Relocation Planning Session — Your Legal Options for the Move to Germany, Talked Through With a Lawyer

The Relocation Planning Session is for professionals, high-net-worth individuals, retirees, students, founders and families who are moving to Germany and want their legal options talked through by a lawyer before they resign, sign a lease or book flights. The focus is your visa or residence permit path and the order in which things must happen. Around that, I add the practical aspects of relocating that matter for your permit and your first months — health insurance, registering your address, how the rental market works, what your children need for school or Kita, which documents to have apostilled before you leave — as far as they apply to you; what we cover in detail depends on your situation.

This is broader than the 45-minute consultation: we have up to an hour, you are welcome to send documents in advance, and you take home a written Relocation Plan and a set of information sheets personalised to your situation.

What's included

A video call with me of up to 60 minutes.
The written Relocation Plan, sent after the call.
A set of information sheets personalised to your situation — for example your first 30 days in Germany, health insurance and your residence permit, and registering your address.

What we cover

Your visa and residence permit path: which permit fits (EU Blue Card, skilled-worker permit, § 21 self-employment, family reunification or another path), whether you can enter without a visa and apply in Germany, the order of steps from contract to visa to Anmeldung to permit, and how family members fit into the sequence.
The practical side, as far as it matters for your permit and your first months: health insurance and what it means for your permit, registering your address and how the rental market works (including the pitfalls to look out for), schooling and Kita, and the documents to have apostilled and translated before you leave. Which of these we go into depends on you and your situation.

What you get

The Relocation Plan contains:

Recommended path: the visa and permit path I recommend for your situation and goals, and why.
Sequence: the order of steps from contract to visa to Anmeldung to residence permit, with health insurance and school placed where they belong.
Pitfalls ticked: the traps that apply to you, such as starting work before the permit, degree-recognition timing, health-insurance gaps or apostille requirements.
Document checklist for the consulate and the immigration office.
Legal steps outline: what to do next, in which order.

What this is not

No filing: I do not book the consulate appointment or submit the visa application in this session.
No representation: I do not act toward the consulate, the immigration office or your employer in this session.
No deadline monitoring, and no tax advice.
No apartment search: I explain how the market works and what to prepare, but I do not find a flat for you.

How it works

Book and pay. Ideally three to six months before your intended move.
Tell me about your move. You're welcome to send any documents — contract or offer, family details and a short summary — in advance, then we can dive right into things during the consultation.
Video call. Up to an hour on your legal options, the sequence and the practical aspects that matter for you. If we later agree that I should take the matter over, I quote representation separately.
Relocation Plan and information sheets. You receive them after the call.

Price

€495. This is a flat fee: the price you see is the price you pay; there are no hourly charges and no extras.

Questions people ask

How is this different from the 45-minute consultation? The consultation answers questions on a specific legal issue. This session offers in-depth relocation advice: we have up to an hour to assess your individual situation and goals, and you take home the Relocation Plan and the information sheets.

My employer has a relocation agency. Do I still need this? Agencies handle logistics well; they do not give legal advice on which permit protects your long-term options, such as the path to permanent residence, or on how your insurance choice affects your permit. This session does.

Can my spouse join the call? Absolutely. Family reunification, schooling and insurance for the family are part of the plan, so it helps if both of you hear it.

Book the Relocation Planning Session — €495

Last reviewed: August 2026 — RAin Fiona Macdonald

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