PassPeers
DE Living in Germany
Your first weeks are mostly paperwork: register your address, then health insurance, a bank account and your tax ID follow. Here are the rules that newcomers most often ask about.
UK Living in the UK
Registering with a GP, your National Insurance number and the TV licence are the first things newcomers deal with. Here are the rules, with the official page for each.
AU Living in Australia
Medicare, a tax file number and the National Employment Standards are the first things to sort out. Here are the rules, with the official page for each.
US Living in the USA
Many rules in the US differ from state to state, and federal law sets only a floor. Here is what applies everywhere, with the official page for each.
CA Living in Canada
Your Social Insurance Number, provincial health insurance and free newcomer services come first. Health care and work rules are set by the provinces, so check yours.
How these guides work
1
Official sources only. We read the governments' own newcomer guides and the law, and link the page for every rule.
2
Rules, not clichés. We describe rules and practices – what to register, what to pay, how sick leave works – never what people in a country are supposedly like.
3
Gaps stay gaps. Where no official page covers a topic, such as tipping, we leave it out rather than guess.
Ireland, New Zealand and the Gulf states are planned next. Rules change – always confirm on the official page. General information, not legal advice.
Also in Settling in: Housing · Driving licence