Under-18 Students

Lancaster University Leipzig accepts under-18 students to all undergraduate programmes – please note that the students need to be 17 at the start of the BSc programme. 

Students under the age of 18 are legally considered minors in Germany without signature right. Their parents or legal representatives bear full legal responsibility for them until they reach the age of 18 and are expected to sign any documents on their behalf:

• As part of the admissions process, parents of under-18 students are required to sign this Under-18 Policy.

• Prior to arrival to Germany, the parents will need to assist their under-18 child with the student visa application process (see Visa process) and accommodation booking (see Accommodation). One of the most known online blocked bank account providers that offer accounts for minor students is Fintiba.

Traveling to Germany

Parents of under-18 students are expected to accompany their child for at least 1-2 weeks at the start of the first academic year in order to solve any formalities connected with relocation to Germany (e.g. activating a SIM card, opening a bank account, etc). 

If the student is traveling with one parent (legal guardian), the second parent needs to sign a Power of Attorney (sample in English and German) allowing the travelling parent to sign all documents on behalf of both parents.

Applying for student residence permit

Even though the student can submit the student residence permit application independently (the students will receive instructions during the Welcome Week), the parents are required to sign this consent form in advance. 

Accessing funds from the blocked bank account

While the blocked account is only created to deposit funds, it is not possible to withdraw money directly from this account. To be able to do this, students need to open a current bank account once they arrive in Germany. As soon as the bank account is set, the students can link it to the blocked account to receive monthly pay-outs. 

There is a limited number of banks in Germany that offer services to minor international students. One of the banks that offers a bank account for minor international students is Sparkasse. They provide a Checklist for under-18 students.

Here you can find the template for Consent of the parents for opening and usage of the bank account provided by Sparkasse.