Promissory notes

When Hitler came to power in 1933 and started restricting Jewish rights, Jews tried to leave Nazi-occupied Germany. The regime encouraged Jews to leave and granted them exit visas. Finding a country that welcomed Europe’s Jews was much more difficult. Jews who did secure entry visas were permitted to leave with only a small fraction of their money. In exchange for the majority of an émigrés money and possessions, the Nazi government issued konversionkasse or promissory notes in the mid-1930s. Upon arrival in the new country, refugees expected that these notes could be exchanged for local currency, however, these notes were worthless. 

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Below is a 10 reichsmark note from 1934. The refugees typically pinned the notes inside their clothing.