Months after people working in Germany received a one-off energy relief payment, students can finally begin applications for their 200-euro lump-sum payment. Here is everything you need to know to make a successful online application.
Anyone who is a resident and studying in Germany, whether full-time or part-time, can now begin their application for the long-awaited 200-euro student support payment.
Who is eligible for the payment is relatively straightforward. Students studying at universities, trade, technical and vocational schools in Germany can all apply for the lump-sum payment as long as they were enrolled in their studies on December 1, 2022. This applies to all students in Germany, regardless of whether they have non-EU, EU or German citizenship.
The payment is designed to relieve students amid the rising cost of energy, it is not subject to tax and will not affect any social security benefit payments that some students may receive from the German government. Students are also entitled to the payment regardless of whether they receive BAföG student loans.
In an unusually modern manner, the German government has set up a website where students can now make an application. While the application website opens on March 15, the government is trying to stagger the process so as not to overwhelm the website.
This means that even if you think you are eligible to receive the payment you must wait to receive an access code from your education institution before you can submit your application.
However, if you are eligible, you can already get a head start on your paperwork. It might be a good idea to get your documents in order since your application could take a while to be processed.
If you haven’t already got one, the main task is to set up a BundID-Konto, a “federal user account” that is required for the application, which allows you to use government websites securely. To create a BundID-Konto you must verify your identity with an electronic ID.
Your German residence permit card, German eID or for European citizens, the eID of your home country, are all electronic IDs which can be used to make your BundID-Konto. If you do not have any of these eIDs you can also use your personal ELSTER certificate to verify your identity.
Once you have completed this step you can wait for your access code to arrive. When your code arrives you can log in with your BundID-Konto and complete the online application form. This shouldn’t take more than five minutes to complete, after which you can sit back and wait for the 200 euros to hit your bank account.
Find out more about the application process and FAQs here.
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