Last updated: June 19, 2025
If you’ve received a German PD U1 form, congratulations — it’s a crucial document that proves your past employment and social insurance periods in Germany. This guide will help you understand what each section means so you can confidently present it to your local unemployment office in your home country (e.g. Spain, Portugal, Poland, Romania).
The PD U1 (Portable Document U1) certifies periods of employment and insurance in Germany. It's used when claiming unemployment benefits in another EU or EEA country. Although it’s written in German, the layout and field numbers are standardized across the EU.
| Field No. | German Label | English Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | Zuständiger Träger | Issuing Authority: The German office (Agentur für Arbeit) that issued your U1 form. |
| 2. | Arbeitnehmer/in | Employee Info: Your personal details (name, address, etc.). |
| 2.1 | Name, Vornamen | Your surname and first name(s). |
| 2.3 | Kenn-Nummer | Pension/Social Security Number (Rentenversicherungsnummer). |
| 3 & 4 | Letzte/r Arbeitgeber/in | Your last employer’s name and address in Germany. |
| 5. | Versicherungs-/Beschäftigungszeiten | Employment/Insurance Periods: This is the core of the U1 form. |
| 5.1 | von... bis... | Start and end dates of each job (DD/MM/YYYY). |
| 5.2 | Zahl der Tage/Monate | Number of days or months worked. |
| 5.4 | Vollzeit/Teilzeit | Full-time or part-time status. |
| 6. | Angaben zum Arbeitsentgelt | Gross earnings during a reference period. |
| 6.1 | Währung | Currency (usually EUR). |
| 7. | Grund der Beendigung | Reason your job ended (e.g., contract ended, laid off). |
| 8. | Angaben zu Ansprüchen | Whether you were receiving other benefits (e.g., sick pay). |
| 10. | Unterschrift und Stempel | Official stamp and signature from the issuing authority. |