A surveying instrument, comprising at least one rotational movement axis such as a azimuth axis, which is for providing a positioning of the measurement direction of the surveying instrument, a rotational position encoder configured for deriving a rotational direction value around the movement axis and an acceleration sensor such as a MEMS-accelerometer for deriving a leveling for the surveying instrument and being rotatable around the rotational movement axis in different rotational positions. The instrument further comprises a mechanism designed to move the accelerometer from a first orientation in at least a second orientation, the second orientation being different to the first orientation, wherein the mechanism is designed and arranged in such a way that the targeting direction is uninfluenced by a movement of the accelerometer by the mechanism, and an evaluation unit configured to derive a calibrated leveling for the instrument.