Are you a South African or Namibian living in Germany, planning to move here, or someone with a genuine connection to both South Africa and Germany?
Connect with fellow South Africans, ask questions, share experiences, and support one another in our friendly WhatsApp Community.
To help keep our community safe, relevant, and free from spam, we add new members manually.
If you’d like to join, please email admin@southafricansingermany.de with the following information:
Once we’ve received your email, we’ll add you to the Community and the groups that best match your interests. We look forward to welcoming you!
Please note: We reserve the right to decline requests that do not meet the purpose of the community or where insufficient information is provided.
Our community thrives on mutual respect, positivity, and helpfulness.
To ensure this remains a welcoming environment, we’ve outlined a few simple rules for everyone to follow.
By participating, you help build a stronger, more supportive network of South Africans in Germany.
We are a South African community, so we understand that people have different personalities, humour and ways of expressing themselves. Keep it natural — but keep it classy.
Treat everyone with kindness and respect. Excessive swearing, crude or vulgar language, sexual comments, personal insults, degrading remarks, or language intended to offend or humiliate others are not appropriate here.
We also ask members to show respect when discussing religion and religious beliefs. Deliberately offensive, mocking or provocative language is not acceptable.
Think of this as a community gathering, not your private friends’ chat. What might be funny among close friends may not be appropriate for a large and diverse community.
WhatsApp groups display members’ phone numbers. By joining this community, you acknowledge that other members can see your number.
Members may not use the community to send unsolicited sales messages, recruitment offers, business promotions, or marketing messages via private chat. If someone is interested in your service, they will contact you directly.
To help prevent scams and ensure everyone’s safety, we do not allow the sale, resale, or exchange of second-hand concert tickets in this group.
Requests for loans, fundraising, investments, financial assistance, or money transfers are not permitted.
Information shared in the group reflects personal experiences and opinions. Members should always verify important information relating to visas, taxes, legal matters, healthcare, employment, and finances through official sources or qualified professionals.
Admins volunteer their time to keep the community welcoming and safe. While we aim to be fair and transparent, decisions regarding membership, moderation, and rule enforcement are final.
Share useful and relevant resources, but avoid posting unrelated links, advertisements, or promotional material outside designated groups (e.g., the Travel Tips and Marketing groups).
No charity or donation requests are allowed. We can’t verify every cause, and we don’t want to risk scams or misunderstandings.
Sharing pornography, illegal images, or any content that violates the law is strictly prohibited. Such actions will lead to immediate removal and may be reported to relevant authorities.
Post messages and questions in the appropriate group. For example, keep travel-related discussions in the Travel Tips and Deals group.
Refrain from overwhelming the group with excessive or repetitive messages. Use concise messages to make conversations more enjoyable for everyone.
Only share safe and relevant links. Admins may remove suspicious or inappropriate links without notice.
Do not send unsolicited private messages or repeatedly contact members without their consent.
Report any harassment to the group admin.
If you encounter inappropriate behavior, harassment, or spam, contact an admin directly to address the issue.
By participating in this community, you agree to follow these rules. Violations may result in warnings, removal, or banning from the community.
Your safety and privacy are important to us. While we work hard to maintain a safe and supportive community, members should remain vigilant and use common sense when interacting with others online.
From time to time, members may ask if someone travelling between Germany and South Africa can take a package, document, suitcase, medication, or other item on their behalf.
While many of these requests may be genuine, we strongly advise members to exercise caution.
Scammers sometimes target community members by phone, WhatsApp, SMS, or email.
Examples may include:
Important: South Africans in Germany will never phone members asking them to register for events or provide personal information.
All official events and community activities are published on our website: https://www.southafricansingermany.de/your-space/events/
If you receive a suspicious call, message, or link claiming to be associated with our community, do not click the link and report it to an admin.
One of the reasons many of us chose to make Germany our home is its safety, order, and respect for the law. As members of this community, let’s do our part to uphold those values.
Please avoid asking for or sharing advice on how to break or bypass German laws. This includes, for example:
• Bringing prohibited items into Germany.
• Circumventing German regulations using VPNs or other methods.
• Encouraging others to ignore or break local laws.
Under German law, encouraging or inciting someone to commit an unlawful act can itself have legal consequences. In some cases, a person who encourages an offence can face fines or even imprisonment, depending on the circumstances.
Our community is here to help each other navigate life in Germany legally and responsibly. If you’re unsure whether something is allowed, ask the question—we’re happy to help you find the correct, legal answer.
Let’s continue building a community that reflects the best of South Africans living in Germany: respectful, supportive, and law-abiding. 🇿🇦🤝🇩🇪
These guidelines are here to protect the spirit of the group. If you feel something is missing, unfair, or unclear, talk to us. Your voice matters. We want this space to grow with the people in it.
Speak to each other as if you’re sitting together over a cup of tea (or wine, no judgment). Disagree if you must—but no name-calling, sarcasm, or personal digs. Please avoid publicly criticising, mocking, or speaking negatively about other people. Not only does it hurt the group spirit, but in Germany, this can also cross legal lines under §§ 185–187 StGB (Beleidigung, üble Nachrede, Verleumdung). Let’s keep things kind, respectful, and above board — that’s the heart of our community.
Text doesn’t show tone well. So:
Avoid all caps and aggressive punctuation (!!!)
If something could be misread as rude, it probably will be.
If a conversation is heating up:
Stop. 
Breathe. 
De-escalate or take a break.
Remember, responding calmly is more powerful than reacting defensively.
Emojis can help express tone, but they can also be misread. Avoid using emojis that might come across as mocking, passive-aggressive, or hostile. If an emoji could be interpreted as rude, it’s best to leave it out.
Think of emojis as seasoning—used well, they add flavour; used carelessly, they ruin the dish.
This isn’t Survivor SA. Don’t gang up on anyone or stir the pot. If you see tension brewing, DM an admin, not the group.
We all bring different styles, cultures, and histories to this group, which is what makes it beautiful. But it also means we need to give each other the benefit of the doubt, pause before reacting, and, where possible, seek clarity instead of conflict.
We’re here to help things grow and stay healthy, not to rule with a sjambok. However, if the group becomes unsafe, we will intervene.
Inside jokes, in-groups, or passive-aggressive comments make people feel left out. Let’s build community, not cliques.
Got beef? Sort it out in DMs—not in front of the whole group.
We’re here to uplift each other, not compete. Kindness, encouragement, and humour are always welcome. Be the reason someone smiles today.
We’re a diverse group of strong, thoughtful people, which means we won’t always agree. And that’s okay!
You don’t have to see eye to eye to show respect. Let’s listen with open hearts, respond with kindness, and remember: disagreement is not disrespect.
Politics can be divisive, and tax advice can be illegal. Let’s steer clear of both.
Discussions about politics often evoke strong emotions and divert attention from our goal of creating a supportive and inclusive space. And when it comes to taxes, only licensed professionals and some direct family members may give tax advice in Germany. This is regulated by law under the Steuerberatungsgesetz (StBerG) § 2.
So, if someone asks about taxes, kindly direct them to a certified tax advisor (Steuerberater). We’d hate for anyone to get in trouble just for trying to help!
If Rules Are BrokenAdmins will gently remind you of the guidelines. Repeated issues may result in a time-out or removal. It’s not personal—it’s about keeping our space peaceful.
Members who repeatedly cause tension, ignore group guidelines, or disrupt the group’s cohesion may be removed. This includes behaviour that feels aggressive, dismissive, or divisive. We reserve the right to protect the overall well-being of the group.
WhatsApp’s guidelines make it clear that group admins have the authority to manage membership. There’s no obligation to keep a member.
Whatsapp Guidelines and resources for Admins Looking after the community we’ve built together Our admins are here to help our community stay friendly, useful and respectful — keeping things growing without taking the fun out of being South African. Admin Guidelines What We Expect From Our Admins Being an admin
