a power of attorney no later than three days after the official registration with the tax office and forward it to the employer.

Account opening

We provide an overview of the various local banks and arrange an appointment with your preferred bank. Of course, we accompany your employees to the account opening process and provide interpreting services during the meeting.

Once the account is officially opened, your employee will have direct access to their online banking and will receive an account card by mail within the first 10 days.

Registration with utility companies

Rents in Germany are divided into "cold rent" and "warm rent." The cold rent refers to the use of the living space. The warm rent includes utilities, either water or water and heating. In addition, the tenant must register their electricity consumption and, if applicable, heating costs with a utility company and pay them separately each month.

Every household in Germany must also pay a monthly radio and TV usage fee of €17.50 (even if you don't own a radio or a television).

We will be happy to register you with the necessary providers.

Insurance

In Germany, it's common practice to take out private liability insurance. This is often even stipulated in the rental agreement. Such liability insurance is inexpensive and covers the costs incurred in the event of unintentional damage to the property or health of others.

We would be happy to inform your employees about other useful insurance options, such as home contents insurance, tailored to their individual needs.

Telephone and Internet

Experience has shown that maintaining contact with their homeland and the family and friends they left behind is a very important aspect for new foreign nationals. Should your employee require an internet and/or telephone connection for their new home, we would be happy to advise them on the available options in their place of residence and initiate the contract with the desired provider.

We'll also work with your new employee to obtain a German SIM card for their mobile phone. This requires an official address and their passport.

It is only possible to conclude a mobile phone contract a few weeks later, after the visa (if required) has been converted into a residence permit.

The first day of work

We would be happy to travel with your new employee to their new place of work on their first day of work using public transport.

Administrative procedures

Often, additional administrative procedures are required, for example, for a criminal record check. We are happy to coordinate these and accompany you to the appointments.

immigration

Once your new employee is officially registered in Germany, an application must be submitted to the relevant immigration authority to convert their entry visa into a residence permit with a work permit.

We'll arrange the necessary appointment and assist with preparing all the necessary documents. Your employee must be present in person to submit their biometric data. We can also accompany them here. A few weeks later, we will collect the final title on their behalf, and we will then deliver the document to their home or workplace.

Apartment search

We'd be happy to take the search for a long-term home off your hands. The German rental market is fast-moving, and without sufficient German language skills and the necessary know-how, it's difficult to compete for an apartment against the many other applicants.

Thanks to our broad network and excellent cooperation with real estate agents and private landlords, we can find the right property for you in the shortest possible time.

Our apartment search service includes the following points:

• Detailed preliminary discussion with needs assessment
• Sending and discussing various objects to fine-tune the search
• accompanied and time-optimized/coordinated tours with chauffeur service
• Discussing and translating the necessary documents for the application (self-disclosure, salary certificate, etc.)
• Explanation of the rental agreement and its contents
• Coordination of the rental agreement
• Apartment handover with protocol
• Negotiate any takeover contracts (kitchen, furniture, etc.)

You can find further information here. https://www.relocation.de/relocation/relocation-pakete/

Is the family coming along?

We are also happy to take care of the integration of your new employee’s family.

Finding a kindergarten place, registering your child for school, applying for child or parental benefits – we're happy to take care of all this and more. You can find more information here. https://www.relocation.de/en/relocation/relocation-packages/#toggle-id-5

We would be happy to calculate an individual package for you, depending on the country of origin of your new employee.

By the way, you can of course also book all services for nursing professionals you find in Germany with us. Finding an apartment or daycare center, in particular, isn't exactly easy when you live several hundred kilometers from your new job. Use our service to successfully differentiate yourself from other companies also looking for nursing professionals. What's now standard in the IT industry or among startups will also help you gain a competitive advantage!

Note: For the sake of readability, we sometimes omit gender-specific spelling in our blog posts. All personal information should therefore be understood as gender-neutral.