I want to go on a round the world trip for over a year, what do I tell the bank and what do I with my stuff? [closed]
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I want to go on a round the world trip for over a year.
- I have no friends and no family.
- I live and work in Germany.
- I rent. During the trip I will cancel the rent.
- I do not have my own property / house.
- I intend de-registering my address with the German authorities before the trip.
There are 2 problems I am facing.
- My bank sends me post mail (snail mail, physical mail) irregularly. Most of the mail I receive electronically but some post still arrives physically. If the bank notices post mail coming back to them, the bank will get suspicious. I do not want to tell the bank that I have no address in Germany as I fear they will close my account. My credit card is linked to the account. I was thinking of getting a prepaid mastercard / visa. Any alternatives?
- I have a few valuables (clothes, laptop, books, offical documents), that I do not want to throw away. I know there are long term storage facilities (lockers). Perhaps someone has alternative ideas?
Best Answer
You will need an address in Germany with someone opening the mail for you.
As you state you do not have family or friends (close enough that you can rely on them) you may have to look for a paid service that does this.
I know that in some countries these services exist, that hold all mail and open those you indicate need opening or open all mail and forward the contents by e-mail or whatever service you decide on. That is not just your bank, it can be tax or pension plan mail, or a late delivery for council tax. Or even a service you need to ask for while you are traveling.
Such an address/service will take care of your bank mail, but it should be possible for you to talk with your bank to get them to hold the important mail and send the rest to a place where you can later collect it. Banks should have handled this kind of situation before.
Long term storage can be done in self storage, but for your important documents you may want to consider a bank safe box. There are several kinds and your local bank should be able to tell you what kind you can find there.
Having a working bank account with a savings account connected with it, as well as a debit card that works from it, will be helpful when applying for visa and when crossing borders where officials want to make sure you will have enough money to survive in their country.
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Do you need to tell your bank you are travelling?
You're not required to notify your credit card company when you're going away on vacation, but it is highly recommended. By letting your credit card company know where you're going and for how long, your company will know that any card transactions from that location were likely authorized by you.How to inform bank you are traveling?
If you need to contact your bank while traveling, help is just a phone call away \u2013 just dial the number on the back of your card or your bank's website....While you're traveling:Do I need to let my bank know if I leave the country?
If they spot transactions in an unfamiliar location, your bank may assume your card is being used fraudulently and shut it off. When you let your bank know that you're going away, they add a record to your account and share it with their fraud detection system.How to Plan a Round the World Trip Gap Year - Travel Thursday
More answers regarding i want to go on a round the world trip for over a year, what do I tell the bank and what do I with my stuff? [closed]
Answer 2
Assumptions:
- German citizenship
- not retaining apartment
- you are planning to return after a specific period
Step 1:
- de-registering your address (you will not be returning to that address)
- retain Abmeldebescheinigung
- you ID will be amended with 'No main address in Germany'
This will stop all official post (which may contain any deadlines) from being sent.
Step 2:
Once you have the Abmeldebescheinigung:
- you can cancel existing contracts based on a
- außerordentlichen Kündigung (extraordinary termination)
- Rundfunkbeitrag (GEZ), electricity, telefon, internet etc.
- außerordentlichen Kündigung (extraordinary termination)
Bank:
- if wish to retain this, you must make some arrangement with them
- since you have de-registered, but will be returning
- storing of official documents in a safe would be an option
Krankenversicherung:
- during the time outside Germany is not mandatory
- de-register or switch to some other form of insurance if desired
Sources:
Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Images: Sora Shimazaki, NastyaSensei, Artem Beliaikin, Pixabay