Erasmus+ Study Abroad
The application and selection for Erasmus+ take place through the faculties, usually via the Centers for International Relations (ZIBs) or departmental coordinators. There, you can obtain information regarding deadlines, partner universities, and required documents.
The partner universities within the Erasmus+ program are managed independently by the respective ZIBs or departments.
After a successful placement, you will be nominated at the partner university and must formally enroll there. Details regarding this process will be sent directly by the host institution. The ZIB or departmental colleagues will also provide you with orientation information.
Here you can find experience reports from former Erasmus students.
Funding rates for the 26/27 academic year
If you have any questions regarding your nomination at the host university and the Online Learning Agreement, please contact the responsible departmental colleagues in the faculties from whom you received the approval for an Erasmus+ exchange place.
Funding Rates
The following funding rates apply to the winter semester 2026/27 and the summer semester 2027:
| Groups | Countries | Funding Rates | Grant amount/duration Semester abroad (3 months/90 days x funding rate)* | Grant amount/duration Academic year abroad (6 months/180 days x funding rate)* |
| 1 | Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Ireland, Iceland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Netherlands,Norway, Sweden, United Kingdom | 600 EUR/month, or 20 EUR/day | 1,800 EUR | 3,600 EUR |
| 2 | Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Latvia, Malta, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain | 540 EUR/month, or 18 EUR/day | 1,620 EUR | 3,240 EUR |
| 3 | Bulgaria, Croatia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, North Macedonia, Serbia, Turkey, Hungary | 540 EUR/month, or 18 EUR/day | 1,620 EUR | 3,240 EUR |
* For stays under 90 days (1 semester) or 180 days (2 semesters), funding is paid based on the exact number of days.
Travel Allowances
Starting from the 2025/26 academic year, travel allowances based on linear distance* will be paid to all students participating in long-term mobility:
Travel Distance | Standard Travel | Green Travel |
|---|---|---|
| 10 to 99 KM | 28 EUR | 56 EUR |
| 100 to 499 KM | 211 EUR | 285 EUR |
| 500 to 1999 KM | 309 EUR | 417 EUR |
| 2000 to 2999 KM | 395 EUR | 535 EUR |
| 3000 to 3999 KM | 580 EUR | 785 EUR |
| 4000 to 7999 KM | 1,188 EUR | 1,188 EUR |
| 8000 KM and more | 1,735 EUR | 1,735 EUR |
* Cologne - destination of the stay abroad, according to the EU Distance Calculator
Travel Days
In addition, funding for travel days is paid (travel day = daily rate of the funding rate):
Type of Travel | Paid Travel Days |
|---|---|
Standard means of transport (e.g., airplane/car/ferry) | 2 days |
Sustainable means of transport (e.g., bus/train/carpooling/bicycle) | Distance up to 499 km to destination: 2 days Distance from 500 km to destination: 4 days |
For a sustainable journey, the entire route—meaning the complete outward and return journey to and from the destination of the stay abroad—must be traveled using sustainable means of transport.
Social Top-Ups
Furthermore, the following additional funding can be requested:
Social Top-up for
(1.) Students with a chronic illness/GdB (degree of disability) of at least 20
(2.) Students carrying out their stay abroad with child(ren)
(3.) First-generation students (parents without a university degree)
(4.) Working students
The groups mentioned above can apply for a top-up of 250 EUR/month in addition to the Erasmus+ scholarship mentioned above. The Social Top-up is calculated analogously to the funding period.
The Social Top-ups cannot be combined with each other; meaning that even if you belong to two of the social groups mentioned above, we can only pay out the top-up once.
Criteria for Social Top-ups:
1.) Students with a chronic illness / degree of disability (GdB) of at least 20
- The chronic illness or impairment (on which the GdB is based) leads to additional costs caused by the stay abroad (e.g., purchasing medication abroad).
- Neither the type of illness nor the specific GdB level needs to be stated.
- Possible supporting documents (e.g., a medical certificate confirming the additional financial requirement) only need to be submitted upon request by Department 93.
2.) Students carrying out their stay abroad with child(ren)
- The students are accompanied by at least one child during the stay abroad.
- The amount of the Social Top-up is independent of the number of children; meaning that if two children travel with you for the semester abroad, only 250 EUR/month will still be granted.
- Students can also apply for the Social Top-up if they are accompanied by their partner. If the partner also receives an Erasmus+ scholarship, the Social Top-up can only be applied for by one person.
- Possible supporting documents (e.g., birth certificate or travel documents of the child) only need to be submitted upon request by Department 93.
3.) Students from a non-academic family background (First-generation students)
- Neither parent/guardian has obtained a degree from a university or university of applied sciences.
- Degrees obtained abroad by parents/guardians count as academic degrees—even if they are not recognized in Germany. If this is the case, students cannot apply for the Social Top-up.
- Possible supporting documents (e.g., informal declarations from the respective parent) only need to be submitted upon request by Department 93.
4.) Students who are employed
- The students must have worked continuously in an employment relationship for at least six months prior to commencing their mobility.
- During this employment, the students must have earned an average of at least 450 EUR and a maximum of 850 EUR per month (net income).
- The employment period may end no more than two months before the start of the mobility. Example: Start of mobility on October 15, 2026. The employment relationship may end no earlier than August 15, 2026, so that a temporal connection to the mobility is maintained.
- The work will not be continued during the stay abroad; meaning that the activity will not be continued online from the host country, but will be paused instead. A formal resignation is not required!
- Possible supporting documents (e.g., payslips, tax returns) only need to be submitted upon request by Department 93.
Funding rates for the 25/26 academic year
If you have any questions regarding your nomination at the host university and the Online Learning Agreement, please contact the responsible departmental colleagues in the faculties from whom you received the approval for an Erasmus+ exchange place.
Funding Rates
The following funding rates apply to the winter semester 2025/26 and the summer semester 2026:
| Groups | Countries | Funding Rates | Grant amount/duration Semester abroad (3.5 months/105 days x funding rate)* | Grant amount/duration Academic year abroad (7 months/210 days x funding rate)* |
| 1 | Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Ireland, Iceland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, United Kingdom | 600 EUR/month, or 20 EUR/day | 2,100 EUR | 4,200 EUR |
| 2 | Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Latvia, Malta, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain | 540 EUR/month, or 18 EUR/day | 1,890 EUR | 3,780 EUR |
| 3 | Bulgaria, Croatia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, North Macedonia, Serbia, Turkey, Hungary | 540 EUR/month, or 18 EUR/day | 1,890 EUR | 3,780 EUR |
* For stays under 105 days (1 semester) or 210 days (2 semesters), funding is paid based on the exact number of days.
Travel Allowances
Starting from the 2025/26 academic year, travel allowances based on linear distance* will be paid to all students participating in long-term mobility:
Travel Distance | Standard Travel | Green Travel |
|---|---|---|
| 10 to 99 KM | 28 EUR | 56 EUR |
| 100 to 499 KM | 211 EUR | 285 EUR |
| 500 to 1999 KM | 309 EUR | 417 EUR |
| 2000 to 2999 KM | 395 EUR | 535 EUR |
| 3000 to 3999 KM | 580 EUR | 785 EUR |
| 4000 to 7999 KM | 1,188 EUR | 1,188 EUR |
| 8000 KM and more | 1,735 EUR | 1,735 EUR |
* Cologne - destination of the stay abroad, according to the EU Distance Calculator
Travel Days
In addition, funding for travel days is paid (travel day = daily rate of the funding rate):
Type of Travel | Paid Travel Days |
|---|---|
Standard means of transport (e.g., airplane/car/ferry) | 2 days |
Sustainable means of transport (e.g., bus/train/carpooling/bicycle) | Distance up to 499 km to destination: 2 days Distance from 500 km to destination: 4 days |
For a sustainable journey, the entire route—meaning the complete outward and return journey to and from the destination of the stay abroad—must be traveled using sustainable means of transport.
Social Top-Ups
Furthermore, the following additional funding can be requested:
Social Top-up for
(1.) Students with a chronic illness/GdB (degree of disability) of at least 20
(2.) Students carrying out their stay abroad with child(ren)
(3.) First-generation students (parents without a university degree)
(4.) Working students
The groups mentioned above can apply for a top-up of 250 EUR/month in addition to the Erasmus+ scholarship mentioned above. The Social Top-up is calculated analogously to the funding period.
The Social Top-ups cannot be combined with each other; meaning that even if you belong to two of the social groups mentioned above, we can only pay out the top-up once.
Criteria for Social Top-ups:
1.) Students with a chronic illness / degree of disability (GdB) of at least 20
- The chronic illness or impairment (on which the GdB is based) leads to additional costs caused by the stay abroad (e.g., purchasing medication abroad).
- Neither the type of illness nor the specific GdB level needs to be stated.
- Possible supporting documents (e.g., a medical certificate confirming the additional financial requirement) only need to be submitted upon request by Department 93.
2.) Students carrying out their stay abroad with child(ren)
- The students are accompanied by at least one child during the stay abroad.
- The amount of the Social Top-up is independent of the number of children; meaning that if two children travel with you for the semester abroad, only 250 EUR/month will still be granted.
- Students can also apply for the Social Top-up if they are accompanied by their partner. If the partner also receives an Erasmus+ scholarship, the Social Top-up can only be applied for by one person.
- Possible supporting documents (e.g., birth certificate or travel documents of the child) only need to be submitted upon request by Department 93.
3.) Students from a non-academic family background (First-generation students)
- Neither parent/guardian has obtained a degree from a university or university of applied sciences.
- Degrees obtained abroad by parents/guardians count as academic degrees—even if they are not recognized in Germany. If this is the case, students cannot apply for the Social Top-up.
- Possible supporting documents (e.g., informal declarations from the respective parent) only need to be submitted upon request by Department 93.
4.) Students who are employed
- The students must have worked continuously in an employment relationship for at least six months prior to commencing their mobility.
- During this employment, the students must have earned an average of at least 450 EUR and a maximum of 850 EUR per month (net income).
- The employment period may end no more than two months before the start of the mobility. Example: Start of mobility on October 15, 2025. The employment relationship may end no earlier than August 15, 2025, so that a temporal connection to the mobility is maintained.
- The work will not be continued during the stay abroad; meaning that the activity will not be continued online from the host country, but will be paused instead. A formal resignation is not required!
- Possible supporting documents (e.g., payslips, tax returns) only need to be submitted upon request by Department 93.
International Housing Portal
Are you spending a semester abroad and would like to rent out your apartment or room (in a shared flat) during this time to Erasmus students coming to the University of Cologne? Feel free to check out the International Housing Portal!
Documents to download
Academic year 2026/2027
Erasmus+ partner universities
Recognition of academic achievements obtained abroad
The Erasmus+ program provides for the recognition of academic achievements. The key instruments for recognition are the (Online) Learning Agreement and the Transcript of Records. Check early on whether a course catalogue (e.g., annotated course catalogue) is available at the partner university. Clarify with both the host institution and your departmental advisor in Cologne whether recognition is possible and what recommendations or restrictions apply, and document your course selection in an (Online) Learning Agreement. Obtain a Transcript of Records from the host university before your departure so that your achievements from abroad can be bindingly integrated into your studies in Cologne. The recognition is then carried out by the departmental advisors, the ZIB, or the examination offices, not by the International Office.
Application for actual expenses for students with a child or children and students with a GdB
Students from the target groups mentioned above have the opportunity to apply for a subsidy covering the actual additional costs of their mobility abroad up to a maximum of €15,000 per semester.
This requires submitting an application to the DAAD. As this is a very extensive application process, interested students should inform us at an early stage (ideally at the time of applying for an exchange place) via erasmus_students(at)verw.uni-koeln(dot)de. We will be happy to support you during the application process. The actual cost application must be received by the DAAD at least 2 months before the start of the stay abroad!
Here you can find the relevant forms to apply for the actual cost subsidy:
Application Form – Grant Recipients with Child(ren) - Billing Form – Grant Recipients with Child(ren)
Application Form – Grant Recipients with a Disability or Impairment - Billing Form – Grant Recipients with a Disability or Impairment
Contact in Department 93 – International Mobility
Linda Cardung
Department of International Mobility | Erasmus+ Studies, BIPs & Digitalization
SSC
Room 1.222
Tel.: 0221/ 470 - 90807
Email: erasmus_students@verw.uni-koeln.de