When planning your journey to Germany you should take into account that banks are closed on Saturday and Sunday. However, the exchange offices at the airport are open at the weekends or in the evenings. Here you can exchange foreign currency.
During the first days of your stay in Nuertingen or Geislingen you will need a considerable amount of money in cash for extra expenses such as
- 600€ deposit for the room in the residence hall
- plus the rent approx 243€/month for the first month i.e. September or March
- processing fee for a residence permit approx 100€
(not for EU citizens and some scholarship holders)
You should make sure that this money is easily available (e.g. cash) during the first days of your stay. Please note that if you use bank cheques, you have access to the money only about 2 weeks after the transfer on your account. All major credit cards can be used to withdraw money from the ATMs (automated teller machines) but this usually involves additional costs. Credit cards are not widely accepted in stores and restaurants. But you can basically pay everything with an EC card (electronic cash and debit card) that is connected with a German bank account. We arrange appointments to open a bank account during the orientation days. A German bank account is needed for the monthly payments such as the rent and the AOK health insurance. The Studierendenwerk and AOK will withdraw the money directly from the German bank account. You get an EC card which can be used for cashless payments or withdrawing money from the cash machine (ATM). The banks we recommend offer a current/checking account (Girokonto) without fees for students.
Alternatively, you can transfer the deposit for the room in the residence hall amounting to 600€ and the first rentfor September/March amounting to approx. 243€ to the account of the Studierendenwerk in advance, once you have signed the rental contract. But, your bank might charge you an extra fee for the international money transfer service. For more information, please contact Andrea Heissler.
For regular expenses you might be required to give permission for automatic withdrawal. Rent for the following month is automatically deducted within the first week of a month. The monthly AOK health insurance contribution is automatically deducted on the 15th of the following month. Make sure your account always has enough money for these regular expenses.
Nowadays, you can easily get online banking for your account if you ask for it. Every bank account comes with 3 numbers, the account number (Konto-Nummer), the routing number (Bankleitzahl) and an international bank account number (IBAN). You should know the IBAN number for money transfers.
