The DAAD Re-invitation Programme brings former DAAD scholarship holders back to Germany for a research or work stay of one to three months. DAAD pays €2,000 a month to lecturers, assistant professors and assistant teachers, and €2,150 a month to professors, plus a travel allowance. Only alumni can apply. If you never held a DAAD scholarship, this programme is closed to you.
On timing: DAAD opens applications each year from June, and deadlines are set by country. The 2026 round, for stays starting in 2027, has now closed in most countries. DAAD says deadlines are updated each year in the second quarter and usually fall in the same period as the year before, so the DAAD Re-invitation Programme deadline for your country is its 2026 date one year later: a 31 July 2026 deadline, for example, becomes 31 July 2027. Use this guide to prepare your project and host now.
What the DAAD Re-invitation Programme pays for
The programme is funded with money from the German Federal Foreign Office. It lets alumni renew links with German institutions after they have gone home. DAAD funds two kinds of stay:
- research or work projects at state or state-recognised universities, or at non-university research institutes in Germany
- working stays at institutions in business, administration, culture or media, for alumni who now work outside academia
You can split one stay across several host institutions. The grant lasts one to three months. You state the length you want, and the selection committee sets the final period based on your work plan. The grant cannot be renewed, and you can claim it only once in any three-year period.
Funding at a glance
| Item | What DAAD provides |
|---|---|
| Monthly payment, lecturers, assistant professors, assistant teachers | €2,000 |
| Monthly payment, professors | €2,150 |
| Monthly payment, non-academic working stays | Set according to your qualifications |
| Travel | Travel allowance, unless your home country or another funder already covers it |
| Disability or chronic illness | A subsidy for justified extra costs not covered by other providers, assessed case by case |
| Duration | 1 to 3 months, non-renewable |
DAAD’s programme text also says health insurance is required during the stay. If you have no cover from home, DAAD arranges it and deducts the cost from your payments.
DAAD Re-invitation Programme eligibility
The programme has two lines. Most applicants fall under Line A.
| Programme line | Who it is for |
|---|---|
| Line A: Re-invitation Programme for Former Scholarship Holders | Former DAAD research grant or study scholarship holders funded for more than six months by the Federal Foreign Office, or by a programme co-financed with its funds. Also former scholarship holders of the GDR (East Germany) who studied in Germany for at least one year. |
| Line B: Re-invitation for alumni of Development-Related Postgraduate Courses | Former DAAD scholarship holders on the Development-Related Postgraduate Courses (EPOS) who completed their studies successfully. |
Two further rules apply to everyone:
- Time away from Germany: you must not have lived in Germany for at least the last three years.
- A German partner: you must have agreed your project with a cooperation partner in Germany before you apply, and the host must confirm it in writing.
The six-month rule trips up a lot of people. A short DAAD summer course, a two-month research visit, or a scholarship funded by a different German body does not count. If you are not sure how your old grant was funded, your award letter usually names the programme. The DAAD office or German embassy in your country can confirm it.
Application deadline
Deadlines vary by country
There is no single worldwide deadline. DAAD sets dates by country of origin in its scholarship database. The portal closes at 24:00 German time (CET or CEST) on the last day. Third-party listings for the 2026 round gave dates between 31 July and 1 October 2026, which is why you should check your own country’s entry and not a date copied from another site.
To find your date, open the DAAD scholarship database, choose “Re-invitation Programme for Former Scholarship Holders”, and select your country of origin. The entry shows your deadline, the stay start dates, and whether your country asks for anything by post.
Documents you need
Everything is uploaded as PDF to the DAAD portal. DAAD lists:
| Document | Rules |
|---|---|
| Online application form | Completed in the DAAD portal |
| Curriculum vitae | Tabular format, maximum 3 pages |
| List of publications | Only if you have publications |
| Statement on the research or work project | Maximum 10 pages, uploaded under “research project” |
| Time schedule and itinerary | Names your host institutions and partners, uploaded under “time schedule” |
| Confirmation from the German host | Must refer to your project and guarantee you a workplace |
| Translations | Any document not in German or English must be translated, with the original uploaded too |
DAAD notes that some countries also ask for documents by post. Check the country-specific entry for this. Incomplete applications are not considered.
How to apply for the DAAD Re-invitation Programme
- Confirm your old grant qualifies: find your original award letter and check it was DAAD funded for more than six months.
- Agree a project with a German host: write to your former supervisor or a colleague in Germany with a one-page outline. Settle what you will do, where, and for how many weeks.
- Get the host’s confirmation letter: ask them to name your project and confirm you will have a workplace. A generic welcome letter is weaker.
- Write the project statement: up to 10 pages covering aims, method, what the German host adds, and what happens after you return.
- Draft the time schedule: week by week, with each host institution and partner named.
- Open the DAAD portal from the scholarship database entry: the portal opens only during the application period. Fill in the form and upload each PDF in its named section.
- Submit a few days early: DAAD itself advises against waiting for the last day because of technical problems. Technical questions go to portal@daad.de.
- Send any postal documents your country requires: only if your country entry asks for them.
How DAAD selects
An independent selection committee reviews the files. DAAD’s published criteria are your academic achievements and publications, and a convincing, well-planned project. For working stays outside academia, the committee also looks at the lasting effect on your professional work, multiplier effects such as planned publications, and whether the stay builds on existing cooperation. DAAD does not publish a fixed results date.
In my view the project statement and the host letter carry most of the weight. A tight, realistic plan for six weeks reads better than an ambitious three-month plan with vague outputs. Name the paper, dataset, course or joint proposal you will produce, and say how it continues after you fly home.
If you also need a reference from a former supervisor, our guide to scholarship recommendation letters shows what a strong one contains. If you have not studied in Europe yet and want a funded master’s, see the MARIHE Erasmus Mundus Scholarship, which includes study in Germany.
DAAD Re-invitation Programme FAQs
Can I apply for the DAAD re-invitation if I never had a DAAD scholarship?
No. The programme is only for former DAAD scholarship holders funded for more than six months (or former GDR scholarship holders and EPOS alumni as described above).
How much does the DAAD re-invitation scholarship pay per month?
€2,000 a month for lecturers, assistant professors and assistant teachers, and €2,150 a month for professors. A travel allowance is added unless another source covers your travel.
Can I apply if I am living in Germany now?
No. You must not have lived in Germany for at least the three years before you apply.
When is the DAAD re-invitation programme deadline for 2027?
Deadlines differ by country and are published in the DAAD scholarship database. DAAD updates them in the second quarter of each year and opens applications from June, so your deadline is your country’s 2026 date one year later, for example 31 July 2027 where the 2026 deadline was 31 July (based on this year’s date; confirm on the official page when the call opens).
For other German funding routes, including foundation scholarships, see our Germany scholarships guide.
Sources and updates
Eligibility, programme lines, funding rates, documents, deadline rules and selection criteria come from DAAD’s Re-invitation Programme page for alumni and the programme’s entry in the DAAD scholarship database, with Research in Germany’s programme summary as a cross-check. Checked on 24 October 2026. I will update this page when DAAD posts the 2027 deadlines.
I am Jude Chinecherem, a final-year MBBS student at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. I know what it feels like to want an education your family cannot afford. When my parents could not pay for my schooling, I had to learn how to find scholarships and work the system out on my own, with nobody to guide me. I came out the other side, and now I share everything I learned so the next student does not have to figure it out alone. This is the advice I wish someone had given me back then.
