Working as an international student: the 140-day rule explained

Days, not hours

The German rule counts days, which trips up everyone who arrives expecting an hours-per-week cap. A four-hour shift and a three-hour shift both cost you half a day. A nine-hour shift costs one day, the same as a five-hour one. That makes long shifts cheap and short frequent ones expensive in the only currency that matters here.

Two consequences worth planning around: consolidate your hours into fewer, longer days; and prefer working blocks during the semester break over scattered evenings across the year.

Per calendar year — not per semester

The ceiling resets on 1 January, not at the start of the winter semester. A student who works hard through the summer break and then takes a busy autumn job can be out of days by November, with the whole of the winter semester still ahead. Count from January and you'll never be surprised.

The exemption that's worth more than its wage

Work as a student assistant at your own university — a HiWi position, research or teaching support — is excluded from the count entirely. The hourly pay is often lower than a bar shift, but the days are free, the work sits next to your field, and the reference matters later. For most students this is the single best-value job on the market, and it is almost never advertised outside the department.

What the limit does not cover

Self-employment and freelancing are outside this permission. Doing paid project work as a freelancer without asking the immigration office first is a breach of your permit, not a grey area — and it can surface years later when you apply for a settlement permit.

Mandatory internships that your study regulations require are treated separately from voluntary work; ask your international office how yours is classified before you count days against it.