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Blocked Account 2026: EUR 11,904 Unchanged. The Real Rupee Cost, TCS Included

Blocked Account 2026: EUR 11,904 Unchanged. The Real Rupee Cost, TCS Included

Shikha Gupta

Author

October 12, 2026

Blocked Account 2026: EUR 11,904 Unchanged. The Real Rupee Cost, TCS Included

TL;DR: The blocked account Germany asks Indian students for in 2026 is still EUR 11,904 for the first year, released at no more than EUR 992 a month, the same figure the German missions in India have used since 1 September 2024. At the ECB reference rate for 12 October 2026 (Rs 107.086 per euro) that's Rs 12,74,752 before your bank's margin. Since 1 April 2026, TCS on a self-funded education remittance is 2% on the part above Rs 10 lakh (it was 5%), and nil when the money sent is an education loan from a bank or notified financial institution.

Blocked account Germany 2026: the amount hasn't moved

The German missions in India set out the requirement on their student visa page, last updated on 16 February 2026: a blocked account (Sperrkonto) holding EUR 11,904 for the first year, with a blocking confirmation that lets you withdraw no more than EUR 992 a month. Neither that page nor the missions' visa FAQ shows a newer figure as of 12 October 2026.

It can move, though. The Federal Foreign Office says the amount is based on the maximum support rates paid to German students, so check the mission page again in the week you transfer. And a loan doesn't replace it. The missions' FAQ says: "An education loan is additional to the blocked account."

For provider fees and the full first-year bill, read what a blocked account costs in 2026, and for how the account works, our Sperrkonto guide. The EUR 992 monthly cap has applied since 1 September 2024.

TCS on education remittance: what changed on 1 April 2026

Two things changed on the same day. The Income-tax Act, 2025 replaced the 1961 Act, so TCS on Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS) transfers now sits in section 394(1), Table Sl. No. 7. And the Finance Act, 2026 cut the education rate. In her Budget speech on 1 February 2026, the Finance Minister proposed to "reduce TCS rate for pursuing education and for medical purposes under the Liberalized Remittance Scheme (LRS) from 5 percent to 2 percent". The Income Tax Department's text of section 394 shows that 2% in force from 1 April 2026. The rules now:

Education loan from a financial institution: no TCS. Section 394(4)(b) switches TCS off when the amount remitted is a loan from a financial institution taken for education. Section 129(3)(b) defines that as a bank covered by the Banking Regulation Act, 1949, or a financial institution the Central Government notifies.
Self-funded education: nil up to Rs 10 lakh, then 2% on the amount above it. Until 31 March 2026 that was 5%.
Any purpose other than education or medical treatment: 20% above Rs 10 lakh. That rate didn't change.
The Rs 10 lakh threshold: unchanged. The February 2026 Budget memorandum describes it as the existing limit, and the new Act keeps it.

The threshold counts the total, not each transfer. Kotak Mahindra Bank's FAQ says it runs per financial year at PAN level, so tuition you sent abroad in April eats into your Rs 10 lakh before the blocked account transfer in June.

Does a blocked account deposit count as an education remittance?

Probably, but no official source says so in writing. Section 394 applies the 2% to remittances for education or medical treatment without listing what education spending includes, and the RBI's LRS FAQ names studies abroad as a permitted purpose, again without a breakdown. Fintiba, a blocked account provider, wrote in July 2023 that a TCS change at the time "does not affect the blocked account needed for your German student visa". That's a provider's reading, and the rate it quoted is out of date.

In practice your bank decides. The Act makes the authorised dealer (your bank or another RBI-authorised dealer) responsible for collecting TCS, so its classification sets your rate. Show your bank the admission letter and blocked account confirmation, ask which purpose it will book, and get the TCS figure in writing. The gap is large: on the example below, education treatment means Rs 5,495 of TCS and any other purpose means Rs 54,950.

Blocked account Germany in rupees: the worked example

The rate used here is the European Central Bank's euro reference rate for the Indian rupee on 12 October 2026: Rs 107.0860 per euro. EUR 11,904 x 107.0860 = Rs 12,74,752 (rounded). The ECB says its reference rates are for information only, and your bank will quote its own rate, so read this as a benchmark, not a quote. These figures are general information, not tax advice.

How the EUR 11,904 is funded	TCS collected	Total leaving your account
Education loan from a bank or notified financial institution	Rs 0	Rs 12,74,752
Self-funded, first LRS transfer of the year (2% of Rs 2,74,752)	Rs 5,495	Rs 12,80,247
Self-funded, Rs 10 lakh already used this year (2% of Rs 12,74,752)	Rs 25,495	Rs 13,00,247
Same first transfer at the old 5% rate (before 1 April 2026)	Rs 13,738	Rs 12,88,490
Booked as a non-education purpose (20% of Rs 2,74,752)	Rs 54,950	Rs 13,29,702

If the blocked account is your first big transfer abroad this financial year, the second row is yours, and the April 2026 cut saves you Rs 8,243 on it. Provider fees come on top; we compare them in Expatrio vs Fintiba.

TCS comes back, but not quickly

TCS is income tax collected in advance. It shows up in Form 26AS against the PAN of the person who sent the money, who claims it as tax already paid in their income tax return. The e-filing portal limits that credit to the amount shown in Form 26AS. If the tax you've paid, TCS included, is more than the tax you owe, the excess is refunded, and refund processing starts only after you e-verify the return.

The real cost is cash flow. Pay Rs 25,495 of TCS in July 2026 and you can't claim it until you file your return for tax year 2026-27, which runs to 31 March 2027. Because the credit sits with the remitter, a parent who pays income tax can set it against that bill, while a student with no taxable income gets it back only by filing a return.

Four checks before you send the money

Ask your bank which purpose it will book and how much TCS it will collect. Get it in writing.
Loan-funded? Ask your lender to send the blocked account amount abroad straight from the loan. The exemption covers money that is the loan itself; loan money parked in your savings first may be harder to prove.
Add up what you've already sent abroad under LRS this financial year. Application fees and tuition count toward the Rs 10 lakh.
Decide who sends the money. The TCS credit lands in that person's PAN.

Get the funding plan right before the visa appointment

The blocked account is one line in a bigger budget: see the cost of studying in Germany in rupees, whether EUR 992 a month is enough in your city, and our student visa guide for Indians. Want your profile and funding plan checked? Book a free profile evaluation. The missions in India list the blocked account among the accepted proofs of secure livelihood for a student visa.

Sources

Frequently Asked Questions

EUR 11,904 for the first year, with withdrawals capped at EUR 992 a month. The German missions in India have used the EUR 992 figure since 1 September 2024, and their student visa page, updated 16 February 2026, still lists EUR 11,904.

At the ECB reference rate of Rs 107.0860 per euro on 12 October 2026, EUR 11,904 is Rs 12,74,752. Your bank's rate will differ, and TCS and provider fees can come on top.

For self-funded education it's nil up to Rs 10 lakh and 2% on the amount above that, down from 5% before 1 April 2026. If the money remitted is an education loan from a bank or a notified financial institution, there's no TCS at all.

It can be, if the transfer takes your total LRS remittances above Rs 10 lakh and isn't loan-funded. The law doesn't say whether a bank must book it as education (2%) or another purpose (20%), so ask your bank first.

Yes. It appears in the remitter's Form 26AS and counts as tax paid when they file a return; anything above their final tax bill is refunded after the return is e-verified and processed.

No. The Income-tax Act, 2025 moved TCS on LRS remittances into section 394 from 1 April 2026 and kept the Rs 10 lakh threshold. Only the education and medical rate changed, from 5% to 2%.

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