If, despite the financial support from parents, it is not enough: with a loan for trainees, trainees have the opportunity to bridge financial bottlenecks. Some banks have particularly favorable conditions here. Who actually writes and advises here? About us
This is how trainees apply for a loan
You apply for your loan in three steps.
1. Use the credit comparison (at the top of this page) to find the cheapest deal. To do this, enter the desired loan amount, the desired term and the purpose. Some basic information is also requested, without which an individual offer is not possible.
2. When you have carried out the credit comparison, you will receive specific offers by email or post, which you can apply for directly under the conditions mentioned. In the following, a credit advisor will also contact you by phone to ensure that all the necessary documents are available and can be submitted to the bank. If necessary, the credit advisor also determines offers that are even cheaper or for which you have a better chance of getting a loan.
3. Apply for the loan by mailing the documents to the bank. You can easily carry out the identity check required by law at a post office (PostIdent procedure) or at the bank itself, if it maintains its own branch network. After approval of the loan, the amount is immediately transferred to the bank account you have specified.
Notice You can get a regular consumer loan through the online loan comparison. You can find information on a recognized loan for trainees below on this page.
Trainees should know that
Not all banks offer a real loan for trainees. (See also the “Why a student loan is different” section below.) If this is the case, then the student is classified like any other applicant. The criteria that are used to approve funding are therefore identical.
There are basically two things that are crucial for lending banks when it comes to granting a loan:
1. Is the applicant’s creditworthiness (meaning: creditworthiness) sufficient for the loan?
2. Was the applicant’s payment history in the past such that the loan can be expected to be repaid in accordance with the contract? (This means: Has the applicant paid previous bills and any loan installments on time?)
In order to be able to answer these two questions, the bank obtains various information, including from Schufa, before granting an approval.
Notice By “applicant’s creditworthiness” is by no means meant that the applicant must have a high salary or have a large amount of money in the account. Rather, the point is that the loan applied for fits the financial circumstances. A low earner can therefore have a good credit rating when it comes to a loan of a few hundred euros.
Trainees must meet these requirements
The legislator stipulates which requirements must be met for financing to be approved, and is at the bank’s discretion. As a rule, the requirements are very similar or the same. The applicant almost always has to:
- be of legal age
- reside in Germany,
- have a regular, verifiable income (e.g. training salary),
- have a bank account in Germany,
- have an adequate credit rating.
Many banks require apprentices that the apprenticeship has existed for at least 6 months and that the trial period has ended successfully. The loan term must also be fully within the training period. Otherwise, no regular income can be proven for the credit period (exception: a valid transfer agreement with either the training center or another employer).
You can find out what requirements banks have in your specific case from your credit advisor, who has the information.
Credit for trainees during the trial period
Those who are still in the trial period usually have problems getting a loan. The banks sometimes even require an apprenticeship period of at least six months.
In the first month of training, practically no bank grants a loan to trainees, since there is still no evidence of salary.
Short-term loan for trainees
A short-term loan will be repaid to the bank within a short time after payment. This is worthwhile if, for example, the next wage payment is due, but there is not enough money to make ends meet by the beginning of the next month.
A short-term loan is cheaper than an overdraft facility and in most cases is available on the following terms:
- Proof of a regular salary
- Loan amount: less than 1,000 euros
- Loan term: 30 days
Please note:
Low-income people, such as trainees, should only use short-term loans for essentials. Otherwise there is a risk of over-indebtedness.
Beware of the debt case! Trainees, who may be responsible for their own finances for the first time in their lives, should carefully check whether the loan matches the income situation before applying for funding. A loan entails monthly costs (the monthly loan installments) that limit the financial scope.
If unexpected expenses are required, for example to repair a washing machine, this can become a problem. Before applying for a loan, trainees – like everyone else – should make sure that the additional monthly financial burden is not too great. Otherwise, it can happen that a mountain of debt is accumulated that is difficult to clear.
How much credit can I afford?
Basically, if there is enough money left after deducting all expenses
(a) pay the monthly loan installments; and
b) unforeseen expenses can also be met,
a loan is not a problem. To determine if this is the case, create a simple household bill with all income and expenses. Take into account not only fixed expenses such as rent and monthly tickets for local public transport, but also expenses such as visits to the cinema and other purchases. If the costs are too high, either lower the monthly loan installments by extending the term of the financing or lower the total loan amount.
When trainees have creditworthiness problems
“Sufficient creditworthiness” means that the monthly disposable income (ie the money that is left after deducting rent etc.) is sufficient to pay the loan. The creditworthiness also takes into account whether the applicant has paid his bills regularly and in full in the past.
Schufa determines these two factors – the ability and willingness to repay the loan. This is done by Schufa collecting various data on the applicant and summarizing them in one value: the so-called Schufa Score. And this score indicates whether an applicant can be considered creditworthiness or not.
Consumers can lower the score with various measures, such as:
- If possible, do not use your bank’s credit facility. Because if the account is in the red, this applies to Schufa as unpaid debt – which has a negative impact on the score.
- Avoid credit cards, as this is also interpreted as a sign that your own financial means are not sufficient to meet everyday needs.
- Pay all bills as early as possible. Open invoices or even reminders known to Schufa have a significantly negative impact on creditworthiness.
- If necessary, reschedule current loans, because this step is usually rated positively. Schufa assumes that a consumer will have lower monthly expenses after rescheduling than before. And with that the available monthly income increases.
- Think about a second borrower (a co-applicant). If, for example, a parent is included in the loan application, the credit rating increases significantly. With another borrower, the salary receipts of both people are taken into account in the creditworthiness.
Please note: A co-applicant should not be confused with a guarantor who only comes into play if there are problems with the repayment. A second borrower is treated in the same way as the first borrower – with all rights (e.g. the right to the loan amount) and obligations (e.g. payment obligations).
Check current cell phone contracts etc. Before borrowing, it is worth checking current contracts such as newspaper or online subscriptions or the contract of a possible second cell phone. If it turns out that you can forego contracts, it is worth canceling them promptly. Because the lower the running costs, the better the credit rating.