'Auslands-BAföG' funding

Under certain conditions, the state funds stays abroad with student loans and grants for studies abroad (Auslands-BAfög).

If your or your parents’ financial situation justifies it,youmay also be able to receive this support if you do not receive any domestic student loans and grants (BAföG), as the BAföG offices assume that you will need more money during your studies abroad. This is particularly the case if you have to pay higher tuition fees abroad.

Foreign student loans and grants can be applied for once during your studies for a minimum of 3 months (within the framework of university collaborations) and a maximum of 12 months.

You can obtain the application documents from the AuslandsBAföG Office responsible for your target country.

What is the monthly amount I receive under the Auslands-BAföG?

Just like domestic student loans and grants (BAföG), the amount of the international student loans and grants depends on your income, but also on the amount of the tuition fees to be expected at your host university, the cost of living to be expected in the target country and the travel expenses to the target university. As a general rule, if you are staying in a non-European country, you will have to pay an international surcharge in addition to the domestic BAföG rate. You can find out the exact amount of this surcharge from the responsible international BAföG office.

If I receive Auslands-BAföG (international student loans and grants), how does this affect the amount of my scholarship?

Full scholarships and Auslands-BAföG are usually mutually exclusive. In the case of partial scholarships (for instance DAAD one-year scholarship), the scholarship instalments are usually reduced by the Auslands-BaföG international supplement. The ERASMUS mobility allowance is exempt from imputation.

Where can I have Form 5 signed?

If the office requests Form 5 from you (performance certificate according to § 48 BAföG), you can have it signed by your programme coordinator.

Students can receive a full DAAD scholarship (up to their first degree qualifying them for a profession).

In contrast to partial scholarship recipients, these scholarship holders also receive credit for the BAföG domestic portion if they apply for AuslandsBAföG (international student loans and grants). Thus, in some cases, scholarship holders who receive a high BAföG rate would be left with only a very small monthly grant.

In order to prevent BAföG recipients from being disadvantaged, the DAAD points out to BAföG recipients the option of foregoing BAföG benefits during the scholarship period so that they can take advantage of the full DAAD scholarship.

Further details

Student loans and grants (BAföG)
Student Services Associations
German Academic Exchange Service