Visa for seeking a study place (§ 17 Abs. 2 AufenthG) and the route via a Studienkolleg in Berlin
If you do not yet have a study place or admission to a Studienkolleg, but want to travel to Germany to apply or take entrance tests, you need a visa for applying to study (Visum zur Studienbewerbung) under § 17 Abs. 2 AufenthG. The requirements are the school and language prerequisites for university studies – or the clear plan to acquire them during your stay – and secured means of subsistence. According to the law, the permit is valid for up to nine months and entitles you to secondary employment of up to 20 hours per week and to trial employment of up to two weeks in total.
If, on the other hand, you already have an admission – whether directly to a degree program or to a Studienkolleg as a study-preparatory measure – you usually do not need this visa at all: you then apply directly for the residence permit for study under § 16b AufenthG (see topic page "Studying in Berlin"). The study applicant visa is therefore only the intermediate step for everyone who still wants or needs to obtain this admission in Germany.
There are two Studienkollegs in Berlin: the Studienkolleg für die Berliner Universitäten (Studienkolleg for the Berlin universities), jointly run by Freie Universität, Humboldt-Universität, and Charité and based at the FU, and the Internationales Studienkolleg der TU Berlin (International Studienkolleg of TU Berlin) with the focus courses W, M, S/G, and T (the HTW Berlin also cooperates with the TU for its courses T and W). At the end comes the Feststellungsprüfung (assessment examination), which entitles you to apply in the respective subject range at all German universities.
- Check whether you need the visa at allIf you already have admission to a degree program or to a Studienkolleg, apply directly for the residence permit for study under § 16b AufenthG – see the topic page "Studying in Berlin". The visa for applying to study under § 17 Abs. 2 AufenthG is only needed if this admission is still missing.
- Clarify school and language requirementsYou must either already meet the school and language requirements for university studies or plausibly show that you will acquire them during the stay of up to nine months – for example through a study-preparatory language course.
- Prove means of subsistence and apply for the visa at the mission abroadApply for the visa at the German mission abroad responsible for your place of residence; since 13.01.2025, documents for this visa category have been accepted nationwide via the external service provider VFS Global, no longer directly at the embassy. The visa fee is 75 euros (37.50 euros for minors).
- Apply to a Berlin Studienkolleg via uni-assistApply via my.uni-assist.de – according to FU Berlin, only at one of the three supporting universities (FU, HU, or Charité) for the joint Studienkolleg, or directly at TU Berlin for its Studienkolleg. Proof of language skills at B2 level (e.g. DSH-1, TestDaF from level 3) is required for admission to the entrance test.
- Take the entrance testThe entrance test usually takes place in August in Berlin and is used to rank applicants for the limited places; no exemption is provided for.
- After admission: switch to § 16b AufenthGWith admission to the Studienkolleg, your purpose of residence counts as "study" within the meaning of § 16b AufenthG. You apply for the switch to, or first issuance of, this title at the LEA (Landesamt für Einwanderung, State Office for Immigration) at Keplerstraße – details on the topic page "Studying in Berlin".
- After the Studienkolleg: assessment examination and regular study applicationAt the end of the Studienkolleg, which usually lasts one year (lower course and upper course), comes the Feststellungsprüfung, consisting of a subject part and a language part. If you pass it, you can apply regularly for degree programs in your subject range at all German universities.
- The sources evaluated contradict each other on the monthly amount to be proven in the blocked account for this visa: the information sheet of the German embassy/consulate general responsible for Taiwan gives 1,027 euros/month (12,324 euros for 12 months, even though the visa itself is valid only for up to 9 months), while the mission responsible for Mongolia gives 1,091 euros/month (9,819 euros for 9 months); a general look at the current 2026 rate tends to support the 1,091-euro figure as a separate, higher rate specifically for study applicants/Studienkolleg attendees, compared with around 992 euros/month (11,904 euros/year) for already admitted students under § 16b AufenthG (see topic page "Studying in Berlin"). On its central blocked-account page, the Auswärtiges Amt (Federal Foreign Office) expressly confirms that the amount is based on the maximum BAföG rate (federal student aid) but varies depending on the purpose of residence and must be asked for individually at the competent mission abroad – no nationwide uniform, current figure for the study applicant visa is available from the available sources. Check the current amount directly with the mission abroad responsible for you.
- On the right to work while applying to study, an embassy source and the text of the law contradict each other: the information sheet of the German mission responsible for Taiwan states categorically "As a study applicant you may not engage in gainful activity/employment in Germany." The wording of § 17 Abs. 3 Satz 1 AufenthG, by contrast, expressly allows holders of a residence permit "under paragraphs 1 and 2" – i.e. for seeking both a training place and a study place – employment of up to 20 hours per week and trial employment of up to two weeks in total. This contradiction is expressly named here rather than smoothed over; the text of the law is authoritative, but the more restrictive wording of individual embassy information sheets may reflect the actual visa condition in an individual case and should be checked on your own visa sticker or with the issuing mission before travelling.
- Unlike the visa for seeking a training place (§ 17 Abs. 1 AufenthG, age limit 35 there), the text of the law for seeking a study place under § 17 Abs. 2 AufenthG sets no age limit and no fixed requirement on the school-leaving qualification – only "the school and language requirements for taking up studies" or their acquisition during the stay are required. What these requirements specifically are in an individual case (e.g. recognizability of the school-leaving qualification, required pre-examination documentation) is interpreted differently by each mission abroad depending on the country of origin. No confirmed information is available on a nationwide uniform, binding list of these requirements.
- There is slightly differing information on the application deadline at the Berlin Studienkollegs: FU Berlin gives 15 July directly on its own page as the main application deadline for the joint Studienkolleg of the Berlin universities; other, non-official sources on Studienkolleg applications in general (not Berlin-specific) sometimes give 30 June or 15 June for the preceding uni-assist registration. For the specific Berlin deadline of the current application year, the current page of the relevant Studienkolleg should be checked directly.
- On Berlin-specific fees or deadlines for the visa for applying to study itself (§ 17 Abs. 2 AufenthG), no source from the Landesamt für Einwanderung or from service.berlin.de is available – the visa procedure runs entirely via the competent German mission abroad, not via a Berlin authority. The LEA only becomes responsible after admission to a degree program or Studienkolleg, when switching to § 16b AufenthG.
In depth · Legal basis, figures and practice – for counsellors and professionals
§ 17 Abs. 2 AufenthG: visa for applying to study
According to the wording, "a foreigner […] may be granted a residence permit for the purpose of applying to study if 1. he or she has the school and language requirements for taking up studies or these are to be acquired within the period of stay […] and 2. the means of subsistence are secured." The permit is granted for up to nine months. Unlike the structurally similar rule for seeking a training place in § 17 Abs. 1 AufenthG (there among others an age limit of 35, a specifically named school-leaving qualification), paragraph 2 dispenses with an age limit and with a specifically named type of school-leaving qualification; what is required is general "school and language" suitability for studies. Under paragraph 3, the permit under both paragraphs entitles the holder to employment of up to 20 hours per week and to trial employment of up to two weeks in total; a change to another purpose of residence during this stay should as a rule only take place under §§ 16a, 16b or 19c Abs. 2 AufenthG or where there is a statutory entitlement – the legislature has thus expressly designed the transition to the residence permit for study (§ 16b AufenthG) as the intended next step.
Who actually needs this visa
The visa for applying to study is aimed at persons who do not yet have admission to a degree program or a Studienkolleg and want to travel to Germany to apply or take part in selection or admission procedures. Anyone who receives admission before entry – for example because the application to a Berlin Studienkolleg was handled entirely online via uni-assist – often does not need this visa in practice and instead applies directly for the residence permit for study under § 16b AufenthG, which according to the topic page "Studying in Berlin" expressly also covers study-preparatory measures such as the Studienkolleg. The visa for applying to study is thus intended mainly for cases in which admission can or should only be obtained through physical presence in Germany, for example to take part in an entrance test on site.
Studienkollegs in Berlin
There are two Studienkollegs in Berlin. The Studienkolleg für die Berliner Universitäten is jointly run by Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and the Charité and is organizationally located at the FU; applications run via uni-assist and, according to the FU, are made only at one of the three supporting universities. As a rule, a language level of at least B2 is required (e.g. DSH-1 or TestDaF from level 3), ideally C1. According to FU Berlin, the entrance test usually takes place in August in Berlin and serves exclusively to rank applicants for the limited places; no exemption from the test is provided for. Alternatively, the assessment examination can also be taken externally, without attending the Studienkolleg – for this, FU Berlin gives a postal application deadline of 1 March for the 2026 examination year, with a limited number of places.
The Internationales Studienkolleg der Technischen Universität Berlin is legally governed by its own Studienkolleg regulations (regulations of 6 March 2019, officially published in the Amtliches Mitteilungsblatt (official gazette) of TU Berlin Nr. 28/2022). It offers four focus courses: W (economics and social science programs), M (medical and biological programs), S/G (language, humanities, arts, and social science programs), and T (technical, mathematical, and natural science programs except biology). The training usually lasts one year and is divided into a lower course and an upper course; classes are to start on 1 February or 1 September. The Hochschule für Technik und Wirtschaft (HTW, University of Applied Sciences for Engineering and Economics) Berlin has no Studienkolleg of its own, but cooperates with the TU Berlin Studienkolleg for its applicants in the technical (T course) and economics (W course) profiles.
Assessment examination (Feststellungsprüfung)
Both Berlin Studienkollegs conclude with the Feststellungsprüfung, which follows the framework regulations of the Kultusministerkonferenz (Standing Conference of the Ministers of Education) for university access with foreign educational qualifications and consists of a subject part and a language part. A passed assessment examination entitles the holder to apply in the respective subject range at all German universities, not only at the supporting university of the Studienkolleg attended.
Transition to § 16b AufenthG
As soon as admission to a Studienkolleg or degree program exists, the purpose of residence changes to "study" within the meaning of § 16b AufenthG. § 17 Abs. 3 Satz 2 AufenthG expressly provides for this change as the standard case for the transition from applying to study. Details on the period of validity, the blocked-account amount for students already admitted, the LEA location at Keplerstraße, and the 140/280-day side-job rule for students are not the subject of this page and are on the topic page "Studying in Berlin".
Federal law vs. Berlin implementation
§ 17 Abs. 2 and 3 AufenthG and the visa fee of 75 euros apply uniformly nationwide; the visa is applied for exclusively before entry at the competent German mission abroad, since 13.01.2025 with documents accepted via the external service provider VFS Global. Berlin-specific, by contrast, are the two specific Studienkollegs, their supporting universities, focus courses, and application deadlines, and – after successful admission – the responsibility of the LEA at the Keplerstraße location for the residence permit for study.
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