Semester Ticket/ FAQ (from April 2024)

From the summer semester 2024, the Deutschland-Semesterticket will be available for all students at TU Dortmund University.

This means that TU Dortmund University will continue to offer a jointly financed and, above all, affordable semester ticket! The regulations of the current VRR semester ticket still apply until March 31, 2024. You can find all the information here.

With the new semester ticket, you can use public transport throughout Germany. The ticket is only valid in second class. As the tariff regulations of the Deutschlandticket unfortunately do not provide for this, there will no longer be any take-along regulations (person and bicycles). In principle, the fare regulations of the general Deutschlandticket always apply to the Deutschland Semesterticket.

The semester ticket must be presented digitally in the TU Dortmund University app during inspections (in combination with an official photo ID).

Students with a free travel entitlement, e.g. due to a disability, will continue to be able to have the semester ticket fee refunded. You can find all information on ticket refunds here.

We have created an FAQ with the most frequently asked questions. If you have any further questions or problems with the ticket, you can contact us at any time.

Further general information on the Deutschland-Ticket, which usually also applies to the semester ticket, can be found here:

The semester ticket is valid on all public transport in Germany. This includes regional expresses (Regionalexpresse), regional trains (Regionalbahnen), suburban trains (S-Bahnen), light rail (Stadtbahnen), streetcars (Straßenbahnen), subway trains (U-Bahnen), buses (Busse), the H-Bahn, the Wuppertal suspension railroad (Schwebebahn) and the SkyTrain Düsseldorf. The ticket is only valid in second class.
The semester ticket is not valid
  • in first class,
  • on (almost all) long-distance trains (ICE, EC, IC, Flixtrain),
  • on the AirportExpress and AirportShuttle to Dortmund Airport.
The ticket costs 29.40 euros per month and therefore 176.40 euros per semester.
No, the Deutschlandsemesterticket is personalized and cannot be passed on. Only the registered person may use the ticket.
The ticket must be presented digitally in the TU Dortmund app. You are responsible for ensuring that your cell phone has enough battery power. There is currently no alternative way to show the ticket.

You must always have an official photo ID with you!

The TU app is available in the Google Play Store and the App Store.
For Android smartphones without access to the Google Play Store, TU Dortmund University offers a download option in the service portal.
No. Unfortunately, the fare regulations for the Deutschland-Ticket do not allow you to take a bicycle with you free of charge. If you want to take a bicycle with you, you have to buy a bicycle ticket.
The VRR offers a 24-hour bicycle ticket as well as subscription or monthly tickets.
No. Passenger transport is not possible with the Deutschland-Semesterticket.
Exception: Children under the age of 6 always travel free of charge. They do not need a ticket.
Yes, at least in NRW you can take a dog with you free of charge everywhere. Outside NRW, different regulations apply depending on the transport association.
Yes, the semester ticket is also valid on some routes in the border area. For example, you can travel to Arnhem, Enschede, Venlo and Hengelo. You can find detailed information on the area of validity of the Deutschland-Ticket on the Homepage of Deutsche Bahn (currently only in German).
Basically no. However, there are a few exceptions. Please refer to the Homepage of Deutsche Bahn for more information (currently only in German). Currently (as of February 2024), for example, the Intercity trains Dortmund-Siegen-Dillenburg are also open to passengers with a Deutschlandticket.
The Deutschlandsemesterticket is always valid for one semester. This means that it is valid from October 1 to March 31 in the winter semester and from April 1 to September 30 in the summer semester. The ticket cannot be canceled on a monthly basis.
Once you have enrolled/re-registered and paid the full semester fee, TU Dortmund University will make your ticket available for download in the TU app. This can take up to two weeks after payment.
It can take up to two weeks for your payment to be processed. As we have no insight into the payment of semester fees, please contact the Registrar's Office (regarding receipt of payment) or the ITMC (regarding ticket generation) if you have any problems.

Contact options and further help with your ticket can be found here.
If your semester ticket does not work, please contact the ITMC immediately so that they can help you with your problem as quickly as possible.
It is important that you always object to this claim in writing in such cases! If you do not do this and the deadline set has expired, then in most cases you will have to pay the amount.

Here you can easily file an objection with Deutsche Bahn. If, contrary to expectations, Deutsche Bahn insists on paying the fare surcharge, please contact us at the AStA.
As you have a valid ticket, you will of course not have to pay the €60. You have 14 days after the fare supplement has been issued to submit your valid ticket, but you will have to pay a processing fee of €2.50 to €7 depending on the transport company. Where you have to submit the ticket is stated on the fare supplement.
Yes, for holders of the Deutschland-Semesterticket, the NRW mobility guarantee applies for journeys in NRW.
If the departure of the desired train deviates at least 20 minutes from the timetable, for example due to a delay or cancellation, you can either use a long-distance train (IC/EC/ICE), a cab, a taxi-like transport service provider, a sharing service (e.g. car, bike or e-scooter) or on-demand transport.

The additional costs will be reimbursed on request - in full for long-distance travel (IC/EC/ICE) and up to the applicable reimbursement limit for cabs, transport services, sharing services or on-demand transport; this is up to EUR 30 per person during the day and up to EUR 60 per person in the evening and at night from 8 p.m. to 4.59 a.m. nationwide. If you use the mobility guarantee, you have to pay in advance for the use of an alternative means of transport. You can then simply submit a digital claim to have the costs reimbursed.

You have 14 days to submit the application. You can find everything else about the NRW mobility guarantee here (currently only in German).

Other federal states have different regulations!
We recommend the purchase of a normal Germany ticket.

If you are a first semester student, you can pick up an authorization certificate for a VRR pre-course ticket from us. This gives you a ticket valid in the VRR area to get to university before you enrol. However, this pre-course ticket costs 64.50 euros (as of February 2024) and therefore more than the Deutschlandticket. It is only worthwhile in a few exceptional cases: Unlike the Deutschlandticket, it is not limited to one calendar month - the period of validity is 30 calendar days from the first day of validity, which can be freely chosen.

You will receive the eligibility certificate for the pre-course ticket from us on presentation of proof of your pre-course participation. You can either drop by our office during our opening hours (Emil-Figge-Str. 50) or send us an email with your address and proof to asta@asta.tu-dortmund.de.

With the certificate of eligibility (stamped and signed by us with the AStA stamp) you can purchase the ticket from the public transport companies in the VRR, in Dortmund for example at the DSW21 customer centers.
Just because you don't want to use your semester ticket doesn't mean you can "deselect" it. The semester ticket was introduced on the basis of a ballot of the student body and is a solidarity ticket. Because everyone pays, it is cheaper for everyone.

If you are unable to use your ticket, e.g. because you are on leave of absence or spending a semester abroad, you can have the ticket refunded. You can find more information about this here.
If you are entitled to free travel (e.g. due to a disability), you can have the cost of the semester ticket reimbursed. You can find the application here.
Yes, the VRR offers 1st class supplementary tickets that allow you to use 1st class in the VRR area in conjunction with your semester ticket. You can find more information on the VRR homepage.
If our FAQ did not help you, you can try to find an answer on the websites of VRR and Mobil NRW. Alternatively, get in touch with us (by phone, e-mail or drop by) and we'll be sure to find a solution together.
Semester Ticket