Good salary, careful saver, and a current account paying nothing while prices rise. That is the default for most internationals here. Investing in Germany is simpler and cheaper than it looks; the hard part is that nobody explains it in English.
None of these feel like losses. They are, every year.
Savings sitting still in a current account while inflation quietly eats 2 to 5% of them every single year. Even a boring, low-cost ETF plan changes that from day one.
3% a year, gone quietlyThe statutory pension is built to replace a fraction of your income, not to fund a life. Without a second or third pillar, the gap is yours, and every year of waiting is compounding you cannot buy back.
Compounding you cannot buy backEmployer pension top-ups, capital-forming payments, state allowances. Written for you, paid only if you ask. Most internationals never know to.
€1,600 / year missedFigures are illustrative, for a typical international household.
The free check or a short call. Income, plans, how long you think you stay. No documents needed.
What to invest, in what order, and why. Which pension pillar, which allowances, what to leave alone. Reasoning included, so you can question it.
Across around 250 vetted partners through the Tecis platform, and built to travel with you rather than lock you to Germany.
Free tools for this, no sign-up
Usually yes. ETF and fund portfolios can typically be kept and managed from abroad, and private pensions can be set up so payouts are not tied to Germany. We set things up with that in mind from the start.
Gains and dividends are taxed, but every person has a yearly tax-free allowance on investment income (currently €1,000, €2,000 for couples). Set up properly with your broker, the first chunk of your returns stays untaxed automatically.
You need a securities account (Depot), which most German and several EU brokers open online in English. We help you pick one that stays usable if you move.
Nothing. If you take out a product, the provider pays us a commission, never you, and that never decides what we recommend. If the right answer is a cheap ETF plan and no product, that is what we say.
About two minutes of questions, then a personal report: what is sorted, what is quietly costing you money, and what to fix first.