The German blocked account: the deposit, the real fees, and the timing
The €11,904 that worries every applicant is mostly your own money — here is what you are actually charged on top, why some passports face extra questions, and exactly when the account must be ready.
If you are a Tanzanian or Kenyan student heading to a German university, one line on the checklist causes more anxiety than tuition ever will: the blocked account, or Sperrkonto. This is the honest version — what the €11,904 really is, what you are genuinely charged on top of it, why some passports draw extra questions about where the money came from, and where in your journey the account actually has to be ready.
It is your money, not a fee
A blocked account is a restricted German bank account that proves to the embassy you can support yourself for your first year without relying on the German state. You deposit a full year's living costs up front; the money is then blocked, meaning that once you arrive in Germany you can only draw a fixed amount each month. It is not a tax and not a payment to the government — every euro is yours, released back to you in monthly instalments once you land and activate the account.
The legal basis sits in Germany's Residence Act (Aufenthaltsgesetz) and Residence Ordinance. The exact figure is set by the Federal Foreign Office (Auswärtiges Amt) and pegged to the BAföG maintenance rate — the same benchmark used for German students' support. For 2026 the standard student amount is €11,904 for twelve months, which works out to €992 per month. That figure has been in force since 1 January 2025 and is unchanged for 2026 — but because it is reviewed whenever BAföG changes, you should always confirm the current number with the German mission responsible for your application before you transfer anything.
One important exception for our clients: if you are applying for the Opportunity Card (Chancenkarte) rather than a standard student visa, the required amount is higher — €1,091 per month, or €13,092 for the year — because you are expected to support yourself while job-hunting, without student discounts.
The 2026 numbers at a glance
What you really pay extra: the provider's service fee
Since Deutsche Bank stopped opening blocked accounts for new international students in 2022, almost every applicant now uses a specialist online provider that acts as an intermediary between you and a German bank. Three names dominate the market: Expatrio, Fintiba and Coracle. The €11,904 you deposit is identical whichever one you choose — it is not something a provider can raise or lower. The only real difference in cost is the service fee: a one-time setup charge plus a small monthly administration fee, and usually a refundable transfer buffer of around €100.
What each provider charges on top
| Provider | One-time setup | Monthly fee | Status (2026) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Expatrio | €119* | ~€5–9 | Active |
| Fintiba | €159 | €9.90 | Active |
| Coracle | €49–99 | €0 | Paused to new applicants |
The €11,904 is a deposit you get back at €992 a month. The only real cost is the provider's fee — so choose on reliability and timing, not on shaving off €40.COSMA advisory note
A practical warning that costs students their visa slot every intake: never transfer exactly €11,904. International wires lose €15–€40 to intermediary-bank fees, and if your balance lands even one euro short, the provider cannot issue your confirmation. Send €12,050–€12,100 so the full amount clears with room to spare; anything above the minimum stays freely accessible to you.
Source-of-funds checks: why some passports get extra questions
Blocked-account providers are regulated financial businesses. Under EU anti-money-laundering rules and the supervision of Germany's financial regulator (BaFin), they must run a source-of-funds check on applicants connected to countries the EU classifies as higher-risk. This is not a judgment on you — it is a compliance step the provider has no choice about — but it does mean extra paperwork and a little more time, so it pays to prepare for it early.
The lists differ slightly between providers and are updated over time. Fintiba, for example, publishes its own high-risk list. For East African families, two names on it matter: Kenya and Cameroon both appear, which means Kenyan applicants should plan for a source-of-funds step as standard. Tanzania is not on that particular list — but note two things: the list can change, and any applicant, from any country, can be asked to document their funds in an individual case. Money that was clearly borrowed rather than saved tends to invite the most scrutiny.
Passports that commonly trigger a source-of-funds check
Tanzanian applicants usually skip the standard check — but keep your paperwork ready anyway, because any file can be reviewed individually.
When you actually need it: after admission, before the visa
The single most expensive mistake is misjudging the timeline. The blocked account sits in a specific window: it comes after your university admission and before your visa appointment. You do not need to wait for a visa slot to open the account — in fact, running the two in parallel saves weeks. The rule of thumb: start the blocked-account process at least six to eight weeks before your embassy appointment, so slow transfers or a source-of-funds query never leave you scrambling.
A sample blocked-account timeline
Admission letter arrives
Your Zulassungsbescheid is the trigger. You can open the blocked account from here — no visa slot needed yet.
Open & fund the account
Choose a provider, verify your ID online, and wire €11,904 plus buffer. Complete any source-of-funds step now, not later.
Receive the blocking confirmation
Once the funds clear, the provider issues your Sperrbestätigung — usually within a few business days (instantly with some card payments).
Book & attend the visa appointment
Submit the confirmation with your admission letter, health insurance and passport at the German mission.
Travel to Germany
With the visa granted, you fly. The deposit stays locked until you arrive and complete the next step.
Register & activate
Do your Anmeldung, open a German current account, and activate the blocked account. Your €992 monthly payout begins.
Alternatives, and the official word
The blocked account is the most widely accepted proof of funds, but it is not the only one Germany recognises. Under the Residence Act, financing can also be shown through your parents' documented income, a formal Declaration of Commitment (Verpflichtungserklärung under Articles 66–68 of the Aufenthaltsgesetz) signed by a sponsor in Germany, a recognised scholarship such as DAAD, or an annually renewable bank guarantee. Each of these leaves more room for a visa officer's discretion, which is why most students still choose the blocked account for its predictability.
Whatever the blogs say — including this one — the authoritative source for the current amount is your responsible German mission and the Federal Foreign Office. Two useful official pages: the Auswärtiges Amt guidance on opening and closing a blocked account, and its FAQ on proving your financing for a student visa. You can also start from the Auswärtiges Amt visa service hub. One honest caveat worth knowing: the Federal Foreign Office does not recommend or endorse any provider, and it removed its old list of providers back in 2022 — so provider choice is entirely yours to research.
None of this is as intimidating as it first looks. The €11,904 is your own money in a holding account. The genuine cost is a service fee of roughly €100–€280. The paperwork is heavier for some passports than others. And the whole thing has one job: to be ready in the window between your admission letter and your visa appointment. Get the sequence right and the blocked account becomes the most straightforward part of your move — not the roadblock everyone fears.
Let us set up your blocked account the right way
From admission letter to activated account, COSMA guides Tanzanian and Kenyan students through provider choice, the transfer, any source-of-funds step, and the timing — so nothing lands short and nothing lands late.
Talk to a COSMA advisorAcacia Estates Offices · Plot 84, Kinondoni Road · Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
The German blocked account: the deposit, the real fees, and the timing
The €11,904 that worries every applicant is mostly your own money — here is what you are actually charged on top, why some passports face extra questions, and exactly when the account must be ready.
If you are a Tanzanian or Kenyan student heading to a German university, one line on the checklist causes more anxiety than tuition ever will: the blocked account, or Sperrkonto. This is the honest version — what the €11,904 really is, what you are genuinely charged on top of it, why some passports draw extra questions about where the money came from, and where in your journey the account actually has to be ready.
It is your money, not a fee
A blocked account is a restricted German bank account that proves to the embassy you can support yourself for your first year without relying on the German state. You deposit a full year's living costs up front; the money is then blocked, meaning that once you arrive in Germany you can only draw a fixed amount each month. It is not a tax and not a payment to the government — every euro is yours, released back to you in monthly instalments once you land and activate the account.
The legal basis sits in Germany's Residence Act (Aufenthaltsgesetz) and Residence Ordinance. The exact figure is set by the Federal Foreign Office (Auswärtiges Amt) and pegged to the BAföG maintenance rate — the same benchmark used for German students' support. For 2026 the standard student amount is €11,904 for twelve months, which works out to €992 per month. That figure has been in force since 1 January 2025 and is unchanged for 2026 — but because it is reviewed whenever BAföG changes, you should always confirm the current number with the German mission responsible for your application before you transfer anything.
One important exception for our clients: if you are applying for the Opportunity Card (Chancenkarte) rather than a standard student visa, the required amount is higher — €1,091 per month, or €13,092 for the year — because you are expected to support yourself while job-hunting, without student discounts.
The 2026 numbers at a glance
What you really pay extra: the provider's service fee
Since Deutsche Bank stopped opening blocked accounts for new international students in 2022, almost every applicant now uses a specialist online provider that acts as an intermediary between you and a German bank. Three names dominate the market: Expatrio, Fintiba and Coracle. The €11,904 you deposit is identical whichever one you choose — it is not something a provider can raise or lower. The only real difference in cost is the service fee: a one-time setup charge plus a small monthly administration fee, and usually a refundable transfer buffer of around €100.
What each provider charges on top
| Provider | One-time setup | Monthly fee | Status (2026) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Expatrio | €119* | ~€5–9 | Active |
| Fintiba | €159 | €9.90 | Active |
| Coracle | €49–99 | €0 | Paused to new applicants |
The €11,904 is a deposit you get back at €992 a month. The only real cost is the provider's fee — so choose on reliability and timing, not on shaving off €40.COSMA advisory note
A practical warning that costs students their visa slot every intake: never transfer exactly €11,904. International wires lose €15–€40 to intermediary-bank fees, and if your balance lands even one euro short, the provider cannot issue your confirmation. Send €12,050–€12,100 so the full amount clears with room to spare; anything above the minimum stays freely accessible to you.
Source-of-funds checks: why some passports get extra questions
Blocked-account providers are regulated financial businesses. Under EU anti-money-laundering rules and the supervision of Germany's financial regulator (BaFin), they must run a source-of-funds check on applicants connected to countries the EU classifies as higher-risk. This is not a judgment on you — it is a compliance step the provider has no choice about — but it does mean extra paperwork and a little more time, so it pays to prepare for it early.
The lists differ slightly between providers and are updated over time. Fintiba, for example, publishes its own high-risk list. For East African families, two names on it matter: Kenya and Cameroon both appear, which means Kenyan applicants should plan for a source-of-funds step as standard. Tanzania is not on that particular list — but note two things: the list can change, and any applicant, from any country, can be asked to document their funds in an individual case. Money that was clearly borrowed rather than saved tends to invite the most scrutiny.
Passports that commonly trigger a source-of-funds check
Tanzanian applicants usually skip the standard check — but keep your paperwork ready anyway, because any file can be reviewed individually.
When you actually need it: after admission, before the visa
The single most expensive mistake is misjudging the timeline. The blocked account sits in a specific window: it comes after your university admission and before your visa appointment. You do not need to wait for a visa slot to open the account — in fact, running the two in parallel saves weeks. The rule of thumb: start the blocked-account process at least six to eight weeks before your embassy appointment, so slow transfers or a source-of-funds query never leave you scrambling.
A sample blocked-account timeline
Admission letter arrives
Your Zulassungsbescheid is the trigger. You can open the blocked account from here — no visa slot needed yet.
Open & fund the account
Choose a provider, verify your ID online, and wire €11,904 plus buffer. Complete any source-of-funds step now, not later.
Receive the blocking confirmation
Once the funds clear, the provider issues your Sperrbestätigung — usually within a few business days (instantly with some card payments).
Book & attend the visa appointment
Submit the confirmation with your admission letter, health insurance and passport at the German mission.
Travel to Germany
With the visa granted, you fly. The deposit stays locked until you arrive and complete the next step.
Register & activate
Do your Anmeldung, open a German current account, and activate the blocked account. Your €992 monthly payout begins.
Alternatives, and the official word
The blocked account is the most widely accepted proof of funds, but it is not the only one Germany recognises. Under the Residence Act, financing can also be shown through your parents' documented income, a formal Declaration of Commitment (Verpflichtungserklärung under Articles 66–68 of the Aufenthaltsgesetz) signed by a sponsor in Germany, a recognised scholarship such as DAAD, or an annually renewable bank guarantee. Each of these leaves more room for a visa officer's discretion, which is why most students still choose the blocked account for its predictability.
Whatever the blogs say — including this one — the authoritative source for the current amount is your responsible German mission and the Federal Foreign Office. Two useful official pages: the Auswärtiges Amt guidance on opening and closing a blocked account, and its FAQ on proving your financing for a student visa. You can also start from the Auswärtiges Amt visa service hub. One honest caveat worth knowing: the Federal Foreign Office does not recommend or endorse any provider, and it removed its old list of providers back in 2022 — so provider choice is entirely yours to research.
None of this is as intimidating as it first looks. The €11,904 is your own money in a holding account. The genuine cost is a service fee of roughly €100–€280. The paperwork is heavier for some passports than others. And the whole thing has one job: to be ready in the window between your admission letter and your visa appointment. Get the sequence right and the blocked account becomes the most straightforward part of your move — not the roadblock everyone fears.
Let us set up your blocked account the right way
From admission letter to activated account, COSMA guides Tanzanian and Kenyan students through provider choice, the transfer, any source-of-funds step, and the timing — so nothing lands short and nothing lands late.
Talk to a COSMA advisorAcacia Estates Offices · Plot 84, Kinondoni Road · Dar es Salaam, Tanzania