- 90% of Bafög applications are incomplete
In Saxony-Anhalt, approximately 90% of all BAföG applications are incomplete. Often, students fail to provide evidence of their income, health insurance, and their parents' income, the Ministry of Science in Magdeburg reported, citing figures from the student services. "As a result, the e-file can only contribute to a limited reduction in processing time."
In Saxony-Anhalt, BAföG applications are to be processed digitally in the future. Since students in the state have been able to submit their applications for financial support online since October 2020, the electronic file has been introduced in the student services in Magdeburg and Halle. This will eliminate the need for printing and filing. The Ministry of Science estimates that this could save more than 300,000 pages of paper per year. On average, around 12,000 applications are processed annually in the two student services.
However, the expectation that processing times will be significantly reduced by the fully digitized process is "only partially justified" according to the student service in Halle. The reason is the incomplete applications. Often, additional information has to be requested and documents have to be submitted again. A complete application is currently processed within about 5 to 6 weeks. It is currently not possible to say how long it will take with the e-file.
In Magdeburg's high school, students are encouraged to start preparing their BAföG applications early to avoid incomplete submissions, as seen in the student services. Despite the shift to digital applications for BAföG in high school students in Saxony-Anhalt, incomplete applications continue to prolong the processing time.
