TUM does not have on-campus accommodation. The Student Union Munich and Upper Bavaria provides the TUM Global & Alumni Office with a limited number of places in student dormitories, which are primarily reserved for participants of the TUMexchange mobility program. For exchange students of other mobility programs (e.g. Erasmus), TUM G&A cannot guarantee the provision of accommodation. However, we will be happy to support you with information on how to search the private housing market.
Service Package of the Student Union Munich and Upper Bavaria for TUMexchange students
Dormitory places for exchange students, the so-called Service Packages of the Student Union Munich and Upper Bavaria, are primarily reserved for the participants of the mobility program called TUMexchange and allocated by the TUM Global & Alumni Office. However, it is still necessary to indicate the wish to accept this offer, while filling out the application form for the exchange at TUM in the Further Information section. Participants of the TUMexchange mobility program are students from non-European universities, which have a university wide agreement and not just one on a School level. General information about the Service Packages can be found on the webpage of the Student Union Munich and Upper Bavaria.
- Type of accommodation: Usually it is a single room (only for one person) in a larger apartment, where you share a bathroom and/or a kitchen with a number of other students (mixed-gender). We have no double rooms or family apartments at our disposal. Not all buildings have elevators.
- Furnishings: All dormitory places are furnished with a bed and a mattress, a table, a chair and a cupboard and have a wired Internet connection (no Wi-Fi). There are no dishes and no bed linen.
- Location: TUM G&A gets accommodation in the dormitories of the Student Union in Munich, Garching and Oberschleißheim (not in Rosenheim, Freising, Heilbronn, Straubing). Depending on the location, it usually takes between thirty minutes and one hour to get from a dormitory to the main campus or the Garching campus. More specific information about all dormitories can be found on the webpage of the Student Union. Students from Freising, Heilbronn and Straubing must get in touch with their contact persons at these locations regarding accommodation.
- Monthly rent and refundable deposit: Rents range from 400 to 600 euro per month. This is the cheapest accommodation in Munich. You will have to pay a refundable deposit between 500 and 900 euro, which will be returned to you 4 months after the expiration of your rental agreement. For every semester money has to be transferred in two installments to the bank account of the Student Union. You will pay first 3 monthly rents and the refundable deposit after you have received the Acceptance of Accommodation letter (before the start of your rental agreement !). The financial department of the Student Union will inform you via email about the next transfer (always 3 monthly rents total).
Deadlines
Winter semester | Summer semester | |
Confirmation email | mid-July | mid-January |
Money transfer | 1st installment - middle of August 2nd installment - end of October | 1st installment - middle of February 2nd installment - end of April |
Length of lease | one to max. two semesters | one semester |
Move-in date | from October 1 | from April 1 |
Move-out date | March 31 (one semester) | September 30 |
September 30 (two semesters) |
Please note
- Your acceptance of the Service Package is binding and unconditional. You accept one of the dormitory places of the Student Union unconditionally, regardless of its location and type of this accommodation. Moreover, you agree with the payment policy. You will see your dormitory accommodation and will find out its type (single room or apartment), only when you move in.
- Rental agreements are legally binding documents. Contracts with the Student Union Munich and Upper Bavaria cannot be extended or terminated earlier.
- The accommodations are only available during a specific period. These periods (see section Deadlines above) are fixed and cannot be changed. Students who arrive prior to the official move-in date have to find their own accommodation for the period before the move-in date.
- Subletting is possible during the semester breaks after the consultation with the Student Union Munich and Upper Bavaria, but it is forbidden to sublet a dormitory accommodation for personal enrichment. Violations will lead to immediate termination of the rental agreement.
- Guests are allowed for short visits. Pets are not allowed.
Reservation & Moving in
Reservation of the dormitory accommodation
- While filling in the application form for your exchange at the TUM, in the section Further information please inform us about your wish to accept the Service Package offer. Participants of the TUMexchange mobility program also have to do this in order to get one of the Service Packages. You will receive either a confirmation or a rejection from the TUM Global & Alumni Office via email from mid-July for winter semester and from mid-Januar for summer semester. Until then, you can still change your mind. However, if you reject the dormitory place at this point, the TUM Global & Alumni Office cannot make you any further offer.
- Those, who got one of the dormitory places, will receive a document called Acceptance of Accommodation letter together with the information about the rent payment from the Student Union Munich and Upper Bavaria also via email the latest six weeks before the official move-in date.
- You have to sign this document and return it to the Student Union Munich and Upper Bavaria in digital form before the deadline. By sending back the signed Acceptance of Accommodation letter, you commit yourself to renting and paying for the accommodation.
- Three monthly rents and the refundable deposit must be transferred to the bank account of the Student Union before your arrival to Munich till the mentioned deadline. As soon as the Student Union receives the money, the dormitory accommodation will be reserved for you and you will be emailed your rental agreement to sign. You will find your exact address in Munich in the rental agreement.
- Additionally, you will receive important information about the key handover and the general location of the dormitory complex.
Information about the location of the accommodation
- The address of your dormitory accommodation can be found in the rental agreement, which will be sent to you via email by the Student Union. This happens after you have signed your Acceptance of Accommodation letter and transferred the money. Please note that unfortunately there is no way to send packages to the dormitory accommodation before moving-in.
Address for embassy documents
- In case you need an address in Munich for embassy documents, please note that it will be handed in later. In the meantime, you can submit the confirmation of the reservation or the Acceptance of Accommodation letter of the Student Union Munich and Upper Bavaria. If the embassy insists on having your address in Munich, you can hand in an address of one of the dormitories of the Student Union Munich and Upper Bavaria and inform the embassy about the change later.
Authorization for the key handover
- If you arrive outside of the house caretaker's opening hours for the key handover, you could ask a friend or a faculty buddy to collect the keys for you. In this case, you need to fill in the template below and hand it to this person. This person has to bring his or her passport (ID card) and a copy of your rental agreement as well.
Information for exchange students of other programs, e.g. Erasmus
The TUM Global & Alumni Office does not guarantee the provision of accommodation for exchange students from mobility programs such as Erasmus+, School partnerships and other programs. However, when applying for your stay, you also have the option of expressing your interest in a place in a hall of residence via the Service Package of the Student Union Munich and Upper Bavaria. You can do that in the application form for your exchange in Munich called Application for incoming students in the section Further information. If there are any dormitory places (Service Packages) left, they can also be offered to participants of other exchange programs such as Erasmus+. These places will be allocated according to an internal procedure. You will receive either a confirmation or a rejection from the TUM Global & Alumni Office via email from mid-July for winter semester and from mid-January for summer semester. Until then, you can still change your mind. However, if you reject the dormitory place at this point, the TUM Global & Alumni Office cannot make you any further offer.
Anyone who was not lucky enough to get one of the Service Packages will be put on the waiting list. Please start looking for suitable lodgings on the private housing market two months before the beginning of each semester, as the waiting list does not guarantee you any of these dormitory places. It is neither known if nor when one of the Service Packages can be reserved for exchange students from the waiting list, since it depends on other students' rejections.
Please understand that we cannot provide dormitory places for Practical Project Students coming to TUM to work on a research project for a limited period of time, but we can inform you about searching the private market.
Accommodation search tips
Are you coming to TUM for an exchange study through Erasmus+, a School partnership or other exchange programs, or as an Practical Project Student and still need to find accommodation for your stay in Munich or Garching? Then this video is for you.
We have compiled some important considerations and addresses for a successful search on the private housing market for you:
- Start early: Accommodations in Munich are in high demand. We recommend you start two months before the beginning of each semester.
- In-person meeting with a landlord: Come to Munich to visit rooms. It is impossible to find a room from abroad.
- Be careful with private offers: Do not transfer any money for a security deposit or a rent before you have visited the apartment, signed the rental agreement, and have got the keys.
First points of contact for looking for accommodation
- General information by TUM for finding accommodation
- TUM Living Apartment listings
- TUMint Student Relocation Service – by TUM International GmbH
- Dorms run by associations, churches, and social organizations
- Private accommodation service of the Student Union Munich and Upper Bavaria
- Further accommodation proposals on the webpage of the Student Union Munich and Upper Bavaria
Information about liability insurance in Germany
We recommend that you take out liability insurance for your stay in Germany. If, for example, you damage a piece of furniture in your rented apartment or cause an accident as a pedestrian, you must pay for the damage incurred. Liability insurance covers the costs of justified claims and protects you from unjustified claims at the same time.
In your home country
- Are you already insured for liability in your home country? Ask your provider whether the insurance is also valid in Germany.
- If not: Ask your local insurance company whether you can take out insurance cover for Germany there.
In Germany
- Some companies offer insurances for short stays, which you can take out online.
- Potential insurers are e.g. Dr. Walter or Mawista. However, it is entirely up to you whether you take out an insurance policy and which provider you choose.
Accommodation for exchange students at the locations Freising, Straubing, and Heilbronn
Exchange students studying at the TUM School of Life Sciences in Freising, at the TUM Campus Straubing, or in Heilbronn have their own contacts for housing issues, as both the housing situation and the procedures for finding housing differ from those in Munich and Garching.
If you have any questions, please contact the coordinator of your respective location directly:
Freising (TUM School of Life Sciences)
Website ǀ Email
Please note: Exchange students studying in Freising can apply for service packages, i.e. dormitory places provided by the Student Union Munich and Upper Bavaria, when applying for a stay at TUM via the online form Application for incoming students in the section 'Further information'.