I’m from the UK where we have no need for a national ID card. Since moving to Germany, I never carried ID with me, only my Anmeldung.

However since receiving an Aufenhaltstitel, I always have it with me. Although I’m not sure Aufenhaltstitel is considered an ID card in Germany.

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>The German Act on Identity Cards and Electronic Identification (German: *Personalausweisgesetz*) requires all citizens over the age of 16 to be in possession of an [identity card](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_identity_card) or [passport](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_passport) and to be able to present this document to authorities on request, allowing for fines of up to 5000 € in cases of violations.[[2]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obligation_of_identification#cite_note-gesetze-im-internet.de-2) Except for specific circumstances, the act however does not demand carrying such a document at all times; in cases of suspicion of a crime and/or severe doubts as to the identity, police officials may temporarily apprehend persons or accompany them to their homes to produce the document there. The German identity card has a chip which stores an image of the holder’s face and may also store fingerprints for holders from the age of 6.[[3]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obligation_of_identification#cite_note-3) Driver’s licenses, health insurance cards and other documents issued by government-controlled authorities are *not* valid means of identification for German citizens.

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obligation_of_identification](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obligation_of_identification)

35 comments

  6. Possession is the magic word here and might be unclear in translation. You have to own one but you don’t have to carry it on you. Not having one at all is a problem but leaving it at home isn’t.

  8. Whenever I carry my wallet because that is where it is anyway. When I’m taking a walk in the woods etc., then no, because I don’t have my wallet with me.

  9. I carry my ID card almost always. For one, I currently need it for Covid Restrictions together with my vacc certificate.

    Also, my job ticket for public transport is only valid with my ID.

    So while I’m not legally obligated to carry it, without it I would be barred from many places.

  10. > I’m not sure Aufenhaltstitel is considered an ID card in Germany.

    It’s not. Residence permits or visas are not sufficient for identification unless also accompanied by a valid ID.

  11. Even if you don’t technically need to carry it. If the police stops you and asks for your ID it can make it unnecessarily complicated. (e.g. police driving you home to get your ID card)
    Why would you not carry it around anyways? At least for the small ID card it’s no problem to put it in the wallet. Dont know about the size of other forms of identification though.

  12. No it was required in the gdr but it’s not required to carry it around in the frd.

    I normally carry it around currently but that’s because of the 2g requirements.

  13. Yeah, it’s the same size as a credit card so like most people I just have it in my wallet which I carry with me whenever I go outside.

  14. You must have one, but don’t need to have it always on you. We’re not a police state.

    Worst case scenario, they take your info – name, address, phone number, probably place of work and check it later.

    Once forgot my driver’s license in another jacket and got stopped by the police. Explained them what is what, and that wallet is in the different jacket. Info I told them checked out and they asked me to come to the police station within 3 days to show that it exists.

  15. Back when I was still a US citizen, I was *supposed* to carry my passport with me every time I crossed the border. I used to be a “Grenzgänger”, living in Germany and working in Switzerland, so this meant carrying my US passport with me every bloody day (not very convenient, given the size and fragility of a typical passport).

    After a while, I realized that the chances of needing it were minimal, so I left it at home. I never really had problems because of this, but I was always a bit on guard when crossing the border.

    Since I am now a German citizen and have my credit-card sized ID card, it’s in my wallet right next to my driver’s license, insurance cards and bank cards. It’s in my pocket whenever I leave the house to go farther than next door.

  16. I don’t usually. Only when I carry my big wallet, but usually I just carry a very small one that only fits three cards and then I leave it at home.

  17. I always have my Aufenthaltstitel with me. Aufenthaltstitel ist not your legal ID; your passport is. Most places accept the Aufenthaltstitel. The bank doesn’t. Very rarely your post branch or packet shop doesn’t accept it either.

    I always carry it (Aufenthaltstitel) with me because my dad was once taken home to show his passport and visa when I was a kid. This happened in the UK.

  19. At the moment I do. I often use public transport, which is “3G”, and vaccination certificates are only valid if presented together with an ID. Pre-corona I usually didn’t bother.

  20. When i first moved here, i used my UK driving licence, some were lenient and let me use it, others, I had to go get my passport.
    Since i got the Aufenhaltstitel, it sits in my wallet next to my now EU driving licence.

  23. Sure. It has some surprising IRL amenities. At minor traffic accidents for example, people are often just exchanging addresses by copying the opponents ID card. When the police thinks I’m guilty of something minor, they take my ID card and write me a letter later. It’s more or less unheard of that you have to follow them to the office just to identify you.

  25. Looks like a lot of people in this thread to not understand which problems will have an Ausländer if he loses his documents. Easily 2-4 months of staying in the country without an opportunity to fly back to visit family or friends.
    Meanwhile you cannot do anything official because, guess what, you don’t have any documents!

    Also, having a usual unpleasant experience dealing both with your home country embassy and Ausländerbehörde to get a new passport and a new eAT card.

    Better keep them at home, than be prepared to a random once-in-a-century ID check.

  26. I’m curious if older Germans would have a different answer to this question.

    The issuance of a wallet sized plastic card Personalausweis is a new thing. Previously (prior to 2010 it would appear by one website, but 1987 according to another) they were not wallet sized and so I get the impression that it would have been rare for a German to be carrying them regularly at that time.

    >Driver’s licenses, health insurance cards..are not valid means of identification

    This is an irritation to me. The purpose of having a national identity card is so that you don’t have to have any other photo ID cards. And yet they insist on making other photo ID cards that are weirdly unusable for ID. Either recognize them as valid, or remove the photos, don’t issue photo ID cards that aren’t photo ID cards.

  27. While it is not technically necessary, yes I do always carry it with me when I leave the house. To much hassle to not have it on you when you need it.

  28. Can non-Germans even get a wallet sized ID card to carry around? I couldn’t when I was living there… gave up carrying my passport around after a while because it was a lot of wear and tear on my most important paperwork.

  29. “To present on request” doesn’t mean immediately, you’re allowed to go home and get it/present within a certain number of days.

    I did the same as you, not until I got that card, now I do as it fits in my wallet. I don’t have a driving licence.

    But these days with 2G it’s pretty much essential anyway.

  30. Your Aufenthaltstitel contains biometric data and other information that can be used by government officials to identify you, so in that sense it certainly acts like an ID card.

    At the moment, where 3G and 2G regulations are in force, businesses are supposed to confirm your identity as well as your 3G or 2G status (I’ve just been into town for the first time since the new rules took effect, and I only saw one store actually checking IDs). So it’s a good idea to carry it with you.

    Normally, you are not legally required to carry it, but it then becomes a pain if for any reason you need to identify yourself (if, say, you need to open a bank account, or you get caught up in some incident that the police have to investigate). Modern ID cards are in standard credit-card format, so it’s just another card you keep in your wallet with your credit card, bank card, health insurance card, BahnCard, store loyalty cards, and all the rest. Even back when we had [the bigger ID cards](https://static2.abendzeitung-muenchen.de/storage/image/1/4/3/2/232341_artikelbild-flex_1vclrY_J4uaid.jpg), most wallets came with a special pocket for it, so again it was just something you put in your wallet and didn’t think about until you needed it.

  31. I think most people always carry their ID. It is not legally required to always carry it (you just need to own one) but it makes things much easier just in case anything happens. And Germans always think something could happen. That is why we love our insurances.

  32. My Personalausweis is allways in my wallet and my wallet is allways with me.

    Only in Gyms and public batths it’s allways in the locker.

    even my 13 year old daughter allways has ID on her , while it is only necessary for 16 year olds, it helps to watch movies that are free for 12 year olds.

  33. You know you’re in a German thread when literally everyone is always carrying a wallet with them…

  34. I carry my Perso (short for Personal Ausweis) in and driving licence in my phone case, though it is one that fold closed and protects the screen with pockets on the inside

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