Germany delays Bafög housing allowance increase by six months
The planned increase of the Bafög housing allowance for students not living with parents will now take effect in summer 2027, not winter 2026/27, as coalition partners agree to postpone amid budget pressures.
The delay
The coalition government in Berlin has pushed back the planned increase of the Bafög housing allowance (Wohnkostenpauschale) by one semester. The allowance for students who no longer live with their parents was set to rise from 380 to 440 euros at the start of the winter semester 2026/27. That increase will now come into effect only with the summer semester 2027, according to a joint announcement by the responsible policy spokespeople of the CDU/CSU and SPD parliamentary groups.
Broader reform plans
The postponement is part of a wider agreement on the major Bafög reform outlined in the coalition agreement. While the housing allowance is delayed, the basic student allowance (Grundbedarf), currently 475 euros, is still scheduled to rise in two steps to the level of basic social security (Grundsicherung). It will increase to 503 euros in the winter semester 2027/28 and to 563 euros in the summer semester 2029. A new, transparent mechanism for regularly reviewing and adjusting the rates in line with the basic security level will also be introduced.
- Housing allowance increase from 380 to 440 euros originally scheduled.
- Housing allowance increase now takes effect.
- Basic allowance rises to 503 euros.
- Basic allowance rises to 563 euros.
Political reactions
For students, the reform means more money, more reliability, less bureaucracy. We are strengthening trust in Bafög as a reliable form of student financing.
SPD deputy parliamentary group leader Wiebke Esdar said that after intensive negotiations the coalition had succeeded in securing all previously agreed benefit improvements in full. CDU deputy parliamentary group leader Inge Gräßle stressed that the further expansion of state benefits could not be detached from the overall economic situation.
It is now clear to everyone that the further expansion of state benefits cannot take place independently of the overall economic situation. It is a joint task of this governing coalition to ensure economic growth again.
Budget constraints
The coalition agreement contained a financing reservation clause: all measures are subject to the availability of funds. CDU parliamentary group leader Jens Spahn had previously stated that state benefits such as citizens' income, housing benefit, parental allowance and Bafög would not be able to be increased in the foreseeable future, citing the strained financial situation.
