Emergency assistance

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Emergency assistance is available if you are experiencing unexpected and temporary financial hardship (for example: temporary loss of income, urgent expenses not covered by social insurance).

You can receive this assistance once per semester for a maximum of 3 months.

What types of emergency assistance are available?

You may need emergency assistance for several reasons:

you have lost your job,
to buy food and basic necessities,
to pay for your housing,
to buy equipment,
to participate in extracurricular activities,
to pay medical expenses in Switzerland (which are not covered by health insurance).

Who can apply for emergency assistance?

To apply for emergency assistance, you must:

be enrolled in a Bachelor's or Master's program at UNIGE or HES-SO Geneva,
be in urgent financial difficulty,
not have sufficient savings to cover the next three months.

Important: this assistance does not replace a monthly grant.

How do I apply for one-time emergency assistance?

Complete the online form,
Attach the required documents,
Submit your application.

Important: if you have already applied for financial assistance for the same academic year, the form may no longer be accessible. In this case, please write to us at: aides-financieres(at)unige.ch.

When should you apply for one-time emergency assistance?

For the fall semester: August 1 to December 20,
For the spring semester: January 15 to June 30.

Documents to provide for an emergency assistance request

To apply, you must provide certain documents:

a letter explaining your financial situation and why you are applying,
a copy of your identity document or residence permit,
the IBAN number of your personal bank account (if you are in the process of opening an account, let us know),
a financial support statement from your parents or a guarantor,
your latest tax notice (impôts):
- if you are under 25 or financially dependent on your parents or guarantors: their tax assessment notice,
the balances of your Swiss and foreign bank accounts,
your main income and expenses for the last 3 months (salaries, benefits, rent, insurance, etc.).

You can consult the list of documents to be provided for one-time emergency assistance in the financial assistance guidelines (page 8).

What should you do if your financial situation changes?

If your financial situation changes, you can submit a new application. Write to: aides-financieres(at)unige.ch.

Important:

We may ask you for additional documents to assess your situation.
This assistance does not replace a monthly grant.
Your application does not guarantee that you will receive emergency assistance.
We process applications in the order we receive them.
When you apply, you agree that UNIGE will exchange information with the Service des bourses et prêts d’études du canton de Genève (Geneva Canton Scholarship and Student Loan Service) and with the Hospice général.

Emergency assistance

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