Account frozen? Emergency financial assistance in a crisis

Published May 31, 2022

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Finding out that your account has been frozen will likely come as a big shock. An account seizure feels like a violation of your personal freedom and it’s certainly not the kind of thing that happens every day. But don’t worry – you’re not alone with your problem, nor are you totally helpless when it comes to solving it.

In this article

Whatever you do, don’t be tempted to stick your head in the sand! Take it from us: it’s not a good idea.
How Solaris Bank deals with account seizures
Good to know – Other money in accounts at Tomorrow
Seizure-protected account
Exempt funds: How much money you are entitled to access when your account is frozen
Saving up: You can still save, even if your account has been frozen
How to stop your account from being frozen again in the future

In our Emergency Financial Assistance Guide we are showing you the different options you have so that, despite having your account frozen, you can still access your money, or at least part of it. We’ll be taking you through the most important aspects and showing you practical tips that will help you deal with the situation. Plus, we’ll also explain the most important terms associated with account seizures to make sure you are in the know in case it ever happens to you.

Just to make things clear from the start: you don’t have to be ashamed or embarrassed about having your account frozen. Perhaps you’re in a financially challenging situation right now or have just lost track of your finances because you have other concerns on your mind. Let’s get things back under control together!

Whatever you do, don’t be tempted to stick your head in the sand! Take it from us: it’s not a good idea.

If your account has been blocked and affected by a seizure, you need to act fast.

But if you fail to do anything, every single cent of your account balance can be frozen. This also includes welfare benefits such as citizens’ income and child allowance because no distinction is made as to where the money comes from. No income is automatically protected from an account seizure.

How Solaris Bank deals with account seizures

The way in which our partner Solaris deals with an account seizure depends on different factors such as how much money is in your account and how much you owe.

Basically, there are two ways in which you can deal with a seizure on your account:

Variation 1:

The amount to be seized is blocked in your account and no longer available to you. But you can access funds in your account that exceed the seizure amount as usual. Your account and card are not blocked.

If the amount you owe exceeds your current bank balance, your entire balance will be blocked for the account seizure (or part of it).

But here too, your account won’t be frozen, and your card should continue to work as usual as well.

The benefit for you here is that as soon as you have more money than the amount you owe in your account, you can carry on using the share of the money that exceeds the amount you owe again, as explained above.

Variation 2:

Your account and your card remain blocked due to the account seizure, regardless of how much money you have in your account. That means that you are unable to access any of your money and can no longer use your card.

This happens, for example (but not exclusively) in the case of particularly high or old account seizure sums, or what is known as a prejudgment seizure (Arrestpfändung), in which the public prosecutor’s office is involved and has the decision-making authority.

This can also happen at short notice if the seizure has recently been registered but the details, such as the amount of the sum to be seized, are not yet known. This may then be corrected as soon as all relevant information is available.

Good to know – Other money in accounts at Tomorrow

If you have a joint account with Tomorrow and are the account holder yourself, this account will also be affected by a seizure. And the same applies to your Pockets.

Having your account suspended and your entire balance blocked can have serious consequences for you. And you won’t be able to use your account like you did before. This means, for example, that:

Standing orders or direct debits can no longer be debited from your account. In the case of recurring costs such as rent and electricity bills, this can lead to serious problems.
You can no longer use your card to pay in stores, nor can you withdraw cash from ATMs. And there is even the risk that your debit card will be retained by the ATM.
All money – including future funds – in your account will be transferred to the creditor after the statutory deadline of four weeks until the amount you owe has been paid off.

So, as you can see: simply doing nothing when your account gets frozen is not a good idea. But you don’t need to feel helpless – there are ways to solve the problem. With a seizure-protected account, a fixed amount of cash in your account is protected from seizure.

Seizure-protected account

When creditors issue an account seizure, there is a four-week protection period (from the issuance of the seizure order). That means that your account balance will be blocked for four weeks, but not yet transferred to the creditor.

You should use these four weeks to have us convert your current account into a seizure-protected account (Pfändungsschutzkonto, or ‘P-account’ as it’s known in Germany).

But don’t delay in submitting your application. We process account conversion applications as quickly as possible, but the statutory deadline is four working days and that is also how long it can take – so you need to allow for this. In the worst case, the four-week period of protection will have passed, and we/Solaris will have to transfer the seizure sum to the creditor.

Example:

Your account was frozen on July 10, 2023.

The four-week protection period runs until August 6, 2023.

If you only submit your account conversion application on August 3, 2023, the bank might need until August 9, 2023 (four working days) to set up the P-account. Until then, the account seizure may have already happened.

Good to know: if you submit the application to the bank in time – i.e. before August 1, 2023 – and they fail to process it within the stipulated timeframe, the bank has to reimburse you.

You can find the application form to turn your current account into a seizure-protected account, or P-account, here.

Please note: You may only have one P-account. This is why you need to assure us in the application form to convert your account that you don’t have any other P-account. And it is not possible to turn a joint account into a P-account.

If you have a joint account and are one of the account holders, the funds in this account will remain frozen. This also applies to your Pockets, which are sub-accounts of your main account. Only your main account is protected by P-account status.

Please note: Unlike our regular current accounts, we have to report the P-account to the SCHUFA (Germany’s credit rating agency). We are also legally obliged to check whether you already have a P-account (for example, with another bank) under your name as there can only be one P-account per person.

Exempt funds: How much money you are entitled to access when your account is frozen

The main advantage of a seizure-protected account is that it gives you access to an exempt amount of money that cannot be seized. Since July 1, 2023, this has been €1,410 per month.

Example: Single parent with one child:

Their income is €2,000, plus €219 child allowance on top. The account balance is therefore €2,219. Of this €2,219, a total of €1,410 are automatically protected from the seizure, provided that it’s a P-account.

€1,410 is not a lot of money, especially if you have children. If you are obliged to pay maintenance for your children and/or (ex) partner, you can ask for the exempt amount to be increased. For the first dependent, it will be increased by €527.76. If you are obliged to pay maintenance for two to five children, you can increase it again by €294,02 for each child.

You are also entitled to an increase if you receive citizens’ allowance or other social benefits for other people you live in a joint household with.

Here are the current exempt amounts (since July 1, 2023):

You can see a table with current allowances.

To have the exempt amount increased, you will have to fill out a P-account authorization form. You can download the form for a P-account with Tomorrow here.

Saving up: You can still save, even if your account has been frozen

The higher the amount exempt from seizure, the more likely it is that you are left with some money at the end of the month. The good news here is that you have the money at your disposal for a certain amount of time.

For three months you will have the opportunity to leave the money you haven’t spent sitting in your account. But if the money is still in the account after that, it will be paid to the creditor for (partial) repayment of the seizure.

Advantage: You’ll be debt-free quicker.

Disadvantage: You won’t be able to use the money for any urgent or bigger purchases you might need.

Here’s an example: Your washing machine is broken and you need €800 for a new one. You have two children, which is why your exempt amount is €2,231.78.

At the end of January, you still have €200 left over from your exempt amount. This money will stay safely in your account in February and March. In these months you also spend €200 less than your exempt amount. This means that by the time April comes, you will have been able to set €600 aside.

But by May, the three months for your first savings sum will be over, meaning that this €200 can now be seized.

As you can see, it won’t be possible to save the €800 in this way. But you can withdraw the money and protect it from seizure or ensure that you achieve your savings goals within the three-month deadline. In this specific example, you would have to spend €267 less than the amount that is exempt every month.

How to stop your account from being frozen again in the future

Having your account frozen is a very unpleasant situation that will no doubt make you feel helpless and at the mercy of others. Nevertheless, you should use the opportunity to get back on track and really sort out your finances once and for all.

Sometimes we tend to ignore such matters because we associate them with stress and negative emotions.

If you haven’t already, you should seek help and arrange an appointment with a debt consultant. Here are a few places that you can turn to:

Diakonie Deutschland (the social welfare organization of Germany’s Protestant churches)
Caritas Deutschland (the German Caritas Association and one of the biggest welfare institutions in Germany)
AWO (the workers’ welfare association that works throughout Germany)
Citizens’ advice bureaus
Deutsches Rotes Kreuz (the German Red Cross)

Their advice will help you to get a hold on your finances and, if necessary, to settle any other outstanding debts before your account is frozen again.

Summarized for you

Accounts can be seized (or frozen) if an invoice hasn’t been paid. As a rule, the debtor first receives payment reminders and then dunning notices, possibly from a collection agency, for example. If the debtor still doesn’t respond, the creditor takes further steps.

First of all, they apply to the relevant local court for a court order to pay (Mahnbescheid). This is served to the debtor. If no objection is lodged within 14 days, the creditor applies to the local court for a writ of execution (Vollstreckungstitel), with which it can levy execution (or enforcement) proceedings against the debtor.

The writ of execution is also served to the debtor. If there is still no objection, the creditor applies to the local court for an attachment of earnings order (Pfändungs- und Überweisungsbeschluss). This is served to the debtor’s bank, which in turn freezes the bank account. The bank only informs the debtor about the seizure once the account has been frozen.

As well as companies, authorities – such as the tax office, customs office, statutory health insurers and pension insurance schemes – have the right to seize money owed from unpaid bills. Here, writs of attachment or seizure (Pfändungs- und Einziehungsverfügungen) are issued by the relevant issuing authority such as the tax office, the main customs office or the city treasury.

Unlike retailers and service providers, authorities do not have to apply to the local court for either a court order to pay or a special writ of execution. This is because the notice of performance served by the authority is sufficient title. In the case of the tax office, for example, this is the tax assessment.

In the case of the tax office:

Let’s say the tax office has a monetary claim against the debtor. This means that the claim has not been settled within the deadline set by the tax office (e.g. within two weeks of receiving the notification). Next, the debtor is sent a warning with another deadline (only a one-week grace period is provided for by law). If the debtor still does not respond, the tax office can issue writs of attachment or seizure.

Writs of attachment or seizure are independent administrative acts. The writ of attachment is geared directly towards the third-party debtor, i.e. the bank. Debtors themselves only receive a copy. The writ of attachment means that the bank is no longer able to pay out any money to the debtors except for the exempted amounts in the seizure-protected account. The seizure of receivables is ordered with the writ of seizure. As a rule, the writs of attachment and seizure are issued together.

Debtors can file an objection against the writs of attachment and seizure. It is a good idea to seek expert advice from advice centers or to appoint a specialized lawyer before filing an objection, as these need to be well founded.

Creditors who are particularly anxious to have their debt paid quickly can effect a prior attachment before the seizure itself. The prior attachment is a communication by the creditor to a debtor and their third-party debtor about the forthcoming attachment of legally enforceable claims – combined with the request to freeze the account.

The prerequisite for a prior attachment is a (provisional) writ of execution. However, the debtor does not yet have to be provided with the writ of execution at this point. Nonetheless, the prior attachment must be served to the debtor and the third-party debtor (bank) by a bailiff.

As the prior attachment is a temporary safeguard, the actual attachment (i.e. seizure) must be effected within one month of the notification of prior attachment or the prior attachment will become void.

A court order to pay (Mahnbescheid) should not be confused with a normal reminder (Mahnung) sent directly by the creditor or a collection agency.

Rather, a court order to pay is a legal document that the creditor has had served to a debtor with a writ of summons by post, to assert a claim against them for an outstanding debt.

The court order to pay is a prerequisite for a writ of execution. This is a simplified court procedure that is initiated if the debtor has not objected to the outstanding demand. By contrast, if they dispute the demand, legal action is usually taken.

If you receive a court order to pay, you have 14 days to lodge an objection against it.

A writ of execution is an official document issued by the local court and is a prerequisite for levying execution (or enforcement) proceedings against a debtor.

The writ of execution serves as confirmation to the creditor that they may enforce their claim against the debtor – if necessary by seizing personal property, garnishing wages, seizing bank accounts or initiating forced sales.

If you receive a writ of execution, you have 14 days to lodge an objection against it.

An attachment of earnings order is obtained by the creditor by applying to the local court and must be served to the third-party debtor – in this case the debtor’s bank.

The attachment of earnings order entitles creditors to seize the debtor’s work income or bank balance until the receivables are recovered. The prerequisite for approving an attachment of earnings order is that the creditor has applied for an enforceable title.

German law does not allow attachment of earnings orders to be terminated early. However, debtors can contact creditors and attempt to reach a settlement.

If the debtor and creditor agree on an alternative means of repaying the debt – e.g. paying it in instalments – the creditor can temporarily suspend the account seizure. However, this does not mean that the attachment of earnings order has been lifted. If debtors do not pay the instalments as agreed, the creditor has the right to effect the seizure again without having to apply to the local court again.

Banks are required to inform SCHUFA if an account has been seized or if a current account has been converted into a seizure-protected account.

The information that the debtor has a seizure-protected account may only be saved by SCHUFA and passed on to other parties for this exact purpose. In addition, SCHUFA is only permitted to convey this to other banks and credit institutions if specifically requested. This means that only another bank at which you want to open a seizure-protected account will be informed that there is already a seizure-protected account in your name.

Accordingly, information about the seizure-protected account is not part of the credit report given to third parties (for example prospective landlords).

Having a seizure-protected account does not affect your creditworthiness or your SCHUFA credit score. However, the seizure and execution information is also passed on to SCHUFA and this will have a negative impact on your creditworthiness.