Semester Ticket
Nowadays, being mobile is very important. Every student of Paderborn University receives a Semesterticket with which they can travel all around North Rhine-Westphalia.
You will receive your semester ticket digitally only. Click here to get directly to the application and to the detailed instructions.
The application is only possible as soon as the re-registration for the corresponding semester was successful (visible in PAUL under Meine Daten > Persönliche Daten > Semesterstatus).
If you have any technical questions or problems, please contact the IMT. If you have general questions about the semester ticket, we will be happy to help.
For convenient use of the semester ticket, we have developed an app that you can download here:
Area of Validity of the UPB Semester Ticket
The Semester Ticket is valid in NRW on these modes of transportation:
- trams
- subways
- buses
- local trains, (RB, RE, S-Bahn) even if they do not belong to DB Regio (Eurobahn, NordWestBahn, Abellio)
- night buses in Paderborn (in other cities, night buses might fall under different tarif regulations, it might therefore be possible that you have to pay an extra fee or that the semester ticket is not valid there)
Outside of NRW the Semester Ticket is only valid
– on these train routes:
- Höxter-Lüchtringen – Holzminden
- Lügde – Hameln
- Vlotho – Hameln
- Ibbenbüren-Laggenbeck – Bünde (Westf)
- Lengerich (Westf) – Osnabrück Hbf
- Halen – Osnabrück Hbf
- Westbarthausen – Osnabrück Hbf
- Au (Sieg) – Niederschelden Nord
- Betzdorf – Struthütten
- Gronau – Enschede
- Wehrden – Bodenfelde – Göttingen
- Warburg – Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe (RE11/17)
- Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe – Kassel Hbf (in den Zügen der RT, HLB, DB Regio, KHB)
- Hameln – Hannover Hbf (S5)
– on buses on these routes:
- City area of Osnabrück
- Alstätte – Enschede (bus line T88)
FAQ - Semester Ticket
You can get your ticket via the IMT Serviceportal or Deutsche Bahn webshop. You can find a detailed guide on how to do this here.
The application is only possible as soon as the re-registration for the corresponding semester was successful (visible in PAUL under My Data > Personal Data > Semester Status).
The semester ticket is valid not only as a printout but also as a PDF file that is being displayed on a smartphone or any other electronic device (such as tablets, laptops, etc.). In any case, the semester ticket is only valid in combination with a photo ID.
To ensure a comfortable experience with the digital semester ticket, we have coded a dedicated app which you will find here:
Please note: The AStA assumes no liability if the ticket in the app is not accepted by the transport companies or if the app malfunctions. Therefore, always carry your semester ticket with you in printed form or as a PDF file as a backup.
Every enrolled student of Paderborn University receives a semester ticket. In combination with your Student ID, it will enable you to take local buses and trains across the entire state of North Rhine-Westphalia (no ICEs and no first-class seating!). Furthermore, it is valid on selected routes outside of NRW (see above). Please note that in using the semester ticket, you automatically accept the terms and conditions of each respective transit company. For NRW and the route to Hanover, you can find these here; on route to Kassel the terms and conditions of the NVV are valid; and on route to Göttingen you will automatically accept the terms and conditions of the NWB.
No, that is not possible for most cases. There are a few exceptions. You can find these exceptions, as well as how to apply for a refund, below.
The semester ticket is valid for the entire semester, i.e. during the winter term from 1 October to 31 March and during the summer term from 1 April to 30 September. It is valid 24/7, even during the semester break.
For newly enrolled students/first semester students, the semester ticket is already valid on certain routes one month before the start of the semester, i.e. from September 1/March 1. The regular semester ticket must be applied for and can be used in conjunction with a valid certificate of study. These include the bus services in the districts of Paderborn and Höxter, the rail services of DB Regio NRW (only on these routes) as well as the route Hameln – Hannover Hbf (line S5) and the route Wehrden – Bodenfelde – Göttingen (line RB85).
If you have difficulties with the staff of the Deutsche Bahn or if you are fined, please write us an email with the day and train/bus on which the incident occurred, if applicable the ticket and your semester ticket as PDF. We will then take care of it.
Yes, exchange students can use the semester ticket as soon as they have paid the semester fees and proven health insurance. The semester fees need to be transferred into the specific university account. Please remember to state your matriculation number!
As of winter semester 2021/22, the semester tickets need to be downloaded online. They will not be dispatched through the post and cannot be picked up personally.
You can use all the night buses in Paderborn and most of the night buses in the Rhine-Ruhr area (VRR) without paying an additional fee. Some night buses in other areas of North Rhine-Westphalia have special rates and may afford an extra fee. In some areas, the semester ticket may not be valid for night buses at all, as for example in Bielefeld.
No, that is not possible. In general, the ticket is only valid for the person whose name is printed on the semester ticket.
The only exception are children under these conditions in the following areas:
You are allowed to take any number of children under the age of six without paying an extra fee. However, on the route from Warburg to Kassel this is limited to a maximum of three children under the age of six. In addition, children below the age of 7, who are not yet attending school, are entitled to cost-free transportation throughout NRW until their first day of school (the school year usually officially starts on August 1st of any given year).
Additionally, in the rail transport from DB Regio NRW (see map) you are allowed to take a maximum number of three children between the ages of 6 and 14 with you without any additional fees. These same conditions also apply for the entire VPH area (Paderborn/Höxter), as well as on the routes Hameln – Hannover Hbf (rail line S5) and Wehrden – Bodenfelde – Göttingen (rail line RB85). In the other transit areas any additional persons over the age of six are not allowed on your semester ticket.
No, you will have to pay an extra fee. In most cases, it costs approximately 5€.
An exception are folding bikes, which can be transported without any extra cost. The same holds true for e-bikes and e-scooters. This explicitly applies only to foldable e-scooters and e-bikes. This regulation is valid in the entire NRW area as well as on the trains to Hanover and Göttingen. Moreover, on the train to Kassel you can also transport a regular bike without any additional cost. However, please note that if the train is too crowded, baby strollers and wheelchairs are prioritized.
No! If you want to protect your semester ticket from dirt or other harm, you can put it in a transparent folder. You can get one for free at the AStA Service (ME U 205).
For newly enrolled students/first semester students, the semester ticket is already valid on certain routes one month before the start of the semester, i.e. from September 1/March 1. The regular semester ticket must be applied for and can be used in conjunction with a valid certificate of study. These include the bus services in the districts of Paderborn and Höxter, the rail services of DB Regio NRW (only on these routes) as well as the route Hameln – Hannover Hbf (line S5) and the route Wehrden – Bodenfelde – Göttingen (line RB85).
If you have difficulties with the staff of the Deutsche Bahn or if you are fined, please write us an email with the day and train/bus on which the incident occurred, if applicable the ticket and your semester ticket as PDF. We will then take care of it.
Semester Ticket Refund
The semester ticket is an obligatory part of the semester fee. In exceptional cases, however, a (partial) refund can be applied for. This is possible if one of the following cases applies:
- Students with disabilities who are entitled to cost-free public transportation according to the SGB IX. An official and valid disability ID, including a public transport pass, suffices as proof to apply for a refund of the semester ticket.
- Students can apply at the Studierendensekretariat for a vacation semester (e.g. for a semester abroad or internship). Once this application has been confirmed, you are entitled to apply for a semester ticket refund. Please note that the application for a refund must be submitted before the start of your vacation semester. If your application is approved, you are no longer entitled to use the semester ticket.
- Students who will cease to stay enrolled: Should you conclude your current study program, this rule applies until the end of the second month of a new semester. In this case, a partial refund will be granted only for the complete months that students won’t be enrolled for anymore. In case you don’t re-enroll for a new semester, the deadline for application is before the new semester commences. Once the exmatriculation process is completed, you are no longer entitled to use the semester ticket.
- In addition, you can get a partial refund for the regional semester ticket, if you can prove that you have spent or will spend at least four months of the semester in question outside of the area of validity of the regional semester ticket (for an overview of the area of validity, please consult the map enclosed in the below mentioned form). In this case, the partial fee for the NRW semester ticket is due nonetheless. Proof can be issued by authorities, employers, universities or – in case of sickness or injury – hospitals. In order to apply for this partial refund, you are asked to submit this form to the AStA social office until 1 March (for the current winter term) or 1 September (for the current summer term) at the latest. We will then let you know until one week before the end of the semester at the latest, if your application is sufficient. Once your application has been confirmed, you must then upload the filled-out form to PAUL (“Study”>”Study Organisation”>” STS Erstattungsantrag Schwerbehinderung / Aufenthalt außerhalb Regioticket”). Please note that subsequent refunds for past semesters are not possible!
All of the abovementioned applications (e.g. application for semester ticket refund, application for vacation semester etc.) have to be submitted via PAUL (“Study”>”Study Organisation”). If you have any further questions regarding the refund, please contact the AStA social office directly.