Pfändungsschutzkonto Einrichtung

If your current account has been seized, you can use a garnishment protection account (P-account) to protect your credit balance from seizure to a certain extent and then freely dispose of it to secure your livelihood.

In a P-account, a certain basic allowance (garnishment allowance) is automatically protected without you having to do anything after setting up the P-account.

You can increase this basic garnishment protection under certain conditions if you provide appropriate proof: For example, if you have to pay maintenance or for certain incoming payments that are generally not attachable (e.g. child benefit or other social benefits).

The garnishment exemption limits are redefined every two years by the Federal Ministry of Justice and Consumer Protection's garnishment exemption limit announcement. You can easily find out the applicable exempt amounts on the Internet. There are also calculators to find out exactly how much of your income is exempt from garnishment (e.g. on the NRW justice portal).

Exceptionally, you can apply to the enforcement court for the entire credit balance on the P-account to be exempt from garnishment for a period of up to twelve months if only non-garnishable amounts were credited in the previous months and this is also expected for the following months.

Please contact your bank or savings bank to find out which documents it requires for setting up a new current account or converting an existing one into a P-account, e.g. whether a specific form is required for this.

Your bank or savings bank will automatically take into account the basic allowance on the P-account. However, you must prove any increases (e.g. due to maintenance obligations) to your bank or savings bank by submitting (P-account) certificates. Such certificates are issued, for example, by employers, family benefit funds, social benefit providers or debtor and consumer insolvency advice centers.

If you are unable to obtain such proof (e.g. because your situation is a special case), you can submit an application to the enforcement court (or if a public body is enforcing) to the enforcement authority to determine the amount of the increase.

To obtain garnishment protection, you must have your current account converted into a garnishment protection account (P-account) or set up a new account as a P-account. Please contact your bank or savings bank for more information. Conversion to a P-account is also possible if your current account has already been seized. However, you may only have one current account as a P-account!

Incidentally, the garnishment protection applies regardless of the type of income in the P-account and therefore also protects the income of self-employed persons, for example, in the amount of the basic allowance and any additional amounts.

• Find out from your bank or savings bank what documents it requires for setting up a new current account or converting an existing one into a P-account, e.g. whether a specific form is required for this.
• Then apply to your bank or savings bank to convert your current account into a P-account or to open a P-account

There is no legal remedy.

• Set up an attachment protection account
• Dispose of the non-garnishable part of your income

Please ask your bank or savings bank.