Begrüßungsgeld
Encyclopedia
Begrüßungsgeld was, from 1970 until 29 December 1989, a gift from the government of the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany
) to visitors from the German Democratic Republic (GDR - East Germany). This situation originated with the policy of the GDR government restricting the amount of East German Mark
s (M) that could be exchanged into Deutsche Marks (DM) by GDR citizens when on approved travel to the West. At first, the GDR allowed the exchange of 70 M annually into DM, however by 1989, this sum was reduced to 15 M annually, which greatly restricted the ability of GDR citizens to travel to the West, even if they were approved to do so.
Originally, every GDR citizen was entitled to a "welcome money" payment of 30 DM twice annually; by 1988, this had been increased to a one-time payment of 100 DM annually, which was recorded in their travel documents. The state of Bavaria
paid an additional 40 DM to visitors from the GDR. With inflation taken into account, 100 DM is roughly equivalent to €71 in 2008 terms.http://books.google.com/books?id=W-VM7PhfwA0C&lpg=PA231&ots=ekHn747__c&dq=BIP-Deflator%201988&pg=PA231#v=onepage&q=BIP-Deflator%201988&f=falsehttp://w3.unece.org/pxweb/Dialog/varval.asp?ma=31_MENCGDPDefY_r&ti=Implicit+Price+Deflator%2C+by+Expenditure%2C+Measurement%2C+Country+and+Year&path=../DATABASE/Stat/20-ME/2-MENA/&lang=1
Retired senior citizens (men above 65 years of age; women above 60 years of age) and selected Reisekader were generally the only GDR citizens allowed to travel to the West until the fall of the Berlin Wall
on 9 November 1989, after which literally tens of thousands stood in line in front of banks and town halls in West Berlin and West Germany waiting to collect their "welcome money" for the first time.
The payment of "welcome money" ended on 29 December 1989, as it was never intended to be paid out to such large numbers of visitors. This was replaced with an arrangement whereby GDR citizens could exchange 100 M into DM at a ratio of 1:1, with an additional 100 M exchangeable into DM at a ratio of 5:1. This arrangement ended with the economic and currency union in July 1990, when the DM became the sole currency in both German states.
In 1988, approx. 260 million DM was paid out to visitors from the GDR; however, in the months of November and December 1989 alone, approximately 3-4 billion DM was paid to GDR citizens. On the other hand, West Germans visiting the GDR had to submit to the Zwangsumtausch (or Mindestumtausch), i. e. the mandatory exchange of a specified amount of DM per day into the same amount of East German mark
s. From October 1980 on, the GDR required a minimum exchange of 25 DM daily. Such amounts could not be reexchanged into DM when leaving the GDR. This practice ended on 29 December 1989.
West Germany
West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
) to visitors from the German Democratic Republic (GDR - East Germany). This situation originated with the policy of the GDR government restricting the amount of East German Mark
East German mark
The East German mark commonly called the eastern mark , in East Germany only Mark, was the currency of the German Democratic Republic . Its ISO 4217 currency code was DDM...
s (M) that could be exchanged into Deutsche Marks (DM) by GDR citizens when on approved travel to the West. At first, the GDR allowed the exchange of 70 M annually into DM, however by 1989, this sum was reduced to 15 M annually, which greatly restricted the ability of GDR citizens to travel to the West, even if they were approved to do so.
Originally, every GDR citizen was entitled to a "welcome money" payment of 30 DM twice annually; by 1988, this had been increased to a one-time payment of 100 DM annually, which was recorded in their travel documents. The state of Bavaria
Bavaria
Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
paid an additional 40 DM to visitors from the GDR. With inflation taken into account, 100 DM is roughly equivalent to €71 in 2008 terms.http://books.google.com/books?id=W-VM7PhfwA0C&lpg=PA231&ots=ekHn747__c&dq=BIP-Deflator%201988&pg=PA231#v=onepage&q=BIP-Deflator%201988&f=falsehttp://w3.unece.org/pxweb/Dialog/varval.asp?ma=31_MENCGDPDefY_r&ti=Implicit+Price+Deflator%2C+by+Expenditure%2C+Measurement%2C+Country+and+Year&path=../DATABASE/Stat/20-ME/2-MENA/&lang=1
Retired senior citizens (men above 65 years of age; women above 60 years of age) and selected Reisekader were generally the only GDR citizens allowed to travel to the West until the fall of the Berlin Wall
Berlin Wall
The Berlin Wall was a barrier constructed by the German Democratic Republic starting on 13 August 1961, that completely cut off West Berlin from surrounding East Germany and from East Berlin...
on 9 November 1989, after which literally tens of thousands stood in line in front of banks and town halls in West Berlin and West Germany waiting to collect their "welcome money" for the first time.
The payment of "welcome money" ended on 29 December 1989, as it was never intended to be paid out to such large numbers of visitors. This was replaced with an arrangement whereby GDR citizens could exchange 100 M into DM at a ratio of 1:1, with an additional 100 M exchangeable into DM at a ratio of 5:1. This arrangement ended with the economic and currency union in July 1990, when the DM became the sole currency in both German states.
In 1988, approx. 260 million DM was paid out to visitors from the GDR; however, in the months of November and December 1989 alone, approximately 3-4 billion DM was paid to GDR citizens. On the other hand, West Germans visiting the GDR had to submit to the Zwangsumtausch (or Mindestumtausch), i. e. the mandatory exchange of a specified amount of DM per day into the same amount of East German mark
East German mark
The East German mark commonly called the eastern mark , in East Germany only Mark, was the currency of the German Democratic Republic . Its ISO 4217 currency code was DDM...
s. From October 1980 on, the GDR required a minimum exchange of 25 DM daily. Such amounts could not be reexchanged into DM when leaving the GDR. This practice ended on 29 December 1989.