Carers and social workers employed by the City of Magdeburg are responsible for providing social care in shared accommodation and communal rented apartments. If you live in private accommodation, you can contact the Migrations­beratung offices (advisory service for migrants). Some advice services cater for adult migrants, but the Jugendmigrationsdienst is a specialist service for recently-arrived adolescents and young adults between the ages of 12 and 27.

Various associations and projects seek to promote integration, and can provide someone to accompany you to the doctor’s or the authorities. There are offices of the Willkommens- und Integrations­bündnis (welcome and integration alliance) in many parts of the city, where you can ask questions or make contact with local people (Information sheet 'Meeting and leisure').

Where you apply for social benefits and the level of these depends on your residency status (see Information sheet 'Financial support').

Magdeburg Jobcenter (jobcentre) is responsible for helping those who are able to work, but who cannot meet their own living costs or those of their family dependants.

In accordance with the Reception and Residence Act, a variety of benefits is available from the immigration department of the Sozial- und Wohnungsamt (Social Welfare and Housing Agency). This includes wide-ranging assistance which can be allocated on a case-by-case basis, and which is intended to ensure that the recipient can meet their essential living and housing costs. Contact details

Magdeburg-Pass: Social welfare recipients or people on a very low income can apply for this to the Social Welfare and Housing Agency or to a Bürgerbüro (citizens’ centre) in Magdeburg. The Magdeburg Pass can be used for the following:

• Free energy advice from the Verbraucherzentrale (consumer advice centre), and a contribution towards the cost of crèches, after-school facilities and kindergartens
• Reduced fees for courses at the Volkshochschule (adult education centre) and the Stadtbibliothek (municipal library)
• Access to charitable institutions
• Lower fares on local public transport operated by Magdeburger Verkehrsbetriebe (MVB)
• Reduced entry to some of the city’s cultural institutions

Contact details

Once you have been issued with a residence permit, you are free to move into private accommodation. You can find information on searching for suitable accommodation here (Information sheet about 'Housing') and on sourcing furniture, clothing and household goods here (Information sheet about 'Furniture, clothes and household items').

The Social Welfare and Housing Agency of the City of Magdeburg, the Caritas association of the diocese of Magdeburg, and a number of the city’s housing associations have produced a guide for migrant tenants, which provides a summary of the general rules and regulations governing the use of rented accommodation in Germany.

The child’s birth must be registered with the Standesamt (registry office) within one week. If the child is born in a hospital or other maternity clinic, the institution will register the birth.
The birth certificate should be issued within four weeks of the birth. In the case of a new-born child, the certificate will be issued at Magdeburg Registry Office; the child’s parents should both be in attendance. Depending on the mother’s marital status, the following documents must be submitted.

Single:

• mother’s birth certificate and translation, with authentication if applicable
• a valid passport, certificate of residency or personal ID card
• certificates of naturalisation/ citizenship
• change of name certificates
• prenatal acknowledgment of paternity and joint custody declaration, if applicable 

Married:

• valid passports, certificates of residency or personal ID cards
• marriage certificate and translation, with authentication if applicable

Divorced:

• mother’s birth certificate and translation, with authentication if applicable
• a valid passport, certificate of residency or personal ID card
• certificates of naturalisation/ citizenship
• change of name certificates
• marriage certificate with legally binding divorce decree
• prenatal acknowledgment of paternity and custody declaration, if applicable
• passport and birth certificate of the father acknowledging paternity

Parents who are not German citizens should make an appointment. In cases where at least one of the parents is a foreigner, this can be arranged by email (Standesamt@std.magdeburg.de) or by phoning 0391-540-4216.

The registry office will send an electronic notification to the Aliens’ Authority. Once the parents have received a certificate of registration from the registry office, they must present it to the Foreigners’ Authority.

Elterngeld (maternity/ paternity pay) can be applied for after the birth of a child in Germany; it is intended to give parents time to attend to their responsibilities, and helps make up for the loss of income after the birth of a child. It is paid to mothers and fathers for a maximum of 14 months. They can split this period of time between them as they prefer. Contact details

The Beirat für Integration und Migration (Committee on Integration and Migration) in Magdeburg advises the local council on all matters which affect the city’s migrant population. It highlights shortcomings and areas of need in the field of integration, and offers advice to migrants in particular on any issue relating to everyday life in Magdeburg and the topics of asylum and integration.

The Chair of the Committee on Integration and Migration and the Integration Officer of the City of Magdeburg can be consulted between 4pm and 6pm on Tuesdays at the city hall (Room 044). Contact details