Joint account yes or no: two variants

With the Oder account, each of the two account holders has individual powers of disposal and can therefore dispose of credit balances and credit limits independently of the other. This account is suitable for couples who both want to use it for their daily payments. Then there is the And account. Here, financial transactions can only ever be carried out jointly, e.g. both partners must sign for a bank transfer. However, married couples usually opt for the Or account.

Pitfall: Parental maintenance

One disadvantage of the joint account can be the care costs of the parents, which the children increasingly have to pay. If a daughter or son now has a joint account with their spouse, half of the assets are automatically used as the basis for calculating maintenance - even if the majority of the money comes from the partner. In other words: with this model, your own assets are sometimes used to care for your parents-in-law.

Disadvantages of a joint account: The debts of the other

It can go wrong: If one partner is unable to handle money and overdraws the Oder account, both partners are still liable for the bad debts, not just the person who caused them. Creditors can also have the account seized. And in the worst case, you may have to sue your partner to get your money back.

Pitfall: care

If you don't have a power of attorney, you are often assigned a guardian who often also takes care of your finances. "This person has to transfer the care recipient's money to a new account," says our financial expert Margit Winkler from Institut GenerationenBeratung. The spouse not receiving care will now have an unpleasant experience: The caregiver simply transfers pocket or household money to his or her account. Protection: Individual accounts - they are the better choice. Or take care of a power of attorney in good time.

Attention, inheritance!

A pension or life insurance policy is usually only issued to one person. If this is paid out and goes into the joint account, the balance is automatically divided between two people - the beneficiary of the insurance and their spouse. As this transfer is considered a gift, it counts towards the allowance for gift and inheritance tax. Incidentally, this also applies to credits made to a joint account! Tip: Make a written agreement with your partner about the rights to the account!