Financial aid for students in higher education

Obtain a grant and/or a loan

Anyone registered for a course of higher education may apply for financial support as long as they meet a number of conditions.

Purpose

The conditions for students applying for financial aid for higher education studies are:

the applicant must be registered for a course of higher education leading to a recognised qualification,
The course must count for at least 15 ECTS credits per semester (for distance learning and part-time study).
For all vocational training courses undertaken outside the Grand Duchy:

the student must check that the training involved is not available in the Grand Duchy,
and written authorisation must be obtained from the Vocational Training Department of the Ministry of Education, Children and Youth (Ministère de l’Education nationale, de l’Enfance et de la Jeunesse - MENJE).

Applicants resident in the Grand Duchy must be either:

a Luxembourg national,
a European national (EU + EEA) working in the Grand Duchy,
a member of the family of a person in one of the previous categories,
resident in the Grand Duchy for at least the past five years,
or a political refugee.

Applicants not resident in the Grand Duchy must be either:

a Luxembourg or European national (EU + EEA) working in the Grand Duchy,
a member of the family of a Luxembourg or European national (EU + EEA) who either:

has worked in the Grand Duchy for at least five years (within the seven years preceding the application for financial support),
or receives a pension, annuity or top-up unemployment benefit from the Luxembourg State,

or the recipient of an orphan’s pension.

This financial aid may be obtained in addition to training and research grants (Aides à la formation-recherche - AFR) which support research students at doctorate and post-doctorate level (www.fnr.lu), Erasmus+ support aimed at promoting the international mobility of students, or a merit-based student grant.

The financial support cannot be combined with equivalent financial support paid in the student's State of residence or with any other financial advantages relating to the person's status as a student.

Example

Lucas, employee, wishes to obtain a Master's degree

Lucas, 35, wishes to prepare for a Master's degree in 'Company Management' as continuing training, and is wondering what support he is entitled to. Registration costs €5,000, and the course will be held over two years, on Fridays and Saturdays. Lucas submits an application for individual training leave which is accepted by his employer. If the application is approved by the competent ministry, he may obtain up to 20 days of additional leave while still receiving his salary. He also obtains information from the higher education documentation and information centre (Centre de Documentation et d'Information sur l'Enseignement Supérieur - CEDIES) to find out whether the State is able to grant him financial support for his higher education studies.

Financial support – Grants and Loan

Financial support for each semester comprises:

a basic grant of €1,000,
a mobility grant of €1,225, if the applicant studies in a country other than his/her country of residence and pays rent there,
a need-based grant of up to €1,900, dependent on the total annual income of the household (as defined in Article 7 of the amended Law of 4 December 1967 on income tax) to which the applicant belongs,
a family grant of €250 if any another child in the household to which the applicant belongs is receiving financial support for higher education,
a basic student loan of €3,250, guaranteed by the State.

Use the Simulator to calculate the amount of the financial support.

Registration fees

Registration fees are taken into consideration when calculating financial support.

In order to qualify they must exceed €100 per year, and be no more than €3,700 per academic year. In all cases, 50% of the fees are covered by the grant and 50% by the loan.

Example
In the case of registration fees of €2,300, after deducting €100 (administrative costs), €1,100 would be added to the grant and €1,100 to the loan.

Use the Simulator to calculate the exact amount of the refund of registration fees.

Procedures and deadlines

For each semester, an application must be submitted by way of a pre-printed form, which is available at the higher education documentation and information centre (CEDIES).

Applications may be submitted online via MyGuichet. The MyGuichet Tutorial is at your disposal to take you through the application procedure. Paper forms may be downloaded in the section Forms (Formulaires) at the website MyGuichet.

According to the applicant's circumstances, all or some of the following documents must be attached to the application:

university registration certificate,
invoice showing registration fees paid,
certificate of residence in the Grand Duchy,
certificate issued by the Joint Social Security Centre (Centre Commun de la Sécurité Sociale - CCSS),
payslips for the previous three months.

Deadlines for 2019-2020

First application (winter)
- Download the form from 1 August 2019.
- Hand in the documents personally at the CEDIES reception desk, or send the form, completed and signed, together with all supporting documents, to the CEDIES by recorded delivery with acknowledgement of receipt by 30 November 2019.

Subsequent application (summer)

Download the 'subsequent application' (demande subséquente) form from 1 January 2020.
Hand in the documents personally at the CEDIES reception desk, or send the form, completed and signed, together with all supporting documents, to the CEDIES by recorded delivery with acknowledgement of receipt by 30 April 2020.

General principle of the application for financial aid

A student who received financial aid during the preceding semester only needs to fill in a subsequent application, unless he/she changes cycle.

A student who has not received financial aid during the preceding semester or who changes cycle should fill in a first application.

An application deposited after deadline will be refused for late submission.