BERLINEN
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  1. ServicePortal Berlin
  2. Services
  3. Meldewesen und Ordnung
  4. Apply for an identity card (Personalausweis)

Apply for an identity card (Personalausweis)

Personalausweis beantragen
Machine translation of the German page, 2026-09-15. The German original is binding.

Book an appointment

Book an appointment (service.berlin.de)

Requirements

• German citizenship • Personal appearance is required in every case The applicant (including minors) must be present when the application is submitted. • For minors who have not yet turned 16: The application must be submitted by the legal representative(s). The child must also be present when the application is submitted. (As a rule, the legal representatives are the parents.) • Residence in Berlin (exceptions possible) • You live in Berlin and are registered here. • A secondary residence (Nebenwohnsitz) in Berlin is sufficient if there is an important reason. In this case, however, the document costs more, because the municipality of your main residence must give its consent (more under "Fees"). • Identity card (Personalausweis) for persons not registered in Berlin, tourists, and Germans resident abroad service.berlin.de/dienstleistung/326550/ If you • are staying in Berlin but do not have a fixed home (for homeless persons), • or are staying in Berlin temporarily and are currently registered outside Berlin, • or are staying in Berlin for tourism reasons, you also have the option of applying for an identity card in Berlin. The documents can only be applied for at the Landesamt für Bürger- und Ordnungsangelegenheiten (State Office for Citizens' and Regulatory Affairs).

Documents you need

• 1 current, digital biometric passport photo (New regulation from 01.05.2025) • Biometric passport photos for passport and identity documents may now only be taken digitally directly at the authorities (Bürgerämter [citizens' offices]) or at certified photo studios, and transmitted by a secure electronic route. • If you, as the applicant, belong to a religious community whose rules require its members not to appear in public without a head covering, you must credibly demonstrate this when applying for the first time. • Our recommendation for the fastest possible process: have the digital, biometric photo for babies and small children under 6 years of age taken in advance at a certified photo service provider. The Bürgeramt (citizens' office) can retrieve the photo from the cloud. • Your old document (if you have one) If you still have an old document, please bring it with you, even if it has already expired or been invalidated. • Your valid document (if you have one) for example • Your Personalausweis (identity card) • Your old passport • Civil status certificate, if applicable Please bring a birth certificate or marriage certificate or civil partnership certificate, • if you have never had a document such as a Personalausweis (identity card) or a passport, • if your personal details differ from the data stored in the Melderegister (register of residents). This can happen, for example, after a marriage or a change of name. • Declaration of consent and identity document of a non-present legal representative, if applicable • If you want to apply for a Personalausweis (identity card) for a minor. • If both parents have custody, do not live separately from each other, and one parent is not present when the application is made, a written declaration of consent from the parent who is not present must be submitted. That parent's identity card/passport must also be brought along to compare the signature on the declaration of consent. • If parents who share joint custody live separately, not merely temporarily, only the parent with whom the minor child is registered with their main residence or sole residence may apply for the Personalausweis (identity card). • This is not necessary if you have sole custody or if both parents are present. • If you have been naturalized and want to apply for German documents for the first time • Passport or ID card of the state of your previous nationality, or a certificate of identity from the Landesamt für Einwanderung (State Office for Immigration, LEA). • Einbürgerungsurkunde (naturalization certificate)

Forms

• Declaration of consent from the non-present parent for the application to issue an identity card (Personalausweis) www.berlin.de/formularverzeichnis/?formular=/buergeramt/pass

Fees

• 27.60 euros: for the Personalausweis (identity card) if you are younger than 24 years • 46.00 euros: for the Personalausweis (identity card) if you are 24 years or older • 13.00 euros additional: for the Personalausweis (identity card) if Berlin is your secondary residence • 6.00 euros additional: for taking the passport photo on site • 15.00 euros additional: for direct delivery

Legal basis

• Personalausweisgesetz (PAuswG, Identity Card Act) § 9 www.gesetze-im-internet.de/pauswg/__9.html

Processing time

• approximately 3 to 4 weeks • In individual cases, production of the Personalausweis (identity card) can take considerably longer. Please ask when you submit the application. • If you urgently need an identity card, you can additionally apply for a temporary identity card (see "Further information").

Further information

• The identity card (Personalausweis) (Federal Ministry of the Interior) www.personalausweisportal.de/Webs/PA/DE/startseite/startseit • Travel guide "Safe Travel" (Federal Foreign Office) www.auswaertiges-amt.de/de/ReiseUndSicherheit • Fees and validity (Federal Ministry of the Interior) www.personalausweisportal.de/Webs/PA/DE/buergerinnen-und-bue • Identity card - exemption from the obligation to hold an identity card (service) service.berlin.de/dienstleistung/327044/ • Identity card for persons not registered in Berlin, tourists and Germans resident abroad (service) service.berlin.de/dienstleistung/326550/ • Apply for a provisional identity card (service) service.berlin.de/dienstleistung/120682/

Who is responsible

This service can be used at all Bürgerämter (citizens' offices).

Responsible for you

Choose a location; the appointment itself is booked on the original page.

Original

German original

Service number 120703 · same path as the original: service.berlin.de/dienstleistung/120703/