Trainee

There are several administrative details you need to take care of before you start your traineeship with the ECB. Within the first few days of arriving in Germany you will also need to register with the German authorities and, if need be, open a SEPA compliant bank account.

Before coming to Frankfurt

Documents to be provided before the start of your traineeship

Once you have received your traineeship agreement, please send the following documents as soon as possible by post to the Security Division of the ECB:

• the privacy statement and security self-declaration form for selected candidates
• the original criminal record certificate (does not need to be translated into English)
• the medical certificate (please see the link below)
• a copy of your passport/ID card 

Please submit the medical certificate (see the link below) by email to [email protected]. 

On your first day at the ECB, you will receive a notification with a link asking you to review your personal data, to submit your bank account details and confirm your accommodation details via the “Start HR Process” app.

• Medical certificate

Security clearance

To protect the institution and its reputation, the ECB employs only individuals whose criminal history (if any) does not call into question their capacity to maintain high standards of professional ethics in the performance of their duties at the ECB. Please submit the completed privacy statement and security self-declaration form for selected candidates and a criminal record certificate (which does not need to be translated into English) before starting work at the ECB.

Please send both documents in the original by post to:

European Central Bank
Security Division - Clearance
Sonnemannstrasse 20
60314 Frankfurt am Main
Germany

To facilitate the security clearance process:

• send both documents together
• use your official name consistently on all documents
• ensure that all fields are filled in
• make sure your handwriting is legible
• send them to the Security Division – not to the HR department

Useful information:

• The time it takes to obtain a criminal record certificate can vary substantially depending on your country of residence. Make sure you start this procedure as soon as your intention to join the ECB is clear.
• We do not reimburse the cost of obtaining a criminal record certificate.
• Your security clearance will be granted solely on the basis of these two documents.
• In most cases, we process security clearance within five working days.

Please contact us via e-mail if you have any concerns or questions regarding security clearance.

Have a look at the introduction to security clearance for more information.

[email protected] Security self-declaration form Introduction to security clearance

Medical clearance

You must provide a medical certificate, in English, confirming that you are “fit to start your traineeship at the ECB" prior to your traineeship start date. This certificate can be issued by your general practitioner and need not be accompanied by any medical examination results. The certificate must be submitted by email in PDF format only (no hard copies).

Medical certificate

Trainee grant

As of 1 December 2023, the trainee grant is the exact amount of €1,170 per month. The trainee grant is increased to €2,120 per month for trainees who have completed at least two years of PhD study and who apply for a traineeship vacancy that requires such a level of qualification.

You will receive a letter specifying the amount of your trainee grant. No tax is deducted from this grant by the ECB. Please note, however, that it may be taxable in your home country.

Accommodation

If the distance from your place of recruitment to the ECB exceeds 50 km and you decide to temporarily relocate, we will pay for your accommodation for the duration of your stay. You can either stay in one of the residences with which the ECB has a special arrangement or receive a lump sum for temporary accommodation and move into your own temporary private accommodation. Please see Private accommodation and lump sum for temporary accommodation for further information.

If the distance from your place of recruitment to the ECB is less than 50 km and you decide to temporarily relocate, please bear in mind that you will not receive a lump sum for temporary accommodation for private accommodation. You can, however, request accommodation in one of the residences with which the ECB has a special arrangement.

To ensure that only those colleagues who are eligible can reserve a place in one of the residences, the ECB regularly provides the residences with encrypted lists containing certain contract details. This also allows the ECB to comply with its legal obligation to provide initial accommodation to staff, as set out in the rules governing the ECB’s traineeship programme.

Privacy statement for temporary accommodation

ECB residences

The ECB has agreements in place with the following four main accommodation providers: 

• Living Hotel Appartements Johann Wolfgang;
• Apartment Residenz;
  
• Mercure Hotel & Residenz Frankfurt Messe;
• studiomuc.

If you opt to stay in one of these residences, you will be offered a self-catering apartment (for single occupancy), which includes a kitchenette and a bathroom. The ECB will pay your invoice for the single occupancy directly, but any costs for higher occupancy as well as for any other non-covered items (such as laundry services, room service or potential damage caused to the apartment during your stay) must be paid directly to the residences by the trainees themselves. For this reason, the residences may ask you for your credit card details or another form of payment guarantee.

You may check in one day prior to your first working day and check out one day after your last working day. Please book directly via email (not via any online booking system) at least 15 days prior to your check-in date. Once booked, any issues related to your stay at any of the residences should be taken up with the provider directly. Please contact the ECB if you have cancelled your reservation and would like to request the €750 lump sum for temporary accommodation instead. See Private accommodation and lump sum for temporary accommodation for further information.

Please note that your accommodation arrangements will not be automatically extended if your contract with the ECB is extended, nor will your accommodation arrangements be automatically cancelled if you decide to terminate your ECB contract prematurely (including contract switches). In such cases you will need to take further action. Please see the relevant steps on this website.

Cancellation policy

The minimum period for your stay is one calendar month. Your stay will end automatically at the end of the period contracted with the residence.

If you wish to move out of the accommodation before the end of the contracted period, you can only do so on the 14th calendar day or last day of a month, and you must notify the residence in writing at least 14 days in advance (this also applies if you decide to terminate your contract with the ECB prematurely or if you switch contract types).

If you decide not to take up your booking, the following notice periods apply:

• If the first day of your booking falls in the period from the first to the 14th day of the month, you must notify the residence in writing at least 14 days before the end of the month preceding the start date of your booking.
• If the first day of your booking falls in the period from the 15th day to the end of the month, you must notify the residence in writing at least 14 days before the start date of your booking.

If for any reason you fail to cancel your booking in line with the conditions set out above and this generates additional costs for the ECB, the ECB will charge you the rental cost of your accommodation until the next possible date on which the contract can be terminated. Get in touch with your residence directly to find out about the costs involved if you fail to respect the cancellation policy when terminating the contract early.

Important information

The following steps must be strictly observed when looking for an apartment in one of the above residences:

• Contact any of the providers listed above as soon as possible (i.e. directly after having signed your contract) prior to your planned arrival date, quoting your staff ID, which you can find on your contract. Please ask if they have fixed order apartments available. Note: it is extremely important that you ask for fixed order apartments only.
• If the provider of your choice does not have fixed order apartments available, please make sure to contact the next provider(s) of your choice and ask for fixed order apartments.
• If none of the above providers have fixed order apartments available, please contact the providers according to their ranking and ask if they have reserved apartments available:
  • 1st ranked: Living Hotel Appartements Johann Wolfgang; 
  • 2nd ranked: Apartment Residenz; 
  • 3rd ranked: Mercure Hotel & Residenz Frankfurt Messe;
  • 4th ranked: studiomuc.

• In order to ensure that you can benefit from our apartment agreements, your booking needs to be confirmed by the provider at the latest 15 days prior to your check-in date.
• If none of the providers have fixed order apartments or reserved apartments available, please contact [email protected] as soon as possible and at least 7 days prior to your planned arrival date. The Accommodation Team will arrange an apartment for you in one of the above-listed residences or in further ECB contracted residences. For all ECB residences, the conditions outlined on this website apply.
• Please note that non-adherence to the above guidelines may lead to the ECB being unable to assume the costs for your apartment – you may also not be allocated an apartment for your desired check-in date.
• Please also note that you may be allocated to another residence if the aforementioned providers do not have spare capacity.

For contractual reasons, depending on the occupancy levels in the various residences, you may be asked to move residences during your stay – this is especially likely if your contract with the ECB is extended and you want to continue benefiting from the residences. If this happens, the above procedures need to be observed again and consequently there is no guarantee that you will stay in your current residence. You will not be able to refuse an ECB request to move residences, except if you decide to move to privately arranged accommodation, in which case you can apply for a lump sum for temporary accommodation (see below).

We wish you a very nice stay at your accommodation. Should you have any questions, please contact [email protected].

Private accommodation and lump sum for temporary accommodation

If you would prefer to move into private accommodation instead of staying at one of the residences above, you may opt to receive an accommodation allowance by informing us of your decision via the “Start HR Process” app once you have joined the ECB. In that case, you will need to attach a copy of the rental agreement in your name, as well as a copy of your address registration certificate (Meldebestätigung) issued by the German registration office. If your request is approved, you will receive a lump sum of €750/month. This lump sum for temporary accommodation still applies in the event of external assignment where no accommodation is provided. If you move from one of the ECB's residences into private accommodation, please comply with the cancellation policy outlined above.

Travel arrangements

If the distance from your place of residence to the ECB exceeds 50 km and irrespective of the means of transport used, the ECB pays the following lump sums on appointment (and later on termination) of service (aimed at covering all travel costs of your journey):

Please make your own travel arrangements as soon as possible upon receipt of the signed agreement. You do not need to submit documentation pertaining to your travel arrangements – the relevant lump sum will be paid via the payroll after you have joined the ECB.

Useful information

There are restricted traffic zones/low emission zones within the city centre (Umweltzone/green zone) where only cars displaying specific environmental badges/stickers (Feinstaub-Plaketten) are allowed to circulate. The badges/stickers can be obtained for €5 at the Kfz-Zulassungsstelle, in the Bürgerämter in Frankfurt, at TÜV, DEKRA and car garages. You will need to bring your car ID (Fahrzeugschein) in order to buy them. Vehicles without an environmental badge/sticker may not pass through the green zone and penalties apply.

After your arrival in Frankfurt

Registration with the German authorities

Within two weeks of arriving in Germany, you must register your place of residence with one of the Bürgerämter (registration offices) of the town/city in which you live. This must be done in person. You do not have to register if your stay in Germany will not exceed three months. But it is advisable to do so if there is a possibility that your traineeship with the ECB is likely to be extended beyond this time period (as it may help avoid an unnecessary fine).

If you are married, or have children, the original marriage and birth certificates need to be provided with the International Certificate or a certified German translation. If you are divorced, the same applies for the divorce certificate.

You will also need to present a letter from your landlord/rental property manager confirming that you are renting accommodation. This letter has to include the name and address of the landlord/rental property manager, the date on which you will be moving in, the address of the rental property and your name. Failure to comply could result in a €1,000 fine for the landlord.

Planning to live in Frankfurt?

A full list of registration offices in Frankfurt can be found here.

Note that you will receive a verbal warning if you only manage to register with the Frankfurt authorities between two and four weeks of taking up residence in this city. Thereafter, you may be fined. Fines start at €15 and the amount payable will depend on the length of the delay.

EU nationals do not need a residence permit

A German residence permit is not required for EU citizens. The Meldebescheinigung (the certificate issued when registering your place of residence with a local registration office, i.e. a Bürgeramt) – together with your personal ID card or passport – is sufficient proof that you are officially registered in Germany as a citizen of another EU country.

Bank account

Your salary and benefits can be paid into any account in the European Union, provided that your bank is SEPA-compliant. You can also open a bank account in Germany (leaflets on the various banks are available at the Staff Info Point in room HS 15.10 of the main building).

Many banks require their clients to register their place of residence at a local Bürgeramt (please see the section on Registration with the German authorities) before they can open a new bank account.

Your bank account details can be provided by completing your personal data via the Start HR Process app once you have joined the ECB.

Health insurance

ECB health insurance

Trainees who do not already have their own insurance can join the ECB health insurance scheme for a monthly premium of 7.2% of their traineeship grant – a third of the cost is paid by the trainee and the remaining two-thirds by the ECB. The ECB’s health insurance is administered and re-insured by Allianz Care. The legally binding insurance conditions are contained in the ECB’s Staff Rules. You can opt to be covered by ECB’s health insurance scheme when you submit your personal data via the Start HR Process app once you have joined the ECB.

Non-ECB health insurance

If you already have health insurance that you would prefer to retain during your traineeship, you need to inform us of your decision when you submit your personal data via the Start HR Process app and submit a copy of your alternative medical coverage or national medical insurance card (e.g. the European Health Insurance Card, which can be obtained from the authorities in your home country). In this case, you will have to pay all related contributions yourself and have to ensure that your own health insurance provides sufficient coverage and meets the requirements for health insurance in Germany.

Staff Rules: health insurance

Accident insurance

Participation in the ECB’s accident insurance scheme is compulsory for all trainees. It provides 24-hour worldwide cover against all work-related accidents. It also covers work-related accidental death and disability benefits.

Cost of accident insurance

For trainees, the total premium for this insurance is paid fully by the ECB.

Cover for dependants

Family members are not covered by this insurance.

Advisory service on non-ECB health and long-term care insurance

When you start working at the ECB you may have questions about your insurance. Should I participate in the ECB health insurance? What benefits does it cover and how do they compare to my current plan? Should I include my family members? What options do I have when leaving the ECB? Can I go back to the national health system in my home country once I leave the ECB?

The ECB’s external insurance advisor, Funk Vorsorgeberatung GmbH (Funk), will answer your questions and provide the information you need to make a decision.

Contacts

Funk can be reached by phone from Monday to Friday, 10:00-15:00 CET (hotline: +49 30 250092-911) or via email ([email protected])

Public transportation benefit

On your first working day you will be able to order a monthly job ticket for public transportation. This is offered by the ECB in cooperation with RMV, the Frankfurt regional public transportation association, and offers attractive discounts of up to 38% more than regular RMV seasonal tickets.