Do I have to pay the Semesterbeitrag during an Urlaubssemester?

The Leave of Absence Trap

Sometimes, life interrupts your studies.

You might land a massive 6-month full-time internship at Porsche, you might suffer a severe medical illness, or you might need to return to your home country for a semester due to a family emergency.

In Germany, you do not just drop out. You apply for an Urlaubssemester (Leave of Absence).

During an Urlaubssemester, you remain officially enrolled as a student, protecting your visa status, but you are not allowed to take exams or earn credits.

But the invoice still arrives in the mail: Please pay your €350 Semesterbeitrag.

If you aren't attending classes, why do you have to pay? And more importantly, can you get a discount?

The Mandatory Baseline

Even if you are living in India or working full-time in another city during your Urlaubssemester, you are still technically holding a spot at the university.

Because of this, you cannot waive the entire Semesterbeitrag. You are still legally obligated to pay the base administrative fee and the Studierendenwerk (Student Union) fee, which usually amounts to around €50 to €80.

The Massive Refund: The Semesterticket

The good news is that the most expensive part of the Semesterbeitrag—the public transport ticket (Semesterticket), which costs roughly €175—can usually be waived or refunded.

If you can prove that you will not be in the university city during your leave of absence, you can apply for a Semesterticket Befreiung (Exemption).

Common valid reasons for a ticket exemption:

Voluntary Internship: You are doing a 6-month internship in Munich, but your university is in Berlin.

Study Abroad (Erasmus): You are spending the semester at a partner university in Spain.

Severe Illness: You have a doctor's note proving you are bedridden and physically cannot use public transport.

How to Claim the Exemption

You cannot just deduct €175 from your bank transfer.

At almost all universities, you must pay the FULL €350 upfront by the standard deadline to ensure your enrollment is not cancelled.

Then, you must submit a formal refund application (Erstattungsantrag) to the AStA (Student Government) office with proof of your internship or illness. A few weeks later, they will wire the €175 back to your bank account.

Do not let an internship cost you €175 in unused train tickets. Use our Semesterbeitrag Calculator to see exactly how much of your university's fee is tied up in the transit pass so you know how much to request back.