Student Visa from Italy: Sperrkonto and Documents

By the GoGermany Editorial Team · 2026-07-27

Moving from Italy to study in Germany? Whether you need a visa depends on your passport. The €11,904 Sperrkonto, documents and German missions explained.

Plenty of people study in Italy and then look north to Germany for a master's, a cheaper city or an English-taught programme. But the first question about a student visa Germany Italy move is one many guides skip: it depends entirely on which passport you hold. This guide sorts out the two very different situations and walks you through the Sperrkonto and documents for the one that needs a visa.

First: do you actually need a visa?

Your nationality — not your address in Italy — decides everything.

• If you are an Italian (or any EU/EEA) citizen: you do not need a visa or a residence permit at all. Freedom of movement lets you enrol at a German university like a local. You simply do your Anmeldung (address registration) within your first weeks in Germany and, because you are not on a visa, you are not required to open a Sperrkonto. You can stop reading the visa sections and jump to enrolment.
• If you are a third-country national living in Italy on a permesso di soggiorno — say an Indian, Nigerian, Egyptian or Brazilian student already studying or working in Italy — an Italian residence permit does not give you the right to study long-term in Germany. You need a German national visa (visto nazionale, type D) for study, applied for at a German mission in Italy.

The rest of this guide is written for that second group, who make up most people searching for this topic.

One shortcut: intra-EU student mobility

Before you assume you need a fresh visa, check one thing. Under the EU student-mobility rules (Directive 2016/801), if you are already enrolled in a degree in Italy and hold an Italian residence permit for study purposes, you may be able to complete part of your programme in Germany — up to 360 days — through a mobility notification rather than a full national visa. This suits exchange or joint-degree students. If you are starting a brand-new full degree in Germany, though, you fall back to the national visa route below.

The Sperrkonto: how much money you need from Italy

For the national visa, Germany wants proof of funds, and the standard tool is a Sperrkonto (blocked account). You deposit a year of living costs and draw a fixed sum each month.

For 2025 the amount is €11,904 for one year — roughly €992 released per month. The monthly cap is deliberate: it shows you can budget across the whole year.

From Italy, the easiest providers are online: Fintiba, Expatrio and Coracle open an account within days and send the confirmation your German mission needs. Deutsche Bank also offers a blocked account but relies on certified paper forms, which is slower. Practical tips:

• Fund it by SEPA transfer from your Italian bank (Intesa Sanpaolo, UniCredit, Poste Italiane) — same-currency euro transfers keep costs low and are usually free or a few euros.
• Because Italy uses the euro, you avoid the exchange-rate headaches applicants from outside the eurozone face — a genuine advantage.
• Deposit a small buffer above €11,904 so bank fees never drop you below the threshold.

Use the Sperrkonto Calculator to see how the monthly release lines up with student rents, and the Living Cost Calculator to compare a German city with what you pay now in Italy.

Documents in your student file

Third-country applicants in Italy should prepare:

• Valid passport plus your Italian permesso di soggiorno (proof of legal residence in Italy — it lets you apply at the German mission there).
• Letter of admission (Zulassungsbescheid) from a German university, or conditional admission via uni-assist.
• Sperrkonto confirmation for €11,904.
• Proof of health insurance — incoming/travel cover for the pre-enrolment gap, then German public insurance (TK, AOK, Barmer) after you enrol.
• Degree certificates and transcripts. Documents issued outside the EU often need an Apostille and a sworn translation (traduzione giurata) into German or English; a dichiarazione di valore or statement of comparability may be requested.
• Language proof: TestDaF or DSH for German-taught programmes; IELTS or TOEFL for English-taught ones.
• Motivation letter, CV and biometric photos.

Run everything through the Document Checklist so a missing translation does not cost you an appointment.

Where and how to apply in Italy

German national visas in Italy are handled by the Embassy in Rome and the Consulates General in Milan and Naples, with jurisdiction based on where you live. Book through the relevant mission's website; slots fill quickly before the autumn intake. The national visa fee is €75.

Note that your Italian residence permit must remain valid throughout the application — apply from Italy while you still hold legal status there, not after it lapses.

Health insurance: from incoming to public

Insurance is a quiet cause of delays. For the gap between arriving and enrolling, you need incoming (travel) health cover — DR-WALTER or the plans bundled with Fintiba and Expatrio are widely accepted. After enrolment you switch to German public insurance (GKV) with TK, AOK or Barmer at the student rate of about €120–130 per month; they issue the certificate your university and the Ausländerbehörde require. Note that any Italian tessera sanitaria does not transfer — Germany needs its own proof. If you are 30 or older you may fall outside the student rate and need private cover instead, so check your category first. The Health Insurance Chooser helps you pick the right policy before you pay.

Timeline: matching the German semester

German intakes run winter (October start, apply by 15 July) and summer (April start, apply by 15 January). A workable sequence:

• 5–6 months out: secure admission through uni-assist or the university.
• 3 months out: open the Sperrkonto and arrange insurance.
• 8–10 weeks out: book the visa appointment at your German mission in Italy.
• After arrival: Anmeldung, activate insurance, enrol, then apply for the residence permit at the Ausländerbehörde.

Plot your dates with the Migration Timeline. For the shared mechanics every applicant faces, see German Student Visa Step by Step: Documents, Fees & Timeline; and if you are weighing another non-eurozone comparison, Student Visa Germany from the UK: Sperrkonto and Documents covers a similar third-country path.

Common mistakes applicants make

• Confusing residence with nationality. Living in Italy does not make you an EU citizen; only an EU passport removes the visa requirement.
• Assuming an Italian permit covers Germany. It lets you travel for 90 days, not study long-term — you still need the national visa.
• Skipping the Apostille or sworn translation. Non-EU degree documents are routinely rejected without them.
• Letting the Italian permit expire mid-process. Apply while your legal status in Italy is still valid.
• Overlooking the mobility route. Exchange and joint-degree students already enrolled in Italy may avoid a full visa entirely.

Ready to plan your move?

Whether Germany is a quick Anmeldung away or a national-visa application depends on your passport — so confirm that first, then build the file with confidence. If you need the visa, get the €11,904 Sperrkonto and your translated documents in order early. Start with our free Document Checklist and Sperrkonto Calculator, and turn a good Italian study record into a German one.