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Exchange Students (Erasmus)
Foreign students enrolled at a Latvian university who want to study at a German university for 360 days or less do not need a residence permit if they have a confirmation from the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) stating their right of entry and residence for the purpose of studying within the framework of short-term mobility (Directive (EU) 2016/801).
This document will be issued through the BAMF upon request by the German university. Please contact your university for further information.
If this document cannot be requested by the university, you can still apply for a visa through the Embassy.
What kind of documents need to be submitted
These documents depend on the type of visa you are applying for and must be submitted in addition to the standard proofs:
| ☐ |
Certificate of enrollment from the Latvian University (original document with one non-certified copy) |
| ☐ |
Certificate of registration from the German University (original document with one non-certified copy) |
| ☐ |
Certificate from the university confirming that the above mentioned document cannot be applied for (original document with one non-certified copy) |
| Complete curriculum vitae in tabular form in German or English | In your CV, please summarize all previous activities, trainings and qualifications up to the current application date in one table. |
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Proof of knowledge of the course language (original document with non-certified copy) |
Usually proven through a language certificate (can be omitted in exceptional cases). To find out which certificates are currently recognized, please visit https://www.alte.org/Our-Full-Members. The examination date must not be more than one year ago. |
| minimum 992 Euro per month | |
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Payment of the required amount into a blocked account in Germany (certificate) |
Information concerning the opening of a blocked account can be found on the website of the Federal Foreign Office. |
|
OR Scholarship (original document with one non-certified copy) |
The notification must contain information on the duration, amount, scope and origin of the funds for the scholarship. Please note that a blocked account may still have to be opened. If the notification was only sent to you via e-mail: Print out of the certificate AND e-mail with which the notification was sent |
|
OR Declaration of commitment of the parents (or other persons) according to §§ 66-68 AufenthG. (original document with one non-certified copy) |
With the note „to study“ and „creditworthiness proven“ („Bonität nachgewiesen“). Please contact the Aliens Authorities (Ausländerbehörde) or the German representation competent for the place of residence of the parent (or the supporting person). The Embassy can only accept a declaration of commitment in exceptional cases.[1] |
|
OR Bank statement from a Latvian or German bank |
- The bank statement must prove that you own enough money to finance your entire stay. - The actual funds must be in your own account (not from a third party!) and must have been in your account for at least 90 days prior to the application. - As proof of own funds, we can only accept bank statements for the last three months prior to the application. |
[1] The German Embassy in Riga can only accept a declaration of commitment if there is no other way to prove that you can secure your livelihood. Furthermore, we must assume that a credit check would be positive and the declaration of commitment would be enforceable in Germany. The obligor must have assets in Germany, e.g. a German bank account, so that the obligor's creditworthiness is „proven“.
General information
Please note:
- Due to the high workload and in order to ensure equal treatment of all applicants, the visa section can only accept applications in the requested form for processing.
- Submitting incomplete documents may lead to the rejection of the application.
- Unsolicited documents cannot be assigned to your application.
- All documents, leaflets and application forms provided by the Embassy are free of charge.
- All information on the application procedure is available on our website.
- Please refrain from submitting status requests. Status requests do not speed up the visa process.
- Processing time: Between two and four weeks, in individual cases shorter or longer.
- If the Embassy has questions during the course of the visa procedure or if additional documents need to be submitted, we will contact you directly.