Am I eligible to receive parent-independent BAföG?
You are eligible to receive BAföG independent of your parents’ income if you:
- Are older than 29 (30th birthday) at the beginning of this phase of your education;
- Were gainfully active* for 5 years following your 18th birthday prior to the beginning of this phase of your education; or
- At the beginning of this phase of your education, were gainfully active* for 3 years after previously completing a professional training course that lasted for at least 3 years (or were economically active for correspondingly longer for professional training courses of duration shorter than 3 years).
* You are considered gainfully active if you make a living through independent work (e.g. conducting a trade) or through non-independent work (e.g. through employment). Whether an economic activity is deemed gainful will depend on the average monthly gross income in the relevant periods during one calendar year. The reference values are taken from the relevant BAföG needs-based rates for the respective calendar year.
Examples of activities deemed equal to gainful activity that also qualify you to receive parent-independent BAföG include:
- Homemaking for the purpose of parenting a child below the age of 11 that is impaired and dependent on assistance
- Military / Civilian / Federal volunteer service
- Voluntary social/ecological year
- Unemployment where the unemployed person is eligible to receive benefits
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