A melt-spinning process and a melt-spinning apparatus produce a crimped yarn. By means of a spinning device, a filament bundle is generated from a thermoplastic polymer, is drawn after cooling and is compressed into a yarn plug in a stuffing chamber. The yarn plug is opened up into a crimped yarn and wound into a bobbin. In order to obtain as high a crimp resistance of the yarn as possible, amorphous fractions in the molecular structure of the yarn material are avoided after drawing. This is achieved by means of relaxation treatment after drawing and before compression, a minimum yarn pull force of >0.05 cN/dtex with a relaxation temperature in the range of 120° C. to 245° C. being maintained.