Most pages that quote a single “total cost” for doing Ausbildung from India are guessing, or padding a number to look dramatic. The honest way to answer this is category by category, because several of the biggest supposed costs — the blocked account being the main one — don’t actually apply to most Ausbildung applicants at all. Here is each real cost category, sourced individually, so you can see which ones apply to your situation and which don’t.
1. Visa fee: €75
The standard German national (long-stay) visa fee is €75 for adult applicants, payable at the time of your visa appointment. This applies uniformly to Ausbildung visa applications. Minors pay a reduced fee of €37.50. This is confirmed on multiple German mission information sheets, including the Ausbildung-visa checklist published by the German Embassy in Dar es Salaam.
2. The blocked account: often not required at all
This is the category most frequently misreported. A blocked account (Sperrkonto) is only required if your monthly training pay falls short of a set threshold — it is not a fixed cost every Ausbildung applicant has to pay. According to the German Embassy’s own vocational-training visa checklist, you must show proof of financing of at least €1,030 gross / €855 net per month for your first training year (2025 figures, from the Dar es Salaam mission’s information sheet — always confirm the exact current figure with the mission handling your specific application, as it is reviewed periodically and can differ slightly between missions).
Since BIBB’s own data shows the national first-year average training wage is €1,117/month gross in tarifgebunden companies (see our salary breakdown), a large share of apprentices already clear this threshold through their training contract alone — no blocked account needed. You only need one if your specific training contract pays below the threshold, or if you’re doing an unpaid preparatory language course before your Ausbildung starts.
If you do need one, the amount is based on the current monthly subsistence rate rather than a fixed annual figure. As of a January 2026 vocational-training visa checklist published by a German mission, the minimum monthly subsistence proof required was €992/month. A widely repeated older figure of “€11,208 total” reflects a 2023 rate and is out of date — always check the current rate rather than relying on that number. See our blocked account guide for the full mechanics of opening one, if you do need it.
3. Rental deposit in Germany
German law caps a residential deposit (Mietkaution) at three months’ cold rent (net rent, excluding utilities), and by law you’re entitled to pay it in three equal monthly instalments rather than as one lump sum, with the first instalment due at the start of the tenancy. This is set out in Section 551 of the German Civil Code (BGB). For a room costing €400–500/month cold rent, that means a deposit of up to €1,200–1,500, but spread over your first three months rather than paid upfront.
4. Flights
There’s no official published figure for this — it’s an open market price that changes by season and airline. Checking live fares on major booking platforms this session, one-way economy fares from Delhi to Frankfurt ranged from roughly $300–600 (approximately €270–550) depending on airline, booking window and season. Budget toward the higher end if you’re booking close to your training start date, since Ausbildung visas typically can’t be applied for with a locked-in flight booking (missions explicitly advise against booking flights before the visa is issued).
5. Language course fees
If you need to reach B1 German before applying, or improve from A2, course and exam fees are a real cost — but we were not able to verify a specific, current fee figure from an official pricing page this session (Goethe-Institut’s India pages list course locations but not published fees online). Course pricing varies by city and level and changes periodically, so treat this as a cost to confirm directly at goethe.de’s India course pages or with your chosen exam centre before budgeting a specific number — we’d rather point you to the source than invent a figure.
6. What this doesn’t include
This list deliberately excludes made-up “total” figures for health insurance, food, or settling-in costs before your first paycheck — those are covered in detail, with their own sources, in our articles on hidden costs during Ausbildung and monthly savings once you’re earning.
Putting it together
| Category | Typical range | Applies to everyone? |
|---|---|---|
| Visa fee | €75 | Yes |
| Blocked account (if pay is below threshold) | ~€992/month deposited, or 0 if your contract clears the threshold | No — depends on your training contract |
| Rental deposit (spread over 3 months) | Up to 3 months’ cold rent | Yes, once you find housing |
| Flight (one-way) | ~€270–550, market-dependent | Yes |
| Language course (if needed) | Confirm directly with provider | Only if you need to reach B1 |
The honest total for most applicants who already have a paying Ausbildung contract that clears the income threshold is closer to €75 (visa) + deposit (spread over three months) + flight — a few hundred to low thousand euros — rather than the €11,000+ figures some sites quote by wrongly assuming everyone needs a full blocked account.
To see which training contracts and employers we work with, visit our Ausbildung programmes page, or contact us to go through your specific numbers.
Where this comes from
- Visa fee and financing threshold: German Embassy Dar es Salaam, “Information sheet: national visa — Visa for vocational training,” last updated January 2025: daressalam.diplo.de
- Current blocked-account subsistence rate: German mission vocational-training visa checklist, Kuala Lumpur, dated 07.01.2026: kuala-lumpur.diplo.de
- Rental deposit cap: Section 551 BGB (German Civil Code): gesetze-im-internet.de
- First-year training pay average: BIBB, 2025: bibb.de
- Flight fares: live fare search across Expedia, Skyscanner and Kayak, checked this session — indicative only, fluctuates with season and booking window
- Language course fees: Goethe-Institut India course pages, checked this session (no published fee figure found — confirm directly): goethe.de
