🎓 Wegweiser Students

15 topic pages for students in Germany and for anyone who advises them. Each page first explains the topic briefly and clearly – and below that in detail, with deadlines, legal bases and figures.

How this page works. At the top you can search all topics by keyword. Each topic page begins with the section In brief in plain language. Below it you will find step-by-step guides, the most important deadlines, typical mistakes and a collapsible specialist section "In depth" for advisory work with legal bases and figures.

As of September 2026. Student financing, social insurance and child benefit law change frequently – especially BAföG rates, allowances and insurance contributions. Where a euro amount or a percentage could not be verified beyond doubt against an official primary source, this is expressly marked as uncertain on the relevant page instead of guessed – see also Sources and methodology. The information does not replace legal advice.

Frequently searched

📝 Applying for BAföG ⚖️ BAföG objection and repayment 🩺 Health insurance for students 💼 Part-time jobs and working students 👨‍👩‍👧 Child benefit during studies 🧾 Housing benefit for students 🏠 Housing: student halls and shared flats 📞 Advice and contact points

All topic areas

🧭Overview and basicsGetting started: your rights as a student at a glance.1 topic 📝BAföGApplying for BAföG, objection and repayment.2 topics 💳Other fundingStudent loans, scholarships and funding for study abroad.2 topics 💶Money in everyday lifeChild benefit, housing benefit and part-time jobs.3 topics 🏠Housing and healthHalls of residence, shared flats and health insurance.2 topics 🎓Course of study and special casesLeave semester, dropping out, challenging exam results.3 topics 📉Debt and legal protectionOver-indebtedness and how to get out of it in an orderly way.1 topic 📞Advice and contact pointsWho helps with which issue.1 topic

🧭 Overview and basics

Getting started: your rights as a student at a glance.

🧭Rights and obligations at a glanceWhat it means legally to study in Germany: how BAföG, child benefit, health insurance and housing benefit interact – and where the limits lie.

📝 BAföG

Applying for BAföG, objection and repayment.

📝Applying for BAföGHow to apply for BAföG correctly and preserve the start date – and what the "year before last" principle means for parental income. ⚖️BAföG objection and repaymentYou can lodge an objection against a BAföG notice of decision within one month. After studies, at most half has to be repaid as an interest-free loan – capped and eventually waived.

💳 Other funding

Student loans, scholarships and funding for study abroad.

💳Student loans and scholarshipsWhen BAföG is not enough or is not an option: KfW student loan, Deutschlandstipendium and talent-promotion organisations at a glance. ✈️Semester abroad and fundingBAföG for study abroad, Erasmus+ and supplements for study abroad: how to finance a semester abroad.

💶 Money in everyday life

Child benefit, housing benefit and part-time jobs.

💼Part-time jobs and working studentsHow much you may work alongside your studies without putting BAföG, family insurance or working student status at risk. 👨‍👩‍👧Child benefit during studiesChild benefit is paid during studies until the 25th birthday – but not automatically and not without proof. 🧾Housing benefit for studentsHousing benefit is excluded for most students as long as BAföG would be possible in principle – but there are important exceptions.

🏠 Housing and health

Halls of residence, shared flats and health insurance.

🩺Health insurance for studentsFamily insurance, compulsory student insurance or voluntary membership: which rule applies until when. 🏠Housing: student halls and shared flatsNo separate student tenancy law, but ordinary BGB tenancy law with a few special features for shared flats, furnished rooms and halls of residence.

🎓 Course of study and special cases

Leave semester, dropping out, challenging exam results.

🛌Leave semester and illnessA leave semester formally interrupts your studies – what that means for BAföG, health insurance and child benefit. 🔄Dropping out and reorientationDropping out of studies is not a legal failure, but it has consequences for BAföG, child benefit and health insurance that you have to sort out actively. 📋Challenging exam results and compensation for disadvantagesYou can take action against a failed exam – and if you have a disability or chronic illness, you are entitled to compensation for disadvantages.

📉 Debt and legal protection

Over-indebtedness and how to get out of it in an orderly way.

📉Debt and over-indebtednessOverdraft, student loan and unexpected BAföG reclaim: how over-indebtedness arises during studies and where to find free help.

📞 Advice and contact points

Who helps with which issue.

📞Advice and contact pointsWho is responsible for what – and where can you get independent support if you are getting nowhere with the BAföG office, landlord or examinations office?

For reference

📕Keyword indexAll terms from A to Z, with links to the matching topic pages. 📜Sources and methodWhere the information comes from and what is expressly uncertain. 🏠Other target groupsTo the overview of all Wegweiser portals.

A question about your situation that this page does not answer? Write to us or use the contact form – we will tell you which office is responsible and what to bring. Free of charge, without individual legal advice.