For a Internship in an ERASMUS programme country students from EU countries do not require a visa or a separate work permit. Only valid travel documents are required for entry (e.g. passport). Exceptions to this rule are stays in Turkey.

For Stays outside the ERASMUS programme countries however, a visa and work permit are usually required. The regulations for internships vary greatly from country to country. You should therefore find out exactly what the regulations are in your destination country (e.g. from embassies or consulates). In most cases, it is not possible to enter the country with a tourist visa and transfer the visa for the purpose of the internship on site. Depending on the host country, it can take up to several weeks to process your enquiry and the actual visa application. Therefore, please remember to start organising early!

Information on the Entry requirements of the respective countries can also be found on the pages of the Federal Foreign Office. Please also note the Medical advice for your destination country. If you require special immunisation, please allow sufficient time. Some vaccinations need to be repeated at intervals of several weeks or months in order to provide reliable protection.

Students who wish to complete an internship abroad must ensure that they have adequate insurance cover. For some funding programmes (e.g. Erasmus internship programme), taking out certain insurance policies is a prerequisite for funding.

Please note that you are responsible for ensuring that you have adequate insurance cover during your stay abroad. Nordhausen University of Applied Sciences and any other institution involved in the implementation of your exchange/support programme are not liable for the consequences of non-insurance or underinsurance.

Find out in good time from your insurance provider which services are covered abroad and for how long, and take out additional insurance if necessary. There are a large number of insurance providers who have corresponding offers.

The DAAD, for example, offers insurance packages specifically for student internships. You can find detailed information and further links on the Website of the DAAD.

Health insurance

For a stay within the EU the European Health Insurance Card applies. In addition, Germany has concluded social security agreements with various countries outside the EU. In these cases, students must obtain a certificate of entitlement from the German health insurance company. However, we would like to expressly point out that the existing insurance cover may be insufficient, especially if repatriation or special medical interventions are necessary. As a rule, only medically necessary treatment is covered. Supplementary private health insurance may therefore be advisable.

For a stay outside the EU and in countries with which there is no social security agreement, students must always take out private health insurance cover specifically for this purpose. Simple travel health insurance for holiday trips is generally not sufficient for a longer period of study or internship abroad.

Accident and liability insurance

Before starting an internship abroad, you should discuss with the internship organisation to what extent you as an intern are covered by accident and liability insurance through the internship organisation. Unlike in Germany, many companies abroad do not have company accident and liability insurance. It is therefore strongly recommended that you take out private insurance.

Clarify with your insurance company whether and to what extent your destination country is covered by your existing insurance. Please also note that the international cover in some insurance policies is limited to a certain length of stay (e.g. 6-8 weeks) and is therefore not sufficient for an internship. In this case, you should take out additional insurance for the duration of the internship. Make sure that damage at the workplace is explicitly included in the insurance, as this is excluded by many providers.