Account
If you live and work in Germany, you need a bank account. You can open your account at a bank or at a savings bank. Most banks and savings banks have branches. Some banks can only be used over the Internet. Mostly you have to pay some money for a account, a fee. For students, the account is often free. There are several accounts: With a credit account, you can only withdraw the money from the account that you have previously deposited. With an account with disposition credit (Dispo) you can withdraw also money, if you have no more money in the account. The bank lends you money up to a certain amount. But you have to repay the bank not only this sum, but also interest. The interest rates are often very high.
Account opening
You would like to open an account? You can do that in any branch. However, the bank or Sparkasse must always first verify your identity. So you need to show your ID or passport.
Many banks can also open an account online or by mail. For this you can use the Postident procedure: you get papers from the bank or Sparkasse. With the papers and your passport or passport you go to the post office. There you can identify you. Sometimes you need your registration certificate to open your account.
Transfers
For the rent and your salary you need a checking account. Your employer pays the salary by bank transfer. And you usually have to pay the rent for your apartment by bank transfer. For regular transfers, you can make a standing order. For other transfers, you will receive a paper in the bank or savings bank, the remittance slip. How much money would you like to transfer? And who should get the money? You write the information on the transfer slip. Then you submit the remittance slip to the bank / savings bank. You want to transfer your money via internet? When opening the account, say that you want to do online banking or home banking.
Since 2014, there are SEPA payments in 34 European countries (as of July 2018) in order to transfer money (Euro) as simply as possible. The IBAN replaces the account number and the BIC the bank code. For example, IBAN and BIC can be found on your debit card.
Debit card and credit card
You will receive a debit card for your checking account. If you wish, you can also get a credit card (for example: MasterCard, Visa). Usually you have to pay for the credit card. The bank or Sparkasse usually sends you the debit card and / or the credit card by mail. You have to sign the card. A few days later you will receive a PIN for your card by post. The secret number must be in your head.
With the debit card you can withdraw money at all ATMs. For this you always need the PIN. You can pay by credit card in some shops and on the internet. Cash can be deposited at the branch of your bank / savings bank.
If you have lost your debit or credit card or have been stolen, you should have your cards blocked as soon as possible:
- Emergency call: 116116
Interest
For the money in the account you receive interest from the bank or the savings bank. For money in the checking account, you will receive only little interest. If you want to save money, you can open a savings account or a savings account. Then you get a bit more interest than a check
MoneyTalk6 