Funding and Costs

During your stay abroad at a Viadrina partner university in another European country, you will receive an Erasmus+ mobility grant. It is not possible to apply directly to the EU for an Erasmus+ mobility grant. The financial support for Erasmus+ student stays is based on the different costs of living in the destination countries (‘programme countries’).

Amount of the Erasmus+ Mobility Grant 2026/27

The Erasmus+ mobility grant consists of:

(1) Funding grant per country group
(2) If applicable: additional funding with a Social Top-Up
(3) Travel grant
(4) If applicable: additional funding for travel days

The calculation is made on a day-by-day basis (30 days = 1 month). It is based on the data confirmed by your partner university in the Letter of Stay and the Grant Agreement.

The funding is usually paid out in two instalments:

• approx. 70% upon arrival and submission of the Letter of Stay – Arrival
• approx. 30% upon return and full submission of all Erasmus+ documents

In the case of a two-semester mobility period (e.g. double degree), the funding is paid out in three instalments. The first instalment therefore comprises approx. 30% of the full mobility grant.

If you participate in a preparatory language course at the partner university beforehand, it can also be funded within the Erasmus+ funding grants listed below. The requirement is confirmation of the duration (Letter of Stay or certificate of participation) and that the course takes place no more than 1–2 months before the mobility.

(1) Funding Grant by Country Group

Country group 1
Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, United Kingdom, and partner country the United Kingdom

• WITHOUT Social Top-Up: €600 / month (€20 / day)
• WITH Social Top-Up: €850 / month (€28.33 / day)

Country group 2 & 3
Estonia, Greece, Latvia, Malta, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, the Czech Republic, Cyprus & Bulgaria, Croatia, Lithuania, North Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Turkey, Hungary

• WITHOUT Social Top-Up: €540 / month (€18 / day)
• WITH Social Top-Up: €790 / month (€26.33 / day)

(2) If Applicable: Additional Funding with a Social Top-Up

The Social Top-Up is offered to students with fewer opportunities. You will receive an additional: €250 per month (see funding grant WITH Social Top-Up above).

You are eligible if you belong to one of the following groups:

• First-time academics (no parents or caregivers with a university degree)
• Students with child(ren) (at least one child accompanies you throughout your stay)
• Students with disability or chronic illness (from 20% GdB or with proven additional financial needs abroad)
  
  

Application for Actual Costs (Realkostenantrag)

Students with disability or chronic illness or stays abroad with a child also have the option of submitting a application for actual costs (Realkostenantrag) to the DAAD via Viadrina. Further information can be found on the DAAD website. The maximum funding up to €15,000 per mobility period.

(3) Travel Grant

• The calculation is carried out using the distance calculator of the European Commission and is based on the distance between the European University Viadrina Frankfurt (Oder) and your partner university.
• The amounts specified apply as a one-time total for the outward and return journey.

Travel Distance     Standard Travel     Green Travel 
10 to 99 km                       €28                     €56
100 to 499 km                  €211                   €285
500 to 1999 km                €309                   €417
2000 to 2999 km              €395                   €535
3,000 to 3,999 km            €580                   €785
4,000 to 7,999 km          €1,188                €1,188 
8,000 km or more          €1,735                 €1,735 

Green Travel (Sustainable Travel)

• ‘Green Travel’ applies if you use at least half (50% or more) sustainable means of transport, e.g. train, buses, bicycle or carpooling. Travel by ship is only green, if combined with green means of transport or if no green alternatives are available. (Flying is not considered green travel, even if you compensate CO2 emissions). 
• With Green Travel, you receive higher travel grants and possibly also more additional travel days.

We would like to encourage you to choose sustainable travel options. Of course, journey times by train and bus are sometimes significantly longer than when travelling by air. On the other hand, you won’t need a luggage scale and you’ll have the opportunity to break your journey into stages, allowing you to get to know the places between our university and your host institution.

Further information:

Interrail Pass for Erasmus+
Erasmus by Train
Night train map
The train travel guide by the “Man in Seat 61”
DAAD brochure “Climate-friendly travel”
Green Erasmus Portal
Sustainability Dossier – on the “Studieren weltweit” blog (only in German)

Exceptional Costs for Expensive Travel

• Exceptional travel costs may be funded if it can be demonstrated that the standard travel grant covers less than 70% of the actual costs.
• In this case, up to 80% of the actual travel costs may be covered.
• If approved, the standard travel grant does not apply.

(4) If Applicable: Additional Funding for Travel Days

Funding is granted at the daily rate for your country group.

• Standard Travel: max. 2 additional travel days
• Green Travel: max. 6 additional travel days

You will receive this only in the case of a longer journey time (more than 10 hours each way for the outward and return journey separately).

Amount of the Erasmus+ mobility grant 2025/26

• The Erasmus+ mobility grant consists of:
  (1) Funding rates per country group
  (2) Social Top-Up funding, where applicable
  (3) The travel allowance
  (4) Additional travel funding, where applicable
• You will receive the mobility grant on a daily basis for each semester abroad (one month corresponds to 30 days). The funding rates per country group are calculated based on the date confirmed by the partner university on the “Letter of Stay” (Confirmation of Arrival and Departure) and the terms of the Grant Agreement.
• In addition, there are top-ups for participants with fewer opportunities ("Social Top-Up") and for additional travel days. To receive the top-ups, you must complete declarations of honour.
• You will receive your Erasmus+ mobility grant in two instalments. The first instalment, amounting to approximately 70% of your grant, will be transferred to you within approximately 4 weeks of submitting the confirmation of arrival in the Letter of Stay. A second instalment will be paid to you upon your return, as soon as all Erasmus+ documents have been submitted in full. Students going abroad for an academic year (e.g. for a double degree) will receive their Erasmus+ mobility grant in three instalments. The first instalment therefore comprises approximately 30% of the full mobility grant.

(1) Grant rates by country group (2) with and without Social Top-Up

Countries with a higher cost of living:
Country group 1: Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Ireland, Iceland, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden.
Funding rates WITHOUT Social Top-Up: 600 EUR / month (20 EUR / day)
Funding rates WITH Social Top-Up: 850 EUR / month (28.33 EUR / day)

Countries with medium and low living costs:
Country group 2 & 3: Estonia, Greece, Latvia, Malta, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Czech Republic, Cyprus, Bulgaria, Croatia, Lithuania, North Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Turkey, Hungary.
Funding rates WITHOUT Social Top-Up: 540 EUR/month (18 EUR/day)
Funding rates WITH Social Top-Up: 790 EUR/month (26.33 EUR/day)

Participants with fewer opportunities (those eligible for the Social Top-Up) receive an additional: 250 EUR/month (see Table 1 with the funding rates WITH Social Top-Up above). This includes:

• Students with a disability or chronic illness
  with a GdB of 20% or higher, a verified disability or a chronic illness (these may be physical or chronic mental health conditions), both of which entail additional financial needs whilst abroad.
• Students with child(ren)
  At least one child is taken along for the entire duration of the stay abroad. The top-up amount is independent of the number of children.
• First-generation university students
  Neither parent nor guardian holds a degree from a university or university of applied sciences (this also includes comparable qualifications from vocational academies and foreign degrees not recognised in Germany, see the Hochschulkompass internet portal and the website of the Accreditation Council Foundation).
• Working students
  The employment must have been carried out for at least 6 consecutive months in connection with the mobility period. The period of employment must fall within a six-month window prior to the application deadline or the start date of the mobility period. The employment must have taken place during this period:
  
  • Stay abroad in the winter semester: 1 December of the previous year to 31 July of the year spent abroad
  • Stay abroad in the summer semester: 1 December of the year before last to 1 January of the year spent abroad
  The activity or activities in the host country are not continued during the stay abroad (this also includes remote working, online work, paid leave, etc.). Termination of the contract is not a prerequisite; the employment contract may also be suspended. During the minimum period of employment prior to application, monthly earnings must be between €450 and €850 (total net earnings from all activities per month). Exceptions are generally made for self-employed work and dual/part-time study courses with a fixed salary.

(3) Travel allowance

The amounts stated apply as a one-off total for your outward and return journey. The basis for calculation is the distance between the European University Viadrina and the partner university. This is determined using the European Commission’s distance calculator (Start: Frankfurt (Oder) – End: City of the partner university):

Travel distance Standard journey Green Travel
10–99 km 28 EUR 56 EUR
100–499 km 211 EUR 285 EUR
500 to 1999 km 309 EUR 417 EUR
2000 to 2999 km 395 EUR 535 EUR
3,000 to 3,999 km 580 EUR 785 EUR
4,000 to 7,999 km 1,188 EUR 1,188 EUR
8,000 km or more 1,735 EUR 1,735 EUR

(4) Additional travel allowance where applicable

For standard journeys: max. 2 additional travel days and for green travel: max. 6 additional travel days at the respective daily rate for the country group (see Table 1 with the funding rates above). This applies only in the case of longer journey times (more than 10 hours each for the outward and return journeys separately).

Standard travel means that the majority of the journey (more than 50% of the outward and return journeys) is undertaken, for example, by plane or car (excluding carpooling).

Green travel means that low-emission modes of transport are used for the majority of the journey (more than 50% of the outward and return journeys), e.g. train, carpooling, bus or bicycle. (Air travel is not considered a sustainable mode of transport, even if CO2 emissions are offset).

Exceptional travel expenses may also be reimbursed if it can be demonstrated that the standard travel allowance covers less than 70% of the actual costs.
In this case, up to 80% of the actual travel costs may be covered.
If approved, the standard travel allowance will not apply.

This offer is only open to students who have been selected for an exchange with one of the Erasmus+ KA171 partner universities.

• Stays abroad of up to 5 months can be funded for Bachelor's and Master's students as well as doctoral students from all Faculties.
• The funding amounts to EUR 700 per month. There is also a travel allowance of EUR 275, EUR 360 or EUR 820, depending on the distance.

You will receive further information after selecting one of the partner universities.

Coordinator Erasmus+ KA171: Ana Retsch

If at least 50% of the journey is made using “green” or low-emission means of transport, the travel grant may be increased. “Green Travel” refers to trips where environmentally friendly modes of transport are used for the majority of the distance—for example train, bus, bicycle, or carpooling.

The calculation is carried out using the distance calculator of the EU Commission, based on the distance between the European University Viadrina Frankfurt (Oder) and your partner university.
The amounts indicated apply once in total for your round trip. Further information.

Information on additional funding for travel days
You will receive this only if your travel time is longer (more than 10 hours each for the outbound and return journey separately).
The reimbursement corresponds to the daily rate of your country group.
Standard travel: max. 2 additional travel days
Green Travel: max. 6 additional travel days

The Erasmus+ programme promotes equal opportunities and inclusion. For this reason, the programme provides additional funding instruments:

Participants with fewer opportunities (eligible for the Social Top-Up) receive an additional €250 per month (see the PDF with the funding rates INCLUDING Social Top-Up above). This applies to:

• Students with a disability or chronic illness
  from GdB 20%, a proven disability or a chronic illness (this can be physical as well as chronic mental illness) both with additional financial needs abroad.
• Students with child(ren)
  At least one child is taken along during the entire stay abroad. Top Up amount does not depend on the number of children.
• First-time graduates
  Both parents or caregivers do not have an academic degree from a university or university of applied sciences (this also includes comparable degrees from vocational academies and foreign degrees that are not recognised in Germany, see the Internet portal Hochschulkompass and the website of the Accreditation Council Foundation). .
• Employed students
  The employment must have been exercised continuously for at least 6 months with a temporal reference to the mobility. The period of employment must be within a time window of 6 months before the application deadline or the time of the start of the mobility. The activity must have taken place during this period:
• Stay abroad in the winter semester: 1 December of the previous year to 31 July of the year abroad
• Stay abroad in the summer semester: 1 December of the year before last to 1 January of the year abroad
The activity/activities in the sending country will not be continued during the stay abroad (this also includes mobile working, online working, paid leave, etc.). Cancellation is not a prerequisite; the employment contract can also be paused. During the minimum period of employment prior to application, monthly earnings must be above EUR 450 and below EUR 850 (net earnings from all activities per month added together). As a rule, self-employed activities and dual/part-time degree programmes with a fixed salary are excluded.

Further information on inclusion and participation as well as contact persons can be found here.

Who is the scholarship for?

1. For Bachelor's and Master's students at Viadrina who wish to spend one semester studying at one of our partner universities outside Europe; in particular for students who wish to spend a semester abroad for the first time or who have to complete a compulsory semester abroad.
2. For students on masters theses who would like to spend a semester abroad outside Europe to complete their final thesis.
3. Students on Bachelor's and Master's degree programmes who wish to complete an internship in a non-EU country related to their studies; you can find more information on the pages of the Career Center.

What are the requirements?

1. You must be verifiably enrolled in a Viadrina degree programme and have the goal of completing a degree here.
2. The PROMOS scholarship is merit-based, so you can only be funded if you have an average grade point average of better than 2.5 - for law students: better than 9 points.
3. Scholarships for the preparation of final theses are not intended for participation in courses at a university. It is only possible to apply for such a scholarship if the award of the final thesis has been confirmed and the confirmation of the supervisor or contact person abroad has been received.
4. You must complete at least 2 courses at the partner university that are recognised for ECTS credits
5. Please contact us to find out about the possibilities of combining a PROMOS scholarship with other scholarships - contact person: Claudia Casiano.

What does the scholarship include?

1. A monthly scholarship of usually EUR 350 is provided for study visits; the scholarship is paid for a maximum of 4 months, even if the stay abroad lasts longer. If you have already received a PROMOS scholarship, you can receive the scholarship for a maximum of 2 more months, as the maximum total funding period is 6 months.
2. A monthly scholarship is provided for internships; the scholarship is paid for a maximum of three months (even if the stay abroad lasts longer).
3. A one-off payment of a lump sum for travel expenses is provided for stays for the preparation of masters theses, the amount of which is determined by the DAAD guidelines.

Which documents must be submitted for the application?

1. Application form.
2. Letter of motivation; please explain your motivation for applying for a PROMOS scholarship.
3. Acceptance letter from foreign university; can be submitted later.
4. If you want to write your masters thesis abroad, please add the following:

• a confirmation of the award of the final thesis,
• a confirmation from the supervisor or contact person abroad,
• an expert opinion from the supervising professor at Viadrina,
• a timetable

1. Current transcript of records
2. Certificate of enrolment
3. Language certificate.
4. Copy of identity card or passport.
5. Notification of other grants or BAföG notification, if applicable.
6. Bachelor's degree certificate; only applies to Master's students.

Application deadline:

During the year, several application deadlines are listed here. This application is only for the winter semester 2026/27. The application period is between 18.05.2026 - 14.06.2026.
Please send this application form together with the relevant documents in one PDF to outgoing@europa-uni.de by 14.06.2026 23:59. For details of the PROMOS programme, please contact us - contact person: Claudia Casiano

The scholarship

Under the programme for "Integrated International Double Degree Programmes", Bachelor students from the Faculty of Business Administration and Economics who wish to spend one year at Universidad Católica de Córdoba, Argentina as part of the double degree programme, are eligible to apply for a full scholarship including travel allowance and health insurance subsidy.

Call for applications

The current call for applications

Important: Only available until the winter semester 2025.

Variants

10 months in the summer semester 2025 and winter semester 2025 (March - December 2025)

Financing

• Travel allowance of 1,875.00 euros as a one-off payment
• Monthly scholarship instalment of 1,150.00 euros
• Monthly insurance lump sum of 35.00 euros

Application requirements

Enrolment in the Bachelor's degree programme "International Business Administration" or "Internationale Betriebswirtschaftslehre"
Proof of sufficient knowledge of Spanish at least at level B1 of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages.

Application documents

• CV
• Letter of motivation
• Grade overview; grade point average of at least 2.5
• Proof of language skills
• Certificate of enrolment

Please send all documents in full as a PDF to outgoing@europa-uni.de.

We will be happy to answer any questions you may have!

Contact person: Claudia Casiano

For Master European Studies with Istanbul Bilgi University/Turkey:

Amount of funding:

One-off travel allowance of €225, health insurance allowance of €35/month (for max. 10 months), residence allowance of €775/month (for max. 10 months).

Application requirements:

• Enrolled student of the Master European Studies programme.
• A minimum of 2 completed semesters at the time of departure
• English language skills at B2 level.

Contact person: Ruth Geiger

Funding under the German Federal Training Assistance Act (BAföG) is a state grant that depends on the fulfilment of certain requirements (e.g. nationality, age, aptitude, income). Current regulations can be found on the website BAföG abroad.

Look for answers to the following questions:

• When am I entitled to BAföG for studying abroad?
• Where is the BAföG office responsible for me (depending on the country, a different BAföG office is responsible)?
• What deadlines have to be met?
• How is the stay abroad counted towards the total funding period?
• What supplements can I receive in addition to BAföG?

Note: Even if you are not entitled to BAföG in Germany, this does not exclude your entitlement to BAföG abroad, as the calculation basis is different. You can use the BAföG calculator to estimate your possible funding by entering your respective destination country in the calculator.

Taking out an "educational loan" is another way to finance your studies abroad. Educational loans are offered at relatively favourable conditions for financing educational projects. Further information on the federal government's education loan can be found on the website of the Federal Office of Administration.

There are numerous scholarship-awarding organisations, foundations, etc. that support stays abroad. Each of these organisations has its own application procedure and selection critera. The main criteria are professional qualifications and personal suitability. These often have to be proven by academic performance records, reports from university lecturers and a description of the study or research stay. Deadlines must also be met here, some of which are much earlier than the planned period of study abroad.

Note: Double funding is often not possible! You often cannot receive funding for a stay abroad from more than one scholarship-awarding organisation at the same time. There are certain exceptions for BAföG and EU grants. The Deutschlandstipendium scholarship can also be combined to a certain extent.

Examples of scholarship-awarding organisations and other sources of information:

• Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst (DAAD): The deadlines for applying for DAAD scholarships depend on the type of scholarship and the destination country. Please find out about DAAD scholarships as early as possible, as the application deadlines are very early. You can find more information on the DAAD scholarship pages.
• Down Under Study Grant from the Ranke-Heinemann Institute Study Foundation: A grant of 10% towards tuition fees for Australian and New Zealand universities (only for self-organised stays abroad).
• Eidam & partners: Eidam & partners award scholarships for stays abroad to Master's students regardless of the destination country.
• European Scholarship Database: The Initiative for Transparent Study Funding (ItS) initiated the European Scholarship Database with the European Funding Guide.
• Fulbright Commission: The Fulbright Commission awards scholarships for study visits to the USA. Nicole Klück is the contact person at the Viadrina and is responsible for the application. Please check the Fulbright Commission website regularly, as there are always different scholarships with different deadlines.
• GFPS e.V.: The GFPS e.V. awards scholarships to German students and doctoral candidates who are interested in a semester stay at a Polish or Czech university or a semester language course in Poland.
• GoEuro scholarship: GoEuro is giving away ten scholarships worth €2,000 each. You can find more information on the website.
• Mawista Scholarship: The scholarship for studying abroad with a child.
• Mystipendium: You can also find extensive information on scholarship opportunities on the website of mystipendium.de.
• National Scholarship Programme of the Slovak Republic: You can also find extensive information on scholarship opportunities on the scholarships.sk website.
• Scholarships Times: On the pages of Scholarships Times you will find information on international scholarships for students in all fields as well as doctoral candidates all over the world.
• Foundations: On the website of the Association of German Foundations you will find information on funding from various foundations.
• Scholarship database: The ScholarshipPortal website provides information on various scholarship programmes worldwide.
• Studienstiftung des Deutschen Volkes: Scholarship programme "Metropolises in Eastern Europe".
• Study Advisory Scholarships: Scholarships for study and internships abroad.
• StudyPortals Scholarship: Motivational scholarship for stays abroad.
• Vacasol Global Engagement Scholarship: Five scholarships of 1,000 euros each in 2021 for a stay abroad. You can only apply online. Applicants can find out more and download the application form here.
• Full scholarships from the Ranke-Heinemann Institute Study Foundation: The funding covers tuition fees for one semester at Australian and New Zealand universities. Funding is available for Bachelor's and Master's students as well as doctoral candidates. Applicants who are supervised by the Ranke-Heinemann Institute and enrolled at an Australian or New Zealand university have the opportunity to win a travel grant.
• ZEIT-Stiftung Ebelin und Gerd Bucerius: "Arnold Heidsieck Scholarships" for one or two-semester study visits to US universities. The scholarships are aimed at BA students in the humanities whose studies focus on German culture, language, history, music or art.
• China Scholarship Program of the Studienstiftung: The China Scholarship Program is aimed at students of all subjects with or without previous experience of China and with a substantial interest in the People's Republic of China. It offers them the opportunity to acquire in-depth knowledge of the Chinese language and society as well as the university and scientific landscape during a one-year language and study stay. Applications for the one-year study visit, which begins in September 2026, are open until October 1, 2025.