In December 2020, the standard period of study was extended due to the coronavirus. Now, students
can also receive retroactive BAföG payments for the 2020/21 winter semester.
In December 2020, the standard period of study was extended due to the coronavirus. Now, students can also receive retroactive BAföG payments for the 2020/21 winter semester. An amendment made to Saxony’s Freedom of Higher Education Act in December 2020 extended the standard period of study for students who were enrolled in the 2020 summer semester and 2020/21 winter semester by one to two semesters. The amendment did not apply to students whose original standard period of study ended before the beginning of the 2020 summer semester. BAföG eligibility was also extended accordingly, as Studentenwerk Leipzig announced.
The Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) has recently further clarified that students whose regular period of study ended in the 2020 summer semester are now eligible to retroactively apply for BAföG for the 2020/21 winter semester. As an exception, students whose regular period of study ended in the 2020 summer semester and who have not yet submitted an application for BAföG or who were late to do so can now apply for and receive retroactive payment of BAföG from the beginning of the 2020/21 winter semester (usually October 2020). Applications must be submitted to Studentenwerk Leipzig’s Department for Grants by no later than 30 April 2021.