Emergency aid for students

Students in need have been able to apply for an interest-free loan from the Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW) since 8 May 2020. The interest rate for the KfW student loan (information in German) will be set to zero for all applicants from 31 May 2020 to 31 March 2021. The interest-free loan can be paid out in instalments of up to 650 euros per month. The loan application is done online. This loan is also available to international students and interest-free in the start-up phase, from July 2020 to March 2021.

To apply for the KfW emergency loan, students can arrange an appointment with the Student Services Association's Welfare Office, under strict compliance with the hygiene rules.

For further information please visit the KfW website (German).

The Student Services Association (information in German) will also be happy to help you with this.

The education loan supports you in financing your secondary or tertiary education.

You can apply for this fixed-term loan from the BVA. This loan has a particularly favourable interest rate. Applicants will be informed in writing of the outcome of their application. If the decision is positive, the BVA will send you an offer from the KfW, who will conclude the loan agreement with you, pay out the instalments and oversee the recovery of the loan.

For further information on the federal government's education loan programme, visit the BVA website (German).

The Darlehenskasse der Bayerischen Studentenwerke e.V. wants to make it easier for students in hardship situations at Bavarian universities to prepare for their exams and to enable them to successfully complete their studies by offering study completion loans ('Studienabschlussdarlehen').

Study completion loans can be granted for up to four semesters, up to a maximum monthly amount of EUR 700, and up to a total amount of EUR 17,000, but only against collateral (usually in the form of a surety bond).

As of summer semester 2020, the funding donor can waive the security for a first study completion loan of up to EUR 3,000.

Further information on the final loan can be found on the website of Darlehenskasse der Bayerischen Studentenwerke e.V. (German)

International students who find themselves in acute financial difficulties and are therefore no longer able to finance their living costs and study expenses can apply for a one-off support payment under the scholarship programme Promotion of Internationalisation (Förderung der Internationalisierung) scholarship programme.

Only students in the 3rd or higher semester are eligible for funding under this emergency programme; it is not available to students in the first two semesters.

Further information and application form.

Hildegardis-Verein grants interest-free loans to female students in a fast-track procedure.

In view of the coronavirus pandemic, the Hildegardis-Verein has launched an emergency aid programme for female students. Applications for the interest-free loans that the association has been granting since its foundation in 1907 are currently being examined and approved in an expedited procedure. The simplified procedure relates to a grant of up to 3,000 euros. 'We aim to deliver swift financial support to female students without too much bureaucracy and also to integrate them into our network', said Charlotte Kreuter-Kirchhof, Chairwoman of the Hildegardis-Verein. All female students who have been granted a loan are given access to a pan-generational women's network and all the services of the Hildegardis-Verein. During the coronavirus crisis, the financial situation for many students has worsened substantially. Many have lost jobs which they needed to cover their living expenses. It is not yet clear when the bridging assistance for students announced by the federal education ministry can be applied for and how it will be implemented. 'With our emergency aid, we are supporting women who are in a financial emergency because of the coronavirus crisis', said Kreuter-Kirchhof, who is a law professor at the University of Düsseldorf.

The Hildegardis-Verein supports women across all disciplines and regardless of nationality. The condition for a loan is that the students belong to a Christian denomination. On the occasion of the special situation caused by the pandemic, the Hildegardis-Verein has extended its existing fast-track procedure.

The application documents for coronavirus emergency aid must include a curriculum vitae, copies of school and degree certificates and enrolment certificates, as well as a completed application form that provides information on financial needs.

For further information, visit the Hildegardis-Verein's website (German).

The Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) is making available 100 million euros to help students in immediate hardship due to the coronavirus pandemic. This assistance is distributed via the student services associations.

You can find the online application form on the website of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research.

The stopgap assistance can be applied for online from June to August 2020 and if approved will be paid for one month. If needed, you can reapply for assistance in the following month. The amount of the stopgap assistance depends on the severity of the financial emergency and ranges from a minimum of EUR 100 to a maximum of EUR 500 per application. If you have provided proof of genuine need, and this has been accepted, the account of the applicant(s) will be topped up to a maximum of EUR 500.

Required documents are a current certificate of enrolment, proof of identity, bank details in Germany, bank statements of recent months for all accounts held, as well as self-declarations about the specific cause of the hardship and the planned successful completion of your studies. If your application is approved, the money should be transferred to your account within one week of the start of processing your application from the end of June onwards.

You are eligible to apply if all of the following is true:

• you are enrolled as a student at a state or state-recognised university
• you are unable to cover your living expenses due to the coronavirus crisis
• any other financial support you receive (e.g. BAföG, scholarships, loans, maintenance payments) is insufficient to see you through this crisis
• Your nationality is not taken into account; the assistance is open to German and international students alike

Applications for the stopgap assistance, which must be made online, are accepted from 12:00 noon on 16 June 2020. For technical reasons, however, applications can only be processed, checked and payments initiated from the end of June onwards.

In the interest of speeding up the process for everyone, we request that you do not write to the Student Services Association to enquire about the processing status of your application. Thank you!

The Student Services Association website holds information about the most pressing questions regarding the stopgap assistance scheme.

BMBF hotline for the stopgap assistance scheme:

Telephone: 0800 26 23 003
E-mail: ueberbrueckungshilfe-studierende@bmbf.bund.de

In times of the coronavirus crisis, students need more advice on jobs and finances than in ordinary times. Our colleagues from the Student Services Association are providing answers to frequently asked questions in their FAQ document.