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Deciding to go back — how did you know it was time?

Viktor Ivanov ⭐ Helpful member
9 Sept 2026, 09:59

Three years in Germany. Good job, my daughter happy at school. But my parents in Bulgaria are getting older, and my father's health is not good. I'm starting to think about going back, and I don't know how to decide. It feels like failure and like duty at the same time. For those who went back, or decided not to: how did you know?

4 replies

Olena Kravchenko ⭐ Helpful member
10 Sept 2026, 19:53

Viktor, I don't have an answer, but I understand the feeling of duty and failure together. For us, "going back" is not only our decision, it depends on things far bigger than our family. What I've learned is that it doesn't have to be a single moment of deciding. We talk about it every few months, honestly, with our daughter too, and the answer can change. Maybe try something in between first, like a longer stay with your parents, before deciding forever.

Joy Villanueva ⭐ Helpful member
11 Sept 2026, 14:42

Going back to care for parents is not failure, it's love, and nobody here will think otherwise.

Elena Popescu 🏆 Community expert
13 Sept 2026, 19:22

A longer visit first, like Olena says, would tell you a lot about what you really want.

Jimmy 🏆 Community expert Admin Premium
15 Sept 2026, 10:26

Thank you for sharing something so personal, Viktor. Going back is a real option, not a failure, and many people do it for exactly this reason. If you decide to, the Leaving section for Germany covers the practical side of leaving, including pensions and deregistration, and a new thread on closing accounts when you leave is running in this same section.