First own accommodation – what students need to know about the licence fee.
Students moving into their first own flat, a shared flat or a student hall of residence at the start of the winter semester 2022/23 may also have to pay the licence fee for ARD, ZDF and Deutschlandradio for the first time.
Regardless of whether you have your own flat or a room in a student hall of residence, you must pay the monthly licence fee of 18.36 euros. Shared flats can share this fee. In this case, only one adult resident must be registered with the contribution service. It is up to the flat-sharing community to decide who is registered. In order to avoid unnecessary double registrations or possible additional payments, it is important to change the registration of one's residence and to notify the contribution service accordingly.
Recipients of BAföG can apply to the Contribution Service for exemption from the obligation to pay licence fees. It is therefore essential to apply for BAföG! Because no matter how much BAföG is granted, the broadcasting fee can be saved.
All information on the broadcasting fee for students as well as answers to the most frequently asked questions on the subject are available at rundfunkbeitrag.de/students. The service is available in both German and English and is thus also aimed at international students.