Document granting temporary exemption from deportation
People were issued a Sperre for many reasons: being indispensible to the war industry, being a member of the Jewish Council, holding a passport from a ‘friendly' state, etc. In October 1942, 17,000 Jews thought they had the right papers.
However, the issued exemptions were always marked with ‘bis auf weiters' (until further notice), which meant that they were only temporary. In fact, the exemptions served to spread the deportations and to keep those remaining under control.