Fees and payment
How much does a Statement of Comparability cost? What are my payment options? Am I eligible for financial assistance? Are there any cancellation charges? Find the answer to every question regarding our fees, payment options, and financial assistance here.
Fee for a Statement of Comparability
A Statement of Comparability costs €208.
The fee is set by the State of Berlin: Verordnung über Gebühren bei der Prüfung von Berufsqualifikationen und von Bewertungen ausländischer Hochschulqualifikationen The fees regulation was last adapted in June 2024
Payment
You can pay the fee online immediately after submitting your application. You will receive a notification of fees with instructions on how to pay your fee.
Payment deadline
The regular deadline for paying the fee for a Statement of Comparability is 3 weeks.
If you cannot pay the fee by this deadline, send us a message in My Account. Processing of a Statement of Comparability will begin once the ZAB has received the fee in full.
Payment options
You can pay with PayPal, by credit card (Mastercard or VISA), or by SEPA bank transfer.
Online payment is made via ePayBL, an electronic payment service of the German federal and state governments for digital administrative services. It is a fast, easy, and secure way to pay.
Financial assistance
There are a few ways to receive financial assistance for a Statement of Comparability. You have to apply for financial assistance before you submit your application for a Statement of Comparability.
Fore more information about financial assistance, visit the German government's recognition portal:
Cancellation fees
In accordance with the Fees Regulation, the ZAB is required to keep a part of the paid fee if an application for a Statement of Comparability is cancelled. You will be refunded the remaining fee.
If you cancel your application
You can cancel your application as long as the Statement of Comparability is not available for download. Depending on the processing status of your application, you can be charged up to 50 percent of the fee. If you would like to cancel your application, please send us a message in My Account.
If the ZAB cancels your application
We may not be able to issue a Statement of Comparability for your university degree, for example if your university or your degree program was not recognized at the time of your graduation or if you do not submit the required documents. We will keep up to 50 percent of the fee.
Fee for a replacement of a Statement of Comparability
The fee to reissue a Statement of Comparability is €104.
Use your BundID to log into our website and download your Statement of Comparability as many times as you like. You only need to replace your Statement of Comparability if you lost your digital Statement of Comparability and you do not have access to your BundID account any more.
FAQ
You can find more frequently asked questions about fees and payments on our FAQ page.
Your notification of fees will be sent to you as a message in My Account immediately after you have submitted your application.
You can pay the fee directly after applying online.
In some cases, a one-time extension may be possible. Please send us a message in My Account to request an extension.
Please note: Processing of a Statement of Comparability does not begin until the ZAB has received the fee in full. An extension of the payment deadline will also extend the processing time.
Yes, the fee can be paid by someone else.
If the fee is paid by SEPA bank transfer, the applicant's full name (first name and last name) and the application number have to be included in the reference field of the bank transfer. Otherwise, we cannot match the payment with the right application.
If you pay by credit card or with PayPal, their usual payment process applies.
When we receive your payment, we will send you a message in My Account.