Complete procedure on applying for a student visa to Germany

German Embassy Cameroon

Here you will find all information about the visa application if you want to take part in a language course or to study or to write a doctoral thesis in Germany.

For the application of a visa for study purposes, you will need a longer preparation. Therefore, please read the information on this page carefully.

Step 1: Preparing your application

Follow the following steps while preparing your application:

Please fill the visa application form
Please note the information to the General Data and Protection Regulation.
Please compile all necessary application documents listed in the following Checklist.
Note that missing documents or proofs may lead to a refusal of your application.
Please read our recommendation on the visa application process on this website attentively!
Please book an appointment in our appointment system in order to submit your application.
Please read carefully the information on the appointment booking for students below.
Please keep in mind that appointments are currently only available within several months.

Important Notice: All requested documents must be submitted in original with two additional photocopies. All documents written in languages other than German, English and French must be translated into German.

Step 2 : Appointment booking

Please note that the Embassy's appointment system for students has changed. Students can register themselves in an A-list (priority appointment) if they fulfill one of the following criteria:

Holding an A-Level with an average grade of 12.00 points or better
Holding an A-Level which has been completed in at least four subjects with a grade of C or better
Holding a Bachelor's degree with the grade „good“, „very good“ or an GPA with an average of at least 3.0 and an A-Level with an average grade of at least 12.00 points or four subjects with the grade C
Holding a very good B1 certificate recognized by the Embassy (90 points or better in all modules)
Holding a very good B2 certificate recognized by the Embassy (80 points or better in all modules)
Holding a TestDaf certificate with a result of min. 4x4
Holding a TestAS certificate with a standard score of 100-130
Holding a confirmation of a scholarship from a German Institution
Holding a confirmation for a PhD research
Holding a signed researcher contract (Aufnahmevereinbarung) with a university or research institute recognized by the BAMF

All other applicants are kindly asked to register in the „B-list“.

Important! You must prove one of these requirements at the latest on your appointment date. If you have applied for a priority appointment on the A-list without being able to prove one of these requirements, your application will be rejected immediately and without further examination.

During the long waiting periods on the B-list, many students change their mind and do not honor their appointments. The Embassy will therefore always reset the B-list at the end of September and end of March before the start of the new semester and delete all registrations existing at this time. New registrations will then be possible again from the beginning of October/April.

Step 3: Application fees

The fees for a student visa are

50.000 FCFA for applicants from the age of 18.
25.000 FCFA for applicants up to the age of 18.
Applicants who receive a public scholarship for their stay are exempted from fees.

Step 4: Time of processing

The time of processing is 2 month from presentation of the complete documents. In individual cases, this time of processing can be prolonged due to the processing time of the foreigners‘ registration office in Germany. Questions concerning the state of the process are not answered before the deadline for applications.

Step 5: Necessary language certificates

If there is not yet a formal letter of permission of a German University (conditional admission), the visa applicant must provide a prove that he has the required knowledge of German. In general, you need the German language knowledge corresponding to level DHS1, DHS2 or TestDaf.

The required language knowledge can be acquired during a preparatory course of German at the university or in a privat language school.

For the credibility and the plausibility of the motivation for the study stay, the German Embassy recommends to submit proof of at least the B1 level.

For courses of study in English, you must proof your proficiency in the English language (TOEFL-certificate for example).

Information: Only language ALTE certificates are recognized (Goethe-Institut, ÖSD, telc, TestDaf).

Step 6: Financing your studies

In connection with the visa procedure and in so far as you want to study in Germany not less than one year, the financing of the first academic year must be proved. For all possibilities of financing, you need at least an amount of 861 EUR monthly (10.332 per year).

Blocked account

You can provide evidence that you are able to meet your living costs by opening a blocked bank account. You have free choice of provider. To the best of the Embassy's knowledge, no banks offer blocked accounts in Cameroun that meet the requirements of the visa procedure. Information on providers that offer this service worldwide is available on the website of the Federal Foreign Office Website.

Declaration of commitment

Third parties in Germany and wishing to ensure the means of subsistence can submit a declaration of commitment at the competent foreigners authority.
This declaration of commitment must contain the note „proved“. Declarations of commitment for which the financing has been „made credible“ can unfortunately not be accepted for the visa application.
If a relative in Germany made a declaration of commitment, please enclose with your visa application the relevant proof of the family ties (for example a copy of birth certificate).

Scholarship

A financing of your study by a scholarship (funded for example by the DAAD, an university or a foundation) can be accepted as a proof of financing. Please note that scholarships as well must at least correspond to the monthly or annual amount mentioned above. If the confirmed scholarship does not cover this amount, you need an additional proof of financing (a blocked account for example) in the amount equal to the missing amount.

Step 7: Admission to a german university

German universities distinguish between two approval notices:

Unconditional admission: All admission requirements for the chosen course of study are already fulfilled.

Conditional admission: The admission requirements are not yet fulfilled.

Please note that admissions and inscriptions in a language course already expired cannot be accepted.
If you visit the page of the database ANABIN (recognition and evaluation of foreign educational certificates), you can check whether your foreign educational level may be recognised or comparable.

Step 8: Information on application booking

Due to the high demand, the waiting time for an appointment for a visa application takes presently several months. For well-advanced students (BAC 12.00 or better or D+) and scholarship holders a special appointment category is available. The above mentioned proof (scholarship confirmation, diploma for example) must be presented at the application submission. The missing of a certificate leads to the rejection of the application.

Step 9: What can i do if my application is rejected

You can remonstrate against the decision of the Embassy or at the competent German administrative court. All necessary information about the remonstration procedure can be found here. Since the identity of callers cannot be verified and in regard of data protection, no information will be given per telephone. Information will only be given to the applicant himself or to third parties under the presentation of a proper written attorney from the applicant.

Please note that, for reasons of the high demand, the processing time for remonstrations at present may take several months. But you are free to submit a new application at any time. If you submit a new application and you have already applied a remonstration, it will be considered as withdrawn and is not processed further.

Source: Ambassade d’Allemagne au Cameroun