Paying the grant back: when repayment is demanded and how much
Independent site: not the Ministry of Education
Enter your studies, field, credits enrolled and passed and what you received: the calculator says whether you would have to pay back and how much.
Example, not your result yet· change a figure to see yours
To pay back
€4,460
All components except tuition are paid back (call, art. 43.2).
| Passed | 45% |
| Minimum required | 50% |
Cancelling enrolment or dropping out also means paying back.
Prepared by Radif Partners · Method · Figures re-read in the BOE and the call on 8 November 2026
Getting the grant is not the end: when the year finishes, the university or school checks that you used it to study. Under article 43.2 of the 2026-2027 call, a university student must pass at least 50% of the credits enrolled, counting both regular and resit exams, or 40% in Sciences and technical fields. Falling short means paying back every grant component except tuition. Cancelling enrolment or dropping out has the same effect. In upper secondary and vocational training there are three conditions: not dropping out, attending 80% of teaching hours and passing 50% of subjects, credits or hours; if any fails, the whole grant is paid back. A threshold-1 Law student who received €4,460 and passes 27 of 60 credits would have to repay that €4,460, but not the tuition fee. Recognised or transferred credits do not count towards the percentage.
The repayment rules
| Studies | Minimum to avoid repayment | What is repaid if you fall short |
|---|---|---|
| Degree or master's, social, arts and health fields | 50% of credits enrolled | Everything except the tuition waiver |
| Degree or master's, Sciences and technical | 40% of credits enrolled | Everything except the tuition waiver |
| Upper secondary and VET | 50% passed and 80% attendance | The whole grant |
| Access course or languages | Whole course passed | The whole grant |
Would you have to pay back?
Example, not your result yet· change a figure to see yours
To pay back
€4,460
| Passed | 45% |
| Minimum required | 50% |
What counts and what does not
The percentage is worked out on credits enrolled in the grant year, leaving out recognised, transferred or adapted credits. Passes in either sitting of the year count. It is not the same as the requirement to get the grant the next year, which is higher: 90% in Social Sciences and Law against 50% for repayment. You may repay nothing and still lose the grant next year; the academic requirements page explains.
If you passed little for a serious reason
Repayment is a file in which you can object: under article 45 of the call, if your objections show the grant was justified, the file is closed. The call gives no list of excusing reasons, so explain your case in detail with documents, such as a medical report. The general framework is set by Royal Decree 1721/2007.
Remember the tuition waiver is not repaid for poor university results. In upper secondary and VET the rule is harsher: everything is repaid, including if you miss classes even with passes.
Two examples with the same results
A Physics student enrolled in 60 credits passes 24, or 40%: that reaches the minimum for the field, so nothing is repaid, although there will be no grant next year, since 65% is required for that. A Law student with the same 24 passes is also at 40%, below 50%, and repays everything received except tuition. Receiving another incompatible grant at the same time also triggers repayment, under article 55.6. Repayment files are opened by your region or university and resolved by the Ministry, which may add late-payment interest where it applies.
Who checks
When the year ends, regions and universities draw up the list of their grant holders and each college's registry checks, against the exam records, who reached the minimum. If you did not, you will receive a notice opening the file on the e-office, with a text-message alert to the phone number in your application. From then on you can object and provide evidence before it is decided.