As great as it is to make a plan, we all know that plans can change! Whether your change of plans was your decision or a decision made for you, we know it can be a bit intimidating. In this article, we will show you step by step how to release your blocked funds from Coracle and receive your refund and hopefully answer any questions regarding the topic. 

Requesting a release of funds while still in your home county.

Sometimes, a student opens their blocked account, transfers the funds, and then decides they are no longer coming to Germany or unfortunately receives a visa rejection. Naturally one of the first thoughts that comes to mind is, “what about my blocked amount with Coracle”?

If you have blocked your amount with Coracle and now need the funds to be released, one important thing to keep in mind is that to maintain the integrity of the blocked account, we require authorization from German authorities to release any funds. This means we need a document from the German authorities stating you are no longer required to block this amount. 

What documents can I submit to release my funds while still in my home country?

1. Sperrfreigabe  or 
2. Email directly from the german authority to Coracle

Sperrfreigabe

So what is a Sperrfreigabe? This is “casually” referred as “Blocked Amount Release Letter”. A Sperrfreigabe is a document from the German embassy or consulate stating that there is no current objection to your funds being released and that they are no longer requesting you have a blocked account due to visa rejection, withdrawal, etc. The Sperrfreigabe also shows that you do not have any other pending visa applications with them and the funds can safely be released. 

This document may also come in the form of a post (need to scan the post) or email.

When to request a Sperrfreigabe?

• Your visa is rejeceted 
• You withdrew your visa application 
• You never made an appointment to get a visa

How to request a Sperrfreigabe? 

To request a Sperrfreigabe from the German embassy or consulate, you can send an email stating who you are and why you need the funds to be released. As a Coracle customer, you can email support@coracle.de and we will email you an email template you can use. 

Direct email from the German authority to Coracle

In some cases, usually, when the students never actually made an appointment with the embassy, the German authority can choose to send Coracle an email directly stating that there is no current open process for any visa for the student and they have no objections to having the funds released. 

I have proof that my funds can be released! Now what?

Now that you have secured a visa rejection form. Sperrfreigabe, or another form of confirmation, please send us an email at support@coracle.de stating you wish to being the funds along with the confirmation document.  We will also request the bank details. 

Important things to keep in mind: 

• The funds will be returned to the original account from which they were sent. 
• The blocked account fee will be deducted during a refund. In case of visa rejections for students, we will waive this fee.
• We will transfer the funds back without any additional charges by us, however, transaction fees might be deducted by the bank while making the transfer.
• Some local German authorities do charge to
• Typically, this transaction takes 1-2 weeks however, in rare cases may take up to 3-4 weeks depending on banks in the individual home country. 

Requesting a release of funds when you are already in Germany.

If you are already in Germany, it may be that you are no longer continuing with your studies and returning to your home country, or maybe you are switching to a working visa. Whatever the case, we will now outline the process for a refund, or release of funds, when you are already in Germany. 

Though you are already in the country, we will still need a Sperrfreigabe in order to release your funds. The difference here is that you will acquire the Sperrfreigabe from your local  Ausländerbehörde instead of the German consulate or embassy abroad. 

You can request the Sperrfreigabe from the  Ausländerbehörde by sending them an email, calling them, or making an appointment. We recommend you send an email or call first explaining that you need a Sperrfreigabe because you created a blocked account and Germany and now need the funds released because you will be leaving. It may be that they ask you to schedule an appointment.  

I have now acquired my Sperrfreigabe and want to receive the money back.

If you are in Germany but have not yet activated your blocks account, meaning you did not submit current account information to us and activated your payouts, the funds will be released to the original bank account from where it was sent. If you have been in Germany for some time, activated your blocked account, and have been receiving payments, you may choose to have the funds released to the original account in your home country or to the local bank account where you are receiving the payouts now. 

Please note:

• Sperrfreigabe must not be older than 3 months. 
• The refund process normally takes  1-2 weeks but depending on the receiving bank, may take up to 4 weeks. 

We hope this breakdown has shed some transparency on the processes on our end and given you actionable steps should you be in the position where you need your funds released. Please remember that in any case, should you have any additional questions, you can always reach out to our support team at support@coracle.de.

To read a more detailed FAQ section, visit us here.