Packing List for Nepali Students Going to Germany
You do not need to stuff everything from home into a suitcase for Germany. Packing from Kathmandu comes down to three things: the papers you will need in your first fortnight, the customs limits at the German airport, and the few items that are hard to buy in Germany. Everything else, from bedding to winter boots, you can buy after you land. Here is the list, in order of importance.
1. Documents: in your hand luggage, never in the checked bag
If your suitcase goes to the wrong airport, you can live without clothes for a few days. You cannot enrol, open an account or register your address without these.
- Passport with the visa, plus two photocopies
- University admission letter and any enrolment instructions the university sent
- Originals of your SEE/SLC and Class 11-12 certificates and mark sheets, your bachelor degree certificate and transcripts if you have them, and your language certificates
- Citizenship certificate and birth certificate
- Proof of funds: blocked account confirmation, scholarship letter or sponsor documents
- Confirmation of travel health insurance for the weeks before enrolment
- Rental contract or hostel booking for your first address
- Four or five spare biometric photos, which German offices still ask for
- A bank card that works abroad and your Nepali bank's contact details
Two papers people forget. First, the landlord's confirmation that you have moved in (Wohnungsgeberbestaetigung): your landlord is legally obliged to give it to you (Section 19 Federal Registration Act), and you need it to register your address within two weeks. Ask for it the day you get your keys. Second, a scanned copy of every document above, saved in cloud storage and on your phone.
Your blocked account pays out only a set amount each month (Federal Foreign Office), so it will not cover a large first-week bill such as a rent deposit on top of rent. Bring enough money to cover the first few weeks; our blocked account guide explains the release process.
2. Customs limits at a German airport
Arriving from Nepal means entering the EU from outside, so German customs allowances apply. The figures below come from German Customs.
| Item | Duty-free limit or rule |
|---|---|
| Cigarettes (age 17+) | 200 cigarettes, or 100 cigarillos, 50 cigars or 250 g tobacco |
| Spirits (age 17+) | 1 litre above 22 percent, or 2 litres up to 22 percent; plus 4 litres of wine and 16 litres of beer |
| Other goods, arriving by air | Up to EUR 430 in value |
| Cash | EUR 10,000 or more must be declared in writing on arrival (customs, cash) |
| Medicines | Personal use, usually up to three months' supply (customs, medicines) |
| Meat, dairy, eggs | Restricted; ghee and sukuti stay at home |
3. Medicines
Bring up to three months of any regular medication, in the original packaging, with a prescription or doctor's letter in English that names the active ingredient as well as the Nepali brand. German pharmacists can then find the equivalent. Medicines containing narcotics such as morphine need a special prescription from your doctor. Some herbal or Ayurvedic products count as medicines in Germany when they claim to treat an illness, so leave anything without a clear label at home.
Add a small first-aid kit with paracetamol, oral rehydration salts and plasters for the first days, before you know where the nearest pharmacy (Apotheke) is. Insurance questions are covered in our health insurance guide.
4. Clothes for a German winter
German winters are long, grey and damp more than spectacularly cold, and the wind on a station platform at 7 a.m. is what gets you. Pack in layers rather than bulk:
- Thermal underwear, two or three sets, easy to find in Kathmandu
- A light down jacket for layering
- Two warm sweaters or fleeces
- Waterproof, closed shoes with a good grip
- A cap, gloves and a scarf
- One formal outfit for interviews and a daura suruwal or kurta for Dashain and Tihar gatherings
Buy the heavy, waterproof winter coat in Germany. You will know what you need after a week of local weather, and it saves you several kilos.
5. Kitchen and food
Most of what you cook is easy to buy, so bring only what is hard to find: a small supply of timur, jimbu and your family's masala mixes, factory-sealed. Skip sacks of rice and dal; German supermarkets and Asian grocers have them. A small induction-friendly pressure cooker is worth the weight if you eat dal daily. What customs allows in your food bag, and how to cook Nepali food in a shared kitchen, is in our food and cooking guide.
6. Electronics
Germany runs on 230 volts (deutschland.de). Look at the small print on each charger: if it says 100-240V, you only need a plug adapter. German sockets take round two-pin plugs, so the slim two-pin chargers from Nepal fit, but the big three-pin plugs do not. Bring two adapters and a short multi-socket extension so one adapter powers everything.
Unlock your phone before leaving so a German SIM works in it, and keep your Nepali SIM active for bank OTPs.
What to leave behind
- Bedding, pillows and towels, unless your hall says otherwise; cheaper to buy than to fly
- Large utensils, steel plates in bulk, and a full gas-stove set
- More than one or two pairs of shoes
- Any meat, ghee or homemade pickles
- Printed textbooks; your university library will have most course books
Check your airline's baggage allowance before you pack, because it differs by airline and fare class. Our flight booking guide covers routes, and the student housing guide tells you what furnished rooms usually include.
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