A blocked account (Sperrkonto) is one of two accepted ways to close a financing gap for a German visa application when your income in Germany won’t fully cover your living costs on its own. For Ausbildung applicants specifically, most people need this less than they assume — because a paid apprenticeship, unlike a student visa, often already clears the bar on its own.
Do You Even Need One?
According to make-it-in-germany.com’s current guidance on the vocational training visa, the financial-proof threshold for company-based (in-firm) training is at least €1,048 gross per month — and the actual minimum training allowance set nationally for 2026 is already close to or above that in most cases: Germany’s federal training institute, BIBB, reports the statutory minimum training allowance (Mindestausbildungsvergütung) for a first-year apprentice starting in 2026 at €724/month, rising to €854, €977 and €1,014 in years two through four — but those are floors, and BIBB’s own data shows that only a small share of new contracts actually pay at the statutory minimum, with the average tariff-bound first-year allowance running well above it. In other words: many apprentices in tariff-bound training arrangements already clear the €1,048 threshold through their wage alone and don’t need a blocked account at all. School-based training, which typically pays less or nothing, is assessed against a separate, currently lower threshold, and is far more likely to need supplementary financing.
Check your specific offered training salary against the current threshold before assuming you need an account — it’s a real cost and administrative step you can skip if your wage already clears it.
What a Blocked Account Actually Is
A blocked account is a German bank account that holds a lump sum on your behalf, with a provider releasing it to you in fixed monthly instalments once you arrive and register in Germany — rather than handing you the full sum at once. It exists specifically to demonstrate to the visa authority that you have secured funds to cover the financing gap, satisfying the general “secured livelihood” (Lebensunterhalt gesichert) condition under German residence law.
The Alternative: A Sponsor Declaration
Instead of a blocked account, you can close the same financing gap with a “Verpflichtungserklärung” — a formal declaration of commitment signed by a sponsor legally resident in Germany, who takes on financial responsibility for your costs. This is the route some applicants use if they have a relative, family friend, or employer contact in Germany willing to sponsor them; it avoids the account fees and lock-in but depends entirely on having someone eligible and willing to sign.
How to Open a Blocked Account
In broad terms, the process is:
- Choose a provider offering blocked accounts recognised by German missions (several fintech and traditional-bank providers operate in this space)
- Complete identity verification (KYC) online, typically using your passport
- Transfer the required total amount into the account from India
- Receive a confirmation letter/certificate from the provider, which becomes part of your visa document set
- Once you arrive in Germany and register your address (see our Anmeldung guide), you open a regular German bank account and instruct the release of monthly instalments into it
Costs, exact monthly release amounts, and provider requirements change, so this post deliberately doesn’t quote a specific provider fee — confirm current terms directly with the provider and cross-check the required total against the current figure on make-it-in-germany.com or your assigned German mission’s checklist before transferring funds.
How This Fits Into Your Wider Application
The blocked account is one line item on a longer document checklist for the §16a training visa — see our §16a requirements breakdown and the full application process for where it sits alongside your training contract, language proof, and health insurance certificate. If you’re comparing the Ausbildung route to the job-seeker visa, note the financing bar is set separately and differently there too — see Job Seeker Visa vs Ausbildung Visa.
Related Reading
See our full breakdown of total costs for where a blocked account fits alongside the visa fee, deposit and flight, and our education loan guide if you need financing to cover it.
Where This Comes From
The current €1,048/month company-based training threshold is drawn from make-it-in-germany.com’s official vocational training visa page. Minimum and average training-allowance figures are from Germany’s Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training (BIBB), via its 2026 press release on the statutory minimum training allowance. Because both the financing threshold and the statutory minimum wage are reviewed and adjusted periodically (the minimum wage rises annually, and the blocked-account threshold is reset by the missions), confirm the currently listed figures on the official pages before you transfer funds or apply. For help assessing whether your specific offer clears the bar, contact our team.
