According to a spokesperson for the Ministry of Education in Berlin on Wednesday, the planned reforms to Bafög (German student financial aid) are scheduled to be discussed by the cabinet on August 12th.
Previously, the Union and the SPD had reached an agreement on increasing the benefits, although the exact timeline remained ambiguous. While the coalition agreement originally targeted the 2026/27 winter semester, subsequent discussions shifted the target date to the 2027 summer semester or perhaps even later.
Apparently, internal disputes within the coalition over the specific details caused friction, meaning the reform, which was originally slated for cabinet discussion in July, has been delayed. On Wednesday, the exact nature of the final legislation was not yet clear, and the spokesperson declined to preempt the cabinet’s decision.
Latest indications detail a plan to raise the housing allowance for students and apprentices who do not live with their parents, increasing it from €380 to €440 per month. Furthermore, the basic subsistence amount for students is set to rise in two stages, moving toward the basic security level: the figure will reach €503 by the 2027/28 winter semester, and further increase to €563 by the 2029 summer semester.
