HiWi or Werkstudent? The Two Routes to a Student Job in Germany

Two words come up when you look for your first job in Germany: HiWi and Werkstudent. Both are student jobs, both are perfectly legal — but they differ in tax, social insurance, hour limits and what they do for your CV. For international students, the wrong choice can even touch your residence permit.

This article compares them and flags the point that matters most for international students: the 140-day rule.

#Two jobs, two logics

That last row is the single most important thing here for an international student.

#The 140-day rule and the HiWi exception

A student residence permit (Section 16b AufenthG) allows you 140 full or 280 half working days a year. The law contains a clear exception: student assistant work at your own university generally does not count towards it.

In practice: a HiWi job does not consume your 140-day budget. So a HiWi contract plus holiday work at a company leaves you more room than company work alone.

Two cautions:

• The exception covers work at your own university; if you work on another institution's project, get your case confirmed by the immigration office.
• Exceeding the limit breaches the conditions of your stay and surfaces at renewal. Keep records: contract, payslips and a list of days worked.

#The Werkstudentenprivileg: this is where the money difference sits

The appeal of working-student status is less about the wage than about the deductions. As long as you stay within 20 hours a week during term:

• Health insurance: no contribution
• Long-term care insurance: no contribution
• Unemployment insurance: no contribution
• Pension insurance: yes — the employee share of 9.3% of gross pay

So far more of your gross stays with you. The privilege depends on student status: if your enrolment ends (see our guide to de-registration) it stops, and your employer must insure you as a regular employee.

Exceptions to the 20-hour rule: during semester breaks and for evening, night or weekend shifts the limit can be more flexible — but that is a rule of social insurance law. The 140-day limit for international students runs independently of it. Confusing the two is the most common mistake.

#Money: the 2026 figures

Three practical consequences:

1. A Minijob (up to €603): no health, care or unemployment contributions; you can apply to be exempted from pension contributions too.
2. Below €12,348 you get the income tax withheld during the year back through a tax return. Many students never file one and simply leave the money behind.
3. Negotiation: HiWi rates usually follow a university scale and are barely negotiable; Werkstudent pay is a market matter and runs markedly higher in IT and engineering.

For your tax number and first payslip see our Steuer-ID guide, and for cover our insurance comparison. The account your salary lands in is covered step by step in our bank account guide.

#Which one fits you?

Choose HiWi if you are considering an academic path, a doctorate or research; if contact with teaching staff matters to you; if you need flexible hours that bend around your timetable; if you want to protect your 140-day budget.

Choose Werkstudent if you intend to move into industry after graduating; if income is decisive for you; if you want experience of a German workplace and a company name on your CV; if you want to improve your chances of being kept on.

Best of all, do them in sequence: HiWi in your first year (easier linguistically and organisationally, flexible hours), then Werkstudent (income and network). A great many students take exactly this route.

#How to find them

HiWi: noticeboards at the institute, chair web pages, a direct e-mail to a lecturer. The last works best — a short, clear message to someone whose course you did well in. Write four to six weeks before term starts.

Werkstudent: company career pages, StepStone/Indeed, your university career centre, LinkedIn. If the application is requested in German, write in German. In IT, English-language postings are common.

#Frequently asked questions

#Can I do both at once?

Yes, but hours and the 140-day budget are assessed together (the HiWi exception aside). If your combined hours pass 20 per week, you lose the working-student privilege.

#Can I work full-time during semester breaks?

In social insurance terms, usually yes. But the 140-day limit applies to international students during breaks too — a full-time summer eats much of the budget.

#Does a HiWi contract really not count?

The law provides the exception for student assistant work at your own university. Even so, get your specific case confirmed in writing by the immigration office or your International Office before signing; practice varies between cities.

#How much tax will I pay?

If your annual earnings stay below €12,348, you end up owing no income tax; anything withheld comes back via a tax return. The 9.3% pension contribution still applies to a working-student job.

#Do I need German as a Werkstudent?

It depends on the sector. IT and research teams often work in English; in customer-facing roles (sales, HR, healthcare) German is effectively mandatory.

#Will the job lead to employment after graduation?

A working-student role is one of the most common routes into a permanent job in Germany: the company knows you and you know how it runs. We cover the status change afterwards in our Zweckwechsel article.

#Conclusion and honest advice

Do not decide on the hourly rate. The right question is: what do you want in your hand at graduation? References and an academic route point to HiWi; company experience and a job offer point to Werkstudent.

Whichever you choose, document two things: the days you work and the weekly hours in your contract. Those are exactly what you will be asked about at renewal, and keeping a simple table from day one saves hours later.

The amounts and rates here are current as of September 2026; the minimum wage, Minijob ceiling and tax allowances are adjusted annually, and employment practice varies by city. Your contract and your local immigration office's page are the authoritative sources.