The new BAföG regulations

Rates will be raised in two stages

As a consequence of the increasing housing costs in university cities, the housing allowance will be raised by 30 percent – from the current 250 EUR to 325 EUR – and the maximum allowance will be raised stepwise, from the current 735 EUR to 861 EUR in 2020.

The “Bedarfssatz” – the figure that determines the actual BAföG-payments, after deducting assets and income – will be raised in two stages, first by 5 percent in 2019 and then by another 2 percent in 2020. The allowances for health and nursing care insurance will be raised as well.

Are you eligible now?

The income levels will be raised too – by 16 percent altogether, in three steps. At the same time, the allowances for deductible assets will be raised from 7,500 EUR to 8,200 EUR in 2020.

Thus, if you weren't eligible for BAföG benefits so far, you might want to check if you are now. The BAföG portal of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research allows you to check online whether you are eligible.

Care and family

Another focus of the new regulations is on care and family. The childcare allowance is raised from 130 EUR to 150 EUR, and children up to 14 years are included. Another new feature is that parents remain eligible even if they have already exceeded the age limit for childcare support. The same applies to caring for relatives.

Repayment

There are also significant changes regarding the repayment. In future, the regular rate of repayment after completing the job training or course of studies will be 130 EUR (instead of 105 EUR). In return, the repayment obligation is limited to a maximum of 77 months – meaning that anyone who has repaid 77 monthly rates of 130 EUR is in any case debt-free, regardless of how high the loan was.

More information:
Federal Ministry of Education and Research: All changes in detail 
The BAföG-Portal – Check and apply online