Forwarding German Mail Abroad: The Digital Alternative

The obvious alternative to a Deutsche Post forwarding order (Nachsendeauftrag) is a digital mailbox with a fixed mailing address in Germany: your mail arrives at a service address, gets scanned, and you read it online wherever you are. You don't have to give up the forwarding order for this. You point it at the new address and use it as a bridge until every sender has your new mailing address.

For a move within Germany, a regular forwarding order is usually all you need. If you're moving abroad, travel a lot or no longer have a fixed home, you hit its limits quickly.

What the Deutsche Post forwarding order does, and where it stops

Deutsche Post's forwarding service redirects letters from your old address to a new one. It runs for a fixed term and ends automatically. Check Deutsche Post directly for current prices and terms.

Three points matter if you don't live in one place:

• Your mail stays on paper. A forwarding order only changes where mail is delivered. If nobody opens it there, it sits unread just as before.
• It ends. Once the term is up, mail goes back to your old address, or is returned if nobody lives there anymore.
• Not everything is forwarded abroad. According to Deutsche Post, forwarding to another country excludes registered mail (Einschreiben), insured letters, merchandise shipments, and DHL parcels, among others. Foreign postal operators may also charge extra postage.

That last point catches many people out: registered letters, often the most important ones from your bank, landlord or insurer, won't reach you abroad through a forwarding order.

For an overview of every way to redirect mail in Germany, see Forwarding mail: redirect order, PO box, or a digital solution?

When a regular forwarding order isn't enough

A digital setup pays off when, for months or years, there's no fixed place where someone accepts your mail:

• Emigrating or a long stay abroad, such as a job contract, a sabbatical or a semester abroad
• Life as a digital nomad without a fixed home address
• Several moves in a short time, for example while subletting
• Commuting between two homes, where mail always lands in the wrong one

In all these cases, redirecting mail from A to B doesn't help much. What helps is an address that stays the same, where someone accepts your mail for you. For shorter absences, other options are often enough. We compare them in Away longer: hold your mail, forward it, or go digital?

Forwarding mail from Germany abroad: how the digital route works

Instead of sending your mail to a changing home address, you route it to a fixed mailing address with a digital mailbox. Four steps:

1. Book a digital mailbox with a mailing address. Choose a location, for example Berlin, Friedrichstraße 155.
2. Point your forwarding order at it. In your Deutsche Post forwarding order, enter the new mailing address as the destination.
3. Update your address with senders. While the forwarding order runs, give your banks, insurers, employer and subscriptions the new address.
4. Read your mail online. Every item appears in the app. You decide whether just the envelope or the contents get scanned, then open the document on your phone or computer.

By the time the forwarding order expires, most senders already have your new address, and it no longer matters whether you're in Lisbon, Bangkok or Hamburg. We explain pointing your forwarding order at a Clevver address step by step on a separate page.

What goes on the address

What matters is an unambiguous name. The address looks completely normal, no c/o line needed:

Paul Müller Friedrichstraße 155 10117 Berlin

If another customer with the identical name already uses the location, a small distinction is needed, such as an extra first name. That's sorted out when you book.

Letters, registered mail, parcels: what happens to each

A digital mailbox is only as good as what it accepts. Clevver's digital mailbox accepts all three:

| Item | What happens | |---|---| | Letters | Logged and scanned as you choose, envelope or contents | | Registered mail | Accepted and signed for on your behalf, then available digitally in your mailbox | | Parcels | Accepted and stored, photographed outside and inside on request, forwarded across Europe or worldwide, prepaid |

Scans are included up to your plan's allowance; beyond that, each scan costs a small fee.

Parcels: forward them promptly

Depending on the location, Clevver ships parcels via DHL, FedEx or another available carrier to any address you choose. You pay shipping in advance.

Parcels are meant for short-term holding, not storage. How long a parcel stays free of charge depends on your plan; after that, a daily storage fee applies. Ideally, decide where it should go right after you're notified.

Not a registered address: what a mailing address doesn't replace

A mailing address isn't a residence. You can't register your residence (Anmeldung) there, and it doesn't replace your registration address.

Your registration duty stays the same. If you move within Germany, you register at your new home as usual. If you move abroad and keep no home in Germany, you usually deregister at the citizens' office. What that means for health insurance, taxes or bank accounts is worth checking for your situation, or getting advice on.

The mailing address solves a different problem: your mail arrives reliably and you can read it, wherever you're registered or currently living. More in Renting a private postal address.

An example: two years abroad, mail still reachable

A project manager from Cologne takes a two-year job in Lisbon. She gives up her flat in Cologne and only has a fixed address in Portugal after a few weeks.

Instead of pointing the forwarding order straight at Portugal, she books a digital mailbox in Germany and sends the forwarding order there. In the first months, her final utility bill, cancellation confirmations and a registered letter from her insurer arrive. All of it lands scanned in her mailbox. Meanwhile, she updates her address with her bank, health insurer and employer.

When the forwarding order expires, her mail is already going straight to the new address. A parcel with documents gets forwarded to her in Lisbon.

What does a digital mailbox cost?

The digital mailbox comes in three plans from €9.95 a month including VAT. They differ in how many letters and scans are included and how long parcels are stored free of charge, among other things. All cancel monthly with 14 days' notice.

Parcel forwarding and longer parcel storage cost extra where they apply.

FAQ

Can I point a forwarding order at a Clevver address? Yes. Enter the Clevver address with your name as the destination in the forwarding order. The only requirement is an unambiguous name.

Is registered mail accepted? Yes. Registered mail is accepted and signed for on your behalf, then available digitally in your mailbox.

Can parcels be forwarded to me abroad? Yes. Parcels are accepted and photographed on request. You order forwarding across Europe or worldwide online and pay shipping in advance.

How long are parcels stored? That depends on your plan. Forward parcels promptly; after the free period, a daily storage fee applies.

Can I register my residence at the address? No. The mailing address isn't a residential or registration address.

Is the digital mailbox for businesses too? The digital mailbox is meant for private mail. For business mail and a business address, there's the virtual office.

Deutsche Post details as of October 2026, no guarantee. Still have questions? → Contact us