Apparatus for packaging sheet material, in particular banknotes, vouchers, cheques, separating cards etc., comprising a packaging device (10 to 52) for packaging the sheet material with packaging material dispensed from a roll mounted on a shaft, and a control device for controlling the apparatus, characterized by a monitoring device for the packaging material, the monitoring device being formed by a rotary encoder, wherein the control device is designed such that a signal from the monitoring device is evaluated by the control device during the packaging of sheet material in order to derive therefrom whether packaging material is present on the roll, wherein, if the control device, during the packaging, ascertains by evaluation of the signal from the rotary encoder that the roll is rotating, the packaging material required for the packaging is present on the roll, so that the packaging of the sheet material can be carried out, and, if the control device, during the packaging, ascertains by evaluation of the signal from the rotary encoder that the roll is not rotating, the packaging material required for the packaging is not present on the roll, so that the packaging of the sheet material cannot be carried out, and therefore the control device terminates the packaging process, or the control device does not terminate the packaging process since it is provided owing to the structural design of the apparatus that the packaging material is sufficient for a packaging process that is underway, even if the packaging material has been fully unwound from the roll, by way of the distance between the roll and a channel formed from guide plates and in which the sheet material, when it is inserted, is wrapped with packaging material that has been unwound from the roll mounted on the shaft being such that the packaging material still present there is sufficient to complete the packaging process that has been started. a packaging device (10 to 52) for packaging the sheet material with packaging material dispensed from a roll mounted on a shaft, and a control device for controlling the apparatus, characterized by a monitoring device for the packaging material, the monitoring device being formed by a rotary encoder, wherein the control device is designed such that a signal from the monitoring device is evaluated by the control device during the packaging of sheet material in order to derive therefrom whether packaging material is present on the roll, wherein, if the control device, during the packaging, ascertains by evaluation of the signal from the rotary encoder that the roll is rotating, the packaging material required for the packaging is present on the roll, so that the packaging of the sheet material can be carried out, and, if the control device, during the packaging, ascertains by evaluation of the signal from the rotary encoder that the roll is not rotating, the packaging material required for the packaging is not present on the roll, so that the packaging of the sheet material cannot be carried out, and therefore the control device terminates the packaging process, or the control device does not terminate the packaging process since it is provided owing to the structural design of the apparatus that the packaging material is sufficient for a packaging process that is underway, even if the packaging material has been fully unwound from the roll, by way of the distance between the roll and a channel formed from guide plates and in which the sheet material, when it is inserted, is wrapped with packaging material that has been unwound from the roll mounted on the shaft being such that the packaging material still present there is sufficient to complete the packaging process that has been started.