Cash
Obligation to declare on request when crossing a border
Any person entering Germany from an EU Member State or leaving Germany for another EU Member State and carrying cash with a total value of 10,000 or more euros is obliged to report that amount of money orally to any customs control unit or official enquiring about it.
Cash or equivalent means of payment subject to declaration
"Cash" is:
and
gold in the form of
- coins with a gold content of at least 90%
- gold bullion in the form of bars, nuggets or nuggets with a gold content of at least 99.5%
Equivalent means of payment are e.g.:
- passbooks
- precious stones (rough or cut), e.g. diamonds, rubies, sapphires or emeralds
gold in the form of
- coins with a gold content of less than 90%
- gold bullion in the form of bars, nuggets or nuggets with a gold content of less than 99.5%
- other precious metals, e.g. platinum or silver
Jewellery and other goods made from precious metals or stones are not considered cash equivalents and consequently need not be declared when entering Germany from the EU or exiting Germany to another EU country.
Foreign currencies shall be valued in euros at the exchange rate applicable on the day of entry and/or exit.
The value of collectors’ or bullion coins (such as Maple Leaf, Eagle, Wiener Philharmoniker) shall be calculated based on its actual value and not the coin’s nominal or face value.
Example: Calculating the value of a "Wiener Philharmoniker" silver coin
The nominal value of the coin is 1.50 euros. Its actual value is the price that would have to be paid when buying this coin (at a bank or coin dealers’, for example) on the day of entry or exit.
Declaration on request
The traffic of cash money and equivalent means of payment across the German borders to other European Union member states is monitored mainly by the customs control units operating both at the borders and within the national territory.
In addition to customs, the agents of the Federal Police are authorised to conduct the relevant inspections.
Where a customs official, during a random check, requests you to declare any cash money or equivalent means of payment carried by you, you must verbally declare the value of the cash money and/or equivalent means of payment as well as explain its provenance, its economic beneficiary, and its intended use, even if the total amount does not exceed the 10,000 euros threshold.
The consequences of non-compliance
If you fail to declare or to fully declare cash money or equivalent means of payment when requested to do so, you are committing an administrative offence. Such offence can be punished with a fine of up to one million euros.
The German customs administration offers information on the legal provisions you need to observe when bringing cash or equivalent means of payment across a border into or out of Germany.
If you travel to or from another country you should enquire about the relevant regulations at that country‘s representation in Germany or consult the travel information by country published on the German Foreign Office‘s website.
