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Proof of funds for a German visa
Answer two questions and see which proof-of-funds routes are generally available for your situation, and what each one requires. This is orientation, not a decision.
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What proof of funds is
Proof of funds — Finanzierungsnachweis — is the evidence that you can pay your own living costs while you are in Germany. Almost every long-stay national visa for a non-EU applicant asks for it, next to the passport, health insurance and the reason you are coming. Without it, an otherwise complete file stops moving.
A blocked account is the route most people have heard of, and for many applicants it is the simplest one. It is not the only one. A scholarship, a sponsor living in Germany, your own money in an EU account, a signed contract or a bank guarantee can serve the same purpose, and which of them are open to you depends on why you are coming. That is what the two questions below sort out.
The amount is not one number for everyone either. It follows the purpose of stay: someone with a confirmed university place is asked for a different figure than someone still applying, and for some purposes no figure is published at all. The amounts are set annually and change, so a number you read a year ago may not be the one asked of you now.
And the last word is not ours. The German mission responsible for your country decides what it accepts, and some missions publish their own figures and their own document lists. Treat everything here as orientation, then confirm with that mission before you move money or book an appointment.
Questions people ask
- When should I open a blocked account?
- Before you apply, not after. The application asks for the provider's confirmation as part of the file, and that confirmation has to state both the total deposited and the amount released to you each month. Opening times differ by provider, so leave room for it in your planning.
- Does a scholarship replace a blocked account?
- It can, where the award covers the amount asked for and the award letter states the monthly sum and how long it runs. It is not only DAAD — other public and recognised private awarding bodies count too. A letter confirming an award without naming an amount or a duration usually does not do the job on its own.
- Does money from my family count?
- Sometimes, in two different forms. A relative living in Germany can give a Verpflichtungserklärung, issued by their local Ausländerbehörde after their income has been checked. Family income from home is a separate thing and depends far more on the mission: some accept documented parental income, others do not. Check before you build the application around it.
- What if the amount changes after I apply?
- The amounts are reviewed annually. Which figure applies to a file already submitted is decided by the mission handling it, and missions differ on this. If a change is announced while your application is open, ask the mission directly rather than assuming the older figure still stands.
- Can I use my own savings instead?
- Some missions accept a documented balance in a legal EU bank account, provided the money is genuinely available to you and is not a credit line. Savings tied up in a product you cannot draw on are a common reason this route falls down.