Germany
Emergency
What to say when you call
Ich brauche Hilfe. Ich bin in [Straße, Hausnummer, Ort]. [Es ist ein Unfall / ein Brand / ein Einbruch passiert]. [Zahl] Personen sind betroffen.
Means: I need help. I am at [address]. [What happened]. [Number] people are affected.
ID number you need first
Steuer-ID · Sozialversicherungsnummer
BZSt (tax) · Rentenversicherung via your employer
Prepaid SIM: do you need ID?
Practical facts
- Plug typeC, FPartly verified
Plug types C, F. Taken from the IEC World Plugs country listing as quoted in search results; the IEC page itself did not open for our checker (HTTP 403). Confirm on iec.ch.
Source: iec.ch: World plugs (country listing) · Last checked 2026-10-21
- Mains voltage and frequency230 V · 50 HzPartly verified
Mains 230 V, 50 Hz. Taken from the IEC World Plugs country listing as quoted in search results; the IEC page itself did not open for our checker (HTTP 403). Confirm on iec.ch.
Source: iec.ch: World plugs (country listing) · Last checked 2026-10-21
- CurrencyEUR · euroOfficial source read
The euro is the official currency of 21 of the 27 EU countries, including Germany.
Source: european-union.europa.eu: countries using the euro · Last checked 2026-10-21
- Time zoneNot verified
Not verified: Usually CET in winter and CEST (one hour ahead) in summer. We did not open an official page for this. Check with the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (ptb.de).
Source: no official page opened (the page does not state this) · Last checked 2026-10-21
- Clock changeLast Sun Mar · last Sun OctPartly verified
EU rule: summer time starts at 01:00 UTC on the last Sunday in March and ends at 01:00 UTC on the last Sunday in October (Directive 2000/84/EC, articles 2 and 3). 2026: forward 29 Mar, back 25 Oct. 2027: forward 28 Mar, back 31 Oct. We calculated these dates from the rule; the directive page did not open for our checker, so the wording comes from search results. Check the date near the change.
Source: eur-lex.europa.eu: Directive 2000/84/EC on summer-time arrangements · Last checked 2026-10-21
- Driving sideNot verified
Not verified: we did not open an official page that states the driving side. Check with the Bundesministerium für Verkehr (bmv.de) before you drive.
Source: no official page opened (the page does not state this) · Last checked 2026-10-21
Left out on purpose: tap water and tipping. We add them only when an official source states them for the country.