- Draft bill for the 30th BAföG Amendment presented by the Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR)
- German National Association for Student Affairs (DSW) welcomes the increases in the housing allowance, basic needs allowance and income exemptions, but calls for faster implementation
- DSW Executive Board Chair Matthias Anbuhl: “The direction is right, but we need to move faster”
- Abolition of the academic performance certificate after four semesters will ease the burden on students, higher education institutions and BAföG offices
- Online-only applications will “put an end to the confusion caused by parallel applications submitted on paper, by fax or by email”
- DSW: Implementing BAföG increases during the summer semester will create an immense administrative workload for the BAföG offices operated by the student services organisations
Berlin, 24 July 2026. The German National Association for Student Affairs (DSW) has responded positively overall to the Federal Government’s draft bill for a 30th BAföG Amendment. However, it is calling for faster progress in increasing the housing allowance and aligning the BAföG basic needs allowance with the minimum social security level.
At the same time, the association representing the student services organisations responsible for administering BAföG for students welcomes the proposed measures to simplify administration and strengthen digitalisation. However, because increases are planned twice during summer semesters, the BAföG offices operated by the student services organisations would face an enormous additional workload, the DSW warns.
Matthias Anbuhl, Chair of the DSW Executive Board, commented:
“After months of political uncertainty and waiting, it is an important and positive signal for students that the BAföG reform promised in the coalition agreement is now set to be implemented through this 30th BAföG Amendment and to apply throughout the entire legislative term.
The automatic increase in income exemptions promised in the coalition agreement, as well as the alignment of the BAföG basic needs allowance with the minimum social security level, are now being implemented. This is very good news. It means that BAföG will be increased reliably and regularly, and students receiving BAföG support will finally be treated in the same way as the rest of society.
It is also positive that the draft legislation includes initial measures to simplify administration. These include abolishing the academic performance certificate after the fourth semester and introducing an exclusively digital application process. Both are important steps towards a simpler, more digital and faster BAföG system.
Abolishing the academic performance certificate will ease the burden on three groups at once: students, higher education institutions and the BAföG offices operated by the student services organisations.
Introducing online-only applications will put an end to the confusion caused in practice by parallel applications submitted on paper, by fax or by email—a situation that places an unnecessary burden on both students and student services organisations.
Overall, the direction is right, but we need to move faster.
The housing allowance is currently €380 and is not scheduled to increase to €440 until the 2027 summer semester. That is too late and, given that the average rent for a room in a shared apartment on the private housing market is €512, it is not enough. The allowance must be increased as early as the 2026/2027 winter semester and should subsequently be adjusted regularly in line with the Düsseldorf Table.
Under the Federal Government’s plans, the BAföG basic needs allowance will also not be fully aligned with the minimum subsistence level until the 2029 summer semester. This would mean that, in 2029, the BAföG basic needs allowance would merely reach the level of the minimum social security benefit from 2024. This must happen faster.
Because the Federal Government’s timetable includes several increases taking effect during summer semesters and therefore in the middle of ongoing approval periods, the BAföG offices operated by the student services organisations are likely to have to recalculate and issue hundreds of thousands of notices. In many federal states, these processes have not yet been fully automated.
When federal legislation creates additional administrative work through changes to BAföG, the associated costs must also be covered. Employees in the BAföG offices must not be left alone to deal with the consequences of the reform. Otherwise, the result will be additional pressure and longer processing times—exactly the opposite of what administrative simplification is intended to achieve.”
The German National Association for Student Affairs’ full statement on the 30th BAföG Amendment:
https://www.studierendenwerke.de/aktuelles/stellungnahmen/stellungnahme/stellungnahme-zum-entwurf-eines-dreissigsten-gesetzes-zur-aenderung-des-bundesausbildungsfoerderungsgesetzes-30-bafoegaendg
BMFTR draft bill for the 30th BAföG Amendment:
https://www.bmftr.bund.de/DE/Ministerium/Gesetze/Gesetze-Einzeln/30_Aenderungsgesetz_Baf%C3%B6g.html