FAQ – Questions and answers on the coronavirus
Search by keywords
Admission rules (3G, 2G etc.) have been lifted for all students, staff and external visitors. That means proof of vaccination, recovery or negative test results no longer has to be shown and there are no checks by the security service.
Despite the lifting of the rules, we appeal to all university members to continue regular testing, either using self-test kits or by getting tested at a testing station – even if you are vaccinated or have recovered from covid-19. Any of us can be carriers and spreaders of the virus. By continuing to adhere to the above measures voluntarily, we can make the university safer for ourselves and others.
As a general rule, you must not come to the campus if:
- you exhibit the typical symptoms of a SARS-CoV-2 infection (specifically shortness of breath, new-onset cough, fever and loss of smell or taste)
- you are under quarantine
- you have had a positive SARS-CoV-2 test result
If the above applies to you, you cannot attend courses or take part in any University activities and must not enter any University buildings or other enclosed spaces. If you develop typical covid-19 symptoms while at the University, you must immediately leave the premises and notify the University. The University will report the facts to the competent health authority, which then determines what measures (e.g. quarantine) will need to be taken by the University.
In accordance with the 16th Bavarian disease control ordinance, there is now an FFP2 mask mandate in all indoor spaces, including corridors and walkways. You can remove your mask when you are seated or standing in an area where a distance of 1.5 metres to others is reliably maintained.
Status checks are no longer carried out, since the access rules have ben lifted.
The 3G rule for entering the reading rooms has also been scrapped. Until 25 April, the previous regulations will be kept as follows: in the reading rooms, the designated desks can be used as was the case until now. As before, it is strongly recommended that you wear an FFP2 mask at your desk. The previous FFP2 mask-wearing obligation on all connecting corridors and areas in the library buildings will be maintained.
If you have any questions or individual concerns, please contact the Library Team at ubinfo@uni-passau.de, call +49 851 509 1630 or use the contact form. We will try everything in our power to find a solution.
For up-to-date information on this and the library services (reading room and stacks lending, interlibrary loans, scanning service etc.) visit the University Library website.
You are considered recovered when:
- Your covid-19 infection has been confirmed by a positive PCR test
and - the test was conducted at least 28 days ago but no longer than 90 days ago if you are not fully vaccinated
- the test was conducted at least 28 days ago but no longer than 180 days ago if you are fully vaccinated
If your covid-19 infection was more than six months ago, you will need a single top-up vaccination for the relevant "G" rule to continue to apply to you.
For details on the covid-19 convalescent status, visit the Robert Koch Institute website [German content].
No. Persons who have been vaccinated with a vaccine other than those listed by the Paul Ehrlich Institute are not considered to be vaccinated for the purposes of the 2G/3G/plus rules.
You can go to get vaccinated free of charge at the vaccination centre of the city of Passau [German content].
Free testing for everyone in Germany was reintroduced on 13 November 2021 – even for those who received a vaccination or who have recovered from a covid-19 infection. You can be tested off-campus or at the campus testing station (at the Centre for Media and Communication, Innstrasse 33a).
The rapid testing station at Innstrasse 33a (in the Centre for Media and Communication, ZMK Building), which is operated by Malteser International and was initially set up as a testing station only for students, will continue operating as a public testing centre from 1 December 2021, which means non-University members can also go there to get tested. The covid-19 antigen rapid testing station is open Mondays to Fridays from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Please note that you now have to make an appointment to get tested there.
Outside the opening hours of the campus testing station, you can take advantage of one of the various testing stations in the city area. You will find an overview on the website of the City of Passau [German content].
Under the 2G or 3G rule, the following paper-based or electronic negative test certificates will be accepted:
- a PCR test, a PoC PCR test or other test that uses the nucleic acid amplification technique. These tests are valid for 48 hours starting from the time the sample is taken.
- a PoC antigen test. These tests are valid for 24 hours starting from the time the sample is taken.
- an antigen test for self-administration by laypersons (self-test kits) approved by the Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices. This type of test must be carried out under supervision and the result is valid for 24 hours from the time the sample is taken. Unsupervised self-tests are not accepted as valid proof.
You can get tested free of charge at the testing station in the Innstrasse 33a building (Centre for Media and Communication). The covid-19 antigen rapid testing station is open Mondays to Fridays from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Please note that you now have to make an appointment to get tested there.
Outside the opening hours of the campus testing station, you can take advantage of one of the various testing stations in the city area. You will find an overview on the website of the City of Passau [German content].
Since the admission rules have been scrapped, you do not need to get yourself tested. Nevertheless, we recommend that you do, since we can all still be spreaders of the virus. Regular testing helps you to protect yourself and the people around you.
The third covid emergency act is now in effect. The covid-19-related changes to the Bavarian higher education act [German content] continue to apply to the 2020–21 winter semester, the 2021 summer semester and the 2021–22 winter semester.
For the purposes of the regular dates and deadlines laid down in the examination regulations for the study programmes, summer semester 2020, winter semester 2020–21, summer semester 2021 and winter semester 2021–22 are not counted as subject semesters (Art. 99(1) BayHSchG). The Ministry of Science has updated the FAQ on its website [German content]. You will find further answers there, e.g. on questions related to BAföG and examinations.
As these are automatic you do not need to apply (or provide supporting documents) for an extension. These deadlines are automatically extended if necessary.
The above automatic extensions do not apply to writing periods for written assignments, seminar papers, project work and dissertations or theses.
What does this mean for you?
- Have you already reached the maximum period of study according to your examination regulations and received an official notice of initial fail ('erstmaliges Nichtbestehen')? You will soon receive an additional notice indicating the new deadlines/dates from the Examinations Office.
- Did you reach the maximum study period at the end of summer semester 2020, winter semester 2020–21 or summer semester 2021, or will you reach it at the end of winter semester 2021–22? For these semesters, the maximum-duration-of-studies check has been suspended. Therefore, these semesters are not counted if you were regularly enrolled. Examinations you have passed will, however, count.
- Are you falling short of the prescribed number of ECTS credits you should have accumulated in these semesters (e.g. in the degree programmes B.Sc. Business Administration and Economics, B.Sc. Information Systems and the FIM degree programmes)? Again, summer semester 2020, winter semester 2020–21, summer semester 2021 and winter semester 2021–22 do not count as subject semesters.
- Are you regularly enrolled in a degree programme but a (long) way away from reaching the maximum period of study or another deadline? Summer semester 2020, winter semester 2020–21, summer semester 2021 and winter semester 2021–22 will also not be counted towards your subject semesters when checking against the maximum duration of studies.
- Are you on a sabbatical (leave of absence) and have not yet reached the maximum period of study? Leave semesters do not affect your study progress. The deadlines set out in the examination regulations will continue to apply to you.
- Are you studying a teacher education programme? The Bavarian Ministry of Education has announced special regulations for the First State Examination for teacher education programmes [German content] on its website.
- Are you studying the undergraduate law programme at the University of Passau? The automatic extension for assessment deadlines or the maximum period of study also apply to the preliminary examination in law and the university-set portion of the First Examination in Law.
Yes, they are. Examinations are as of now subject to the 3G rule. For those attending an examination this means that you have to be fully vaccinated or recovered or have a valid, negative test certificate (both PCR and antigen tests are accepted).
The exams forming part of the autumn 2022 state exam session for the teacher education programmes will go ahead as scheduled. Please note that the provisions of the safety and hygiene concepts of the University of Passau also apply in these examinations.
In addition, the Bavarian Ministry of Education has ordered infection control measures. You can find these on the Ministry of Education's website [German content].
As of 1 October 2021, the dissertation/thesis writing periods at all faculties continue as normal; the deadlines are no longer suspended. The Examinations Office has written to students who were affected by the suspension of deadlines to inform them of their new submission deadlines.
For comprehensive information on in-person examinations and the measures put in place to protect candidates and invigilators, visit the Examinations Office website.
Yes, masks must be worn throughout the exam. Candidates are required to wear at least a medical/surgical mask at their desks, although FFP2 masks are recommended. Whether masks need to be worn in the state examination for law has to be decided by the Bavarian Ministry of Justice. This decision will also be applied to the University-set final examinations for the undergraduate law programme.
Yes, unless you are fully vaccinated or have recovered from the illness. The 3G rule is in effect, which means you have to provide a negative test result (PCR or rapid antigen test) to take part in exams if you do not have a full vaccination or convalescence certificate. Digital certificates are accepted.
Our recommendation:
- Check your vaccination/convalescence status in good time before the exam.
- Do a self-test using a home-test kit before each exam just to be safe and protect others at the exam
Please note that you are not allowed to sit exams if you are ill, especially if you are exhibiting symptoms of a respiratory illness. You may exceptionally attend examinations if you can show a current medical certificate (not older than one week) stating that the symptoms are due to a (chronic) illness, e.g. an allergy, hay fever, asthma or similar – and that an infection with the SARS-CoV-2 virus can be ruled out.
Similarly, you are not allowed to attend an exam if you have been in contact with a confirmed covid-19 patient in the 14 days before the exam, unless you have received a booster vaccination.
According to the Corona regulation [German content], all examinations you have registered for count.
Following a motion by the student senator, the Senate resolved in a special meeting on 12 January that examinations taken in the current winter semester 2021–22 are not to be counted if a fail mark is attained ("free examination attempt").
Here is an overview of what you need to bear in mind:
- Examinations are counted as "not attempted" if candidates do not appear for the examination or leave without having completed the exam. Exams that have been given a fail grade or have "not attempted" status fall under the free attempt rule and are not counted towards your degree – which puts candidates in the same situation as though they had never registered for the exam in the first place.
- However: The free-attempt rule does not apply if the candidate received the fail grade due to cheating or plagiarism, in which case the failed exam does count.
- Moreover, you cannot invoke the free attempt rule for an exam that you have passed and the rule only applies to examinations, not dissertations or theses.
- The free attempt rule does not apply to the University-set part of the final examination for the law undergraduate programme (state-examination programme).
Please bear in mind that this rule is still pending approval by the Bavarian education and science ministries and is, until then, provisional.
In order to attend in-person exams and courses this winter semester 2021-22, you can download a certificate.
You can download the commuter certificate here and print it out.
Please note that the certificate is only valid when presented together with your current enrolment certificate for winter semester 2021-22.
For information on the first state examination for a teacher education programme visit the website of the Bavarian Ministry of Education and Cultural Affairs.
Current (pandemic-related) changes in the study and examination schedule of the Faculty of Law for the semester can be found on the web page of the Dean of Studies.
If you notice any symptoms of the common cold (e.g. a cough, runny nose, difficulty breathing, loss of taste or fever), please stay away from the campus and stay home. Contact your GP by telephone. Your GP will discuss the further necessary steps with you (whether to come in for a consultation and testing and, if necessary, reporting to the health authority and self-isolation at home etc.).
Alternatively, phone the national medical hotline. The phone number for advice in German is 116 117, for advice in English, Arabic, Turkish or Russian, please phone 0800 0000837. The medical hotline can tell you where you can see a doctor and where you can get tested for Covid-19.
For information (in German) about PCR testing in Passau, see
For information about doctors' services in English and other languages in Passau, see the Welcome Guide produced by the Welcome Centre.
If you have tested positive for infection with the SARS-CoV-2 virus, please stay away from campus. If you were on campus during the period of infection, please inform the relevant lecturers or your immediate superior. If you additionally report your illness to us via the online self-report form, you give us valuable time in which we can act swiftly to break the chain of infection. We will always treat your information in the strictest confidence.
From that point onwards, the public health authority is in charge of the further procedure. It determines whether contact tracing is to be done. Identifying contact persons is within the remit of the public health authority. The competent health authority also decides on the duration of quarantine or self-isolation.
It is likely that you will be told to self-isolate at home. If you require support during your quarantine or self-isolation, please visit the website of the City of Passau [German content]. Although the page linked to is only available in German, it does provide telephone numbers to the central service hotline of the City of Passau (+49 851 396 877, staffed Mondays to Fridays from 8 a.m. to 12 noon), Edeka markets that deliver groceries to your doorstep, a 'neighbourhood help' initiative ((Nachbarschaftshilfe, phone +49 851 396 236) as well as a meals on wheels (Essen auf Rädern) service.
Get well soon!
The Student Services Association (Studentenwerk Niederbayern/Oberpfalz) (STWNO) has revised and comprehensively supplemented its website with FAQs on BAföG student grants/loans in the covid-19 crisis.
You cannot apply for the stopgap assistance (or interim financial aid), as this BMBF programme, which provided financial support to students in pandemic-related emergency situations, ran out as scheduled on 30 September 2021.
Students from the first semester onwards can apply for the KfW student loan to finance their living expenses. Students in Germany can still apply for the interest-free KfW student loan until 31 December 2021.
The Welfare Office of the Student Services Association (Studentenwerk) is an authorised KfW partner, which means you can have your KfW student loan contract endorsed and your enrolment status confirmed every semester by your local welfare adviser.
Studying often brings many changes. Many of these are beautiful challenges, but sometimes they can overwhelm us. On top of that, the pandemic and its effects can also become a heavy burden – especially if the restrictions associated with the pandemic pose a risk to you or expose you to major economic, social and health uncertainties as a result.
We can help you get through this: professional and confidential counselling is offered by the University's Psychological Counselling Service and the Student Services Association's Psychological Counselling Service.
Share this page 