Step-by-step:
Open Your Joint Account
Marriage is not required in Germany — any two adults can open a joint account. The tricky part is what happens after: who can drain it, who pays gift tax, who appears on the Schufa. Here's the version we walk expat couples through.
Go directly to account opening →The steps, in order
About 10 minutes per holder online, then both verify separately. Account goes live once both verifications clear — usually within 2 business days.
Start the application together
Start the application together
Click "Open Joint Account" to begin. The first holder enters name, date of birth, nationality, and the address from their Anmeldung. Then add the second holder's details. The application is one shared submission — no need to apply twice.
Tip: Both holders need a valid passport or EU ID and an Anmeldung. Different home addresses? You can still open the account, but the bank may ask for explanation if the addresses are in different cities.
Choose Oder-Konto or Und-Konto
Choose Oder-Konto or Und-Konto
Oder-Konto: either holder can move money, sign contracts, and apply for a Dispo (overdraft) without the other's consent. Und-Konto: every transaction needs both signatures. Most couples pick Oder for convenience — but read the next tip before you do.
Tip: Oder-Konto = either of you can drain the entire balance, alone, without notice. That includes after a breakup. If trust is anything less than full, Und-Konto is the safer pick — even if it means co-signing groceries.
Save the email confirmations
Save the email confirmations
Both holders get confirmation emails: your shared IBAN, an Ident-ID per holder, pre-contractual documents, and the order confirmation. Each Ident-ID is personal — do not mix them up at verification.
Tip: Check spam if nothing arrives in 5 minutes. Save both Ident-IDs in a shared password manager so neither of you blocks the other's verification.
Both holders verify identity
Both holders verify identity
Each holder runs Video-Ident (IDENT app, 5–10 minutes) or PostIdent at any Deutsche Post counter — separately. The account does not activate until both verifications are in.
Tip: You can verify at different times and from different cities. If one of you is still abroad waiting on a visa appointment, the other can pre-verify and the account waits for the second person — no penalty.
Activate photoTAN for both
Activate photoTAN for both
After both identity checks clear (usually next business day), each holder gets their own participant number and PIN. Download photoTAN, log in separately, scan the activation graphic. Two independent two-factor setups, one shared account.
Tip: Three-hour activation window per holder. Miss it and Commerzbank mails a paper activation letter — 3 to 5 extra days for one of you, even if the other is already set up.
Receive cards, start banking
Receive cards, start banking
Each holder gets their own Girocard with a separate PIN, in separate envelopes. Activate at any ATM. Both cards draw from the same balance.
Open Joint Account Now
We've guided 10,000+ expats through Commerzbank since 2014, including hundreds of joint-account setups. This is the flow, plus the three legal traps most couples never hear about until something goes wrong.
Open Joint Account Now →Three legal traps most couples miss
The gift-tax trap (unmarried couples)
If one of you regularly deposits much more than the other into a joint account, the Finanzamt can treat the imbalance as a gift. Unmarried partners only have a €20,000 tax-free allowance every 10 years. Married couples get €500,000. If you are unmarried with very different incomes, route shared expenses through the joint account but keep salaries in personal accounts.
Shared liability and the Schufa
A joint Dispo (overdraft) makes both of you liable for the full amount — not 50/50. If one holder runs up €5,000 in overdraft, the bank can demand it from either of you. Both holders also get a Schufa entry for the account; missed payments hit both credit scores. Worth knowing before signing.
Before you start
Have both passports and Anmeldungen ready. Decide Oder vs. Und in advance — switching later means a contract amendment. Plan ~20 minutes total for the online application. Set up standing orders for rent and utilities immediately after activation; that's the whole point of having one.