External research visits

An application for the reimbursement of travel expenses for external research visits which are related to a doctoral degree and benefit the dissertation may be submitted to the Graduate School. The prerequisite for reimbursement is that the doctoral candidate cannot fund the travel costs for the research visit themselves and that no other funding is available. In general, travel expenses must be kept to the minimum amount possible and all due effort given in this regard.

The reimbursement of travel expenses is governed by Section 5 LRKG NRW and is restricted to the country limits for international travel. Funds will be allocated by the principle of priority. A maximum of one reimbursement per doctoral candidate will be granted within a six month period (from the start date of the journey).

The following costs incurred for the following may be reimbursed:

• Flight tickets (economy class)
• Train tickets (second class)

Living costs such as rented accommodation, health insurance or fees charged by the host organization cannot be reimbursed.

Entitlement

Entitled to apply are only doctoral candidates at the Faculty of Law, who have not yet submitted their dissertation for evaluation and have not yet applied for admission to the doctoral examination procedure (§ 7 PromO). Applying for a reimbursement of travel expenses is not anymore possible after submitting the application for admission to the doctoral examination procedure as well as after the completion of the doctoral project.

How to apply

An application for reimbursement of travel expenses must be submitted to the Graduate School at least two months before the start of the international research visit. Please submit the following documents:

• Letter of motivation including the relevance of the visit to your research (including a calculation of costs, justification and a declaration of any funding which has been applied for or granted for travel expenses by another organization)
• Curriculum vitae in a tabular form
• Short summary of the dissertation including the most important aspects and research priorities (maximum of three pages)
• Invitation from the host organization (for example university or research institution) for the proposed international research visit
• Any documentation of the estimated travel expenses (for example quotations, printouts, flight bookings or train tickets)
• Confirmation letter from your supervisor which explains their reasons for supporting the research visit

Please use this form to apply.

Important information

If your application for reimbursement has been approved, you must present all original receipts related to the incurred travel expenses which clearly state the route or connection, time, destination and the exact costs for the expenses claim to be processed successfully. The reimbursement amount can only be paid out after these receipts have been received. In exceptional circumstances (and subject to the condition of repayment if applicable), an advance payment of 80 percent of the full amount may be granted. In this case, the application must have been made at least 14 days before the event and the amount must exceed 100 Euro.