BAföG is the abbreviation for Bundesausbildungsförderungsgesetz. BAföG is the colloquial term for the funding you can receive under this law. You receive this support to finance

• your school attendance or
• under certain conditions, a prescribed internship within the framework of your school attendance.

In order to receive the monthly grant, you must meet a number of requirements. The most important are:

• Your parents and/or spouse/domestic partner do not have a higher income.
• You yourself have no income or only a low income, for example from a "mini-job".
• Your assets are below the exemption amount of EUR 15,000 up to the age of 30 or EUR 45,000 from the age of 30 or only slightly above.
• You are aiming for your school-leaving qualification full-time.
• Age limit: 45 years (exceptions are possible)

The amount of your BAföG is based on a fixed monthly need. Money is deducted from this requirement if your parents, your spouse/life partner or you yourself earn slightly more.

As a student, you receive the financial support as a grant. You do not have to pay anything back.

In principle, if you want to obtain a vocational qualification or a secondary school diploma, you can receive BAföG. However, if you attend a general education school, this only applies from grade 10 and also only if you cannot live at home (for example, because you cannot complete the desired degree nearby).
The monthly requirement for pupils is:

• if you live with your parents:
  • EUR 421.00 if you attend a technical school class, the attendance of which requires completed vocational training, an evening high school or a college,
  • EUR 262.00 if you attend a vocational school or a technical school which you can attend without having completed vocational training, or
  • EUR 474.00 if you attend an evening secondary school, vocational college, evening secondary school or a technical college which you can only attend if you have completed vocational training.
• if you do not live with your parents:
  • A total of EUR 632.00 if you attend a secondary general school, a vocational college or a specialized upper secondary school that you can attend without having completed vocational training, or
  • A total of EUR 736.00 if you attend an evening general school, a vocational college, an evening secondary school or a specialized secondary school that you can only attend if you have completed vocational training.
• If you have a child who is younger than 14 and lives in your household, you will also receive a childcare supplement: EUR 160.00 for each child.

You can also receive BAföG if you spend a year abroad during your schooling. In the case of a stay abroad, supplements to the travel costs for the outward and return journey are granted.

The following amounts are taken into account, i.e. they reduce your BAföG requirement:

• The income of your parents and/or your spouse/life partner in the penultimate year before the start of the grant period, if it is above the tax-free amount. The tax-free amount is:
  • EUR 2,415 if your parents live together,
  • EUR 1,605 per parent if your parents live separately, and
  • EUR 1,605 for a possible spouse/life partner.
  • Note: If your parents or your spouse/life partner currently earn significantly less than in the year before last before approval, you can submit an update application.
  • BAföG independent of parents: Your parents' income will not be taken into account if you
    • have been gainfully employed for five years after reaching the age of 18, or
    • have completed a three-year training program and have been gainfully employed for at least three years thereafter (if you have completed a shorter training program, you will be gainfully employed for a correspondingly longer period).
    • In certain exceptional cases, if you are over 30 years of age at the start of training
• Your own income, if it is more than EUR 520.00 per month.
• Your own assets, as far as they are higher than EUR 15,000 until the age of 30 or higher than EUR 45,000 after the age of 30.

Note: The starting point for calculating income is always the sum of positive income. In the case of training assistance law, this is the gross income less the

• income-related expenses,
• social lump sum and the
• taxes actually paid, including church tax and solidarity surcharge.

Child benefit that your parents receive for you is not counted.

If you attend an evening high school or college, you will receive BAföG independent of your parents. This means that your parents' income is not taken into account in the calculation.

Interns:

BAföG can only support internships that you complete while you are in an education that is eligible for support under BAföG.

Only mandatory internships are eligible for funding. These are internships that are prescribed by your training plan, i.e. that you have to do in order to complete or carry out the training. Compulsory internships that are completed outside the EU are only eligible for funding if they last at least 12 weeks. Compulsory internships within EU member states can also be funded if they are shorter than 12 weeks.