Career Development Assistance Act
Aufstiegsfortbildungsförderungsgesetz (AFBG)
Career Development Assistance Act (AFBG) in the version published on 10 January 2002, last amended by Art. 6 Para 4 of the Act of 19 August 2007
The Career Development Assistance Act (AFBG) – the so-called “master craftsman’s study loans” – is jointly funded by the Federation and the Länder and entered into force on 1 January 2002. It introduces an individual entitlement to student loans for training courses for vocational career development, i. e. training courses for master craftsmen and other courses preparing for a comparable further training certificate.
Those so-called “master craftsman’s study loans (Meister-BAföG)” support the extension and development of vocational qualifications, and thus strengthen the motivation of junior specialists to follow further education courses. In addition to a partial waiver of loan repayment, it also offers an incentive for potential young entrepreneurs so that they can establish their own enterprises and create jobs when their further education is completed.
The “AFBG Amendment Act” primarily introduces the following improvements. It
- considerably extends the group of student loan recipients and the scope of these loans by including a larger number of further education courses, especially in the health care and nursing care sectors; courses at nationally approved further education institutes, media-based further education and a more generous funding of a second further education course.
- clearly improves the loan conditions for all participants of career development courses.
- develops a family-related component by increasing the maintenance benefits for children, granting a higher childcare allowance to single parents, facilitating loan deferments and waivers for low-income loan recipients with children, and more widely recognizing childcare obligations, when the loan/grant period is determined.
- provides stronger incentives for young entrepreneurs to set up their own business after completing their further education. It provides for a higher loan component being waived, longer deadlines for establishing the business and recruiting employees, recognizing a higher tax-free asset base and previously established businesses as well as temporary, part-time or low-paid full-time employment.
- facilitates loan conditions for foreign specialists living in Germany by shortening the required employment and residence period.
- significantly simplifies the application and approval procedures for the loan by opting for a single application and grants procedure for the entire duration of the education course, it offers an accelerated short-term procedure for granting loans and applies the general procedural principles of the Social Code.
