IRegistration and Payment
Course attendance is only possible with prior and complete registration.
Registration takes place in person at the school or online via our website.
Trial lessons are possible by prior arrangement at the office.
Trial lessons are free of charge and can only be taken on one day (duration 45 min).
Payment is made by bank transfer or in cash at the school. Card payment is not possible.
The fee for one course level, for example A1.1, is 350 € and is fixed.
In the last week before the course starts, a processing fee of 40 € will be charged in addition to the course price.
In the event of a participant failing to appear for class (e.g. due to illness, an upcoming appointment, different working hours, etc.), there is no entitlement to a price reduction or refund.
Installment payments are only possible after prior arrangement with the school management and with written consent. Payment is made in two installments, according to an individually agreed arrangement.
Payments without prior approval will not be accepted and will be returned immediately.
By agreeing to an installment payment, the participant undertakes to pay the full course fee, regardless of whether the course is attended in full, in part, or not at all.
A reduction of the course fee or payment of only a single installment is not possible.
If an agreed installment is not paid on time, Phonem Sprachschule reserves the right to exclude the participant from lessons until full payment is made.
Exclusion from lessons does not release the participant from the obligation to pay. Outstanding amounts remain due in full.
In this case, Phonem Sprachschule expressly reserves the right to take legal action to recover outstanding claims.
A registration confirmation will be sent by email after payment.
If required, a certificate of attendance can be obtained at the end of the course. The certificate of attendance can only be issued if the course participant was present for at least 60% of the lessons.
Should a participant's personal information such as address, email address, telephone number, or name change, we ask you to inform Phonem of these changes immediately. This ensures that invoices, registration confirmations, and certificates can be issued correctly. In the event that changes to personal data are not reported, a processing fee of 10 € will be charged to cover the new creation of registration confirmations, invoices, or certificates.
Please note that courses can only be booked for a duration of 4 weeks (for morning and afternoon courses) or 6 weeks (for evening courses). It is not possible to book courses on a weekly basis. An exception exists if a course is not fully booked. In this case, a booking for at least 2 weeks is possible.
Reservation of a course place against a deposit of 50 € is only possible after personal arrangement at the office and with a signed agreement.
With the deposit, the course place is bindingly reserved and kept free for the participant. The reserved place cannot be assigned elsewhere during this period.
The remaining balance must be paid in full before the start of the course.
By concluding the reservation agreement, the participant undertakes to pay the full course fee, regardless of whether the course is attended later or not. The obligation to pay remains even in the event of withdrawal, non-attendance, or termination of the course.
Cancellation for reservations with a deposit is only possible more than 30 days before the start of the course. If the cancellation occurs less than 30 days before the start of the course, the full course fee remains due. In addition, the general regulations of Phonem Sprachschule regarding cancellations according to the AGB apply.
The deposit serves exclusively for the binding reservation of the course place and is non-refundable.
If full payment is not made on time, Phonem Sprachschule reserves the right to take legal action to recover outstanding claims.
Transfers or deposits without the prior written consent of Phonem Sprachschule will not be considered and may be returned.
With online registration, a course place is reserved for 3 days. If no payment is made within this period, the registration is automatically deleted. Re-registration is possible, subject to available places.
IIRebookings and Cancellations
A rebooking …
Rebookings per course level
More than 30 days before the start of the course = 50€
Less than 30 days before the start of the course = no rebooking possible
In the event of a cancellation …
We retain a processing fee of:
120€ for notifications more than 30 days before the start of the course.
Less than 30 working days before the start of the course = no cancellation or refund possible
Withdrawal must be made in writing.
Cancellation refers to one course level.
In the case of later cancellation or even at the start of the course, no cancellation is possible.
In the event of the participant failing to appear for the course without prior notification, no cancellation is possible.
In the event of a cancellation, the original registration confirmation must be returned.
IIICourse Schedule, Session Times, Public Holidays, Course Cancellation
The dates for the courses are always specified in advance, in the morning, afternoon, or evening, and cannot be changed.
The books for a level are not included and must be purchased by the participant before the start of the course.
Morning and Afternoon Courses
are held daily from Monday to Friday and last 3 hours + 15 minutes break.
One lesson unit lasts 45 minutes.
One course day contains 4 lesson units (4x45min = 3h) and thus 20 lesson units per week.
One course level, for example A1.1, lasts 4 weeks for morning and afternoon courses, which amounts to a total of 80 lesson units per month.
Evening Courses
are held three times a week on days specified in advance.
One course day contains 4 lesson units (4x45min = 3h) and thus 12 lesson units per week.
One course level, for example B2.1, lasts 6 weeks for evening courses, which amounts to a total of 72 lesson units per level.
Conversation Courses
are held either in the afternoon or evening, depending on the course schedule, two or three times a week. One lesson unit lasts 2 hours + 15 minutes break if required.
Prerequisites for the conversation course is a completed B1/B2 level.
The course lasts a total of 4 weeks and can be booked monthly.
Course Cancellation
If lessons fall on a public holiday, they will not take place. To compensate for the cancelled hour(s), additional materials in the form of worksheets, reading texts, exercises, etc. will be distributed by the teacher and worked on and discussed together on the next working day if required.
If a lesson is cancelled for reasons for which Phonem is responsible (e.g. illness of the teacher, etc.), the hours will be made up.
In the event that not enough participants have registered for a course, the course can be cancelled entirely by Phonem and postponed to a later date. In this case, the paid amount will of course be fully refunded.
In the event of a low number of participants (under 6 students), the lesson or course duration will be shortened (by 60 min), as the lesson is considered "individual/private tuition" in this case.
IVExamination and Certificate
The Examination …
consists of a written and oral part and is designed according to the CEFR.
The examination is included in the course price for Phonem participants and is held at the end of the complete level, e.g. at the end of the A1.2 course.
Makeup dates for examinations:
If you are unable to take part in the official examination date, it is possible to apply for an alternative date in consultation with the school management. Please note: Additional examination dates are subject to a fee and will be charged at 150 €. The new date is determined by the school and cannot be freely chosen.
The examination days (total of 2) are included in the lesson units and are agreed with the teacher at the start of the course.
Participants will receive all detailed information about the examination process from the teacher at the start of the course.
The examination for non-course participants costs 150€ and is held on the premises of Phonem.
Examination dates are agreed in advance with the office.
We do not offer naturalization tests or DTZ tests (German test for immigrants).
Certificate
The correction and issuance of the Phonem language certificate according to the CEFR takes place within 20 to 25 working days after the examination day.
The certificate is included in the course price for participants.
The certificate is a language certificate according to the CEFR (Common European Framework of Reference for Languages), included in the course price.
After successful completion of the course, participants receive a digital certificate as a PDF. This contains a QR code for forgery-proof verification. The file is valid for three years and can be digitally saved or printed at any time.
Lessons, final examination, and certificate are based on the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR). Please clarify with the respective target authority before registration which proof is required for your request. Phonem Sprachschule will not refund any costs if the wrong proof was chosen without prior clarification.
VLanguage Visa
Before registering and booking a course, please inform yourself at the German embassy in your home country about the regulations for issuing a visa.
Please apply for your visa in good time before the start of the course and pay attention to the long waiting times.
In order to receive an invitation letter for a German course from us, at least 4 courses must be fully booked and paid for in advance.
The invitation letter will be sent by email.
Rebooking: In the event of visa rejection (with proof provided) or longer waiting times, the booked course can be rebooked to a later date. The timing depends on the course schedule and cannot be determined by the participant. Therefore, it may take a few months until the desired course starts again.
If reported in good time (more than 30 days before the start of the course), the first rebooking can be free of charge.
For further rebookings or rebookings less than 30 days before the start of the course, the general rebooking regulations of Phonem Sprachschule according to the AGB apply in addition.
In the event of the participant failing to appear for the course without notification, no refund is possible.
Cancellation:
Cancellation of courses booked for the issuance of a language visa is only possible with the presentation of an official rejection notice from the embassy.
In the event of a proven visa rejection, the course fee already paid can be refunded. In this case, Phonem Sprachschule retains a processing fee of 180 €. The prerequisite for this is timely notification and the presentation of the official rejection notice.
Without official proof of visa rejection, a refund is excluded.
If the cancellation occurs for reasons other than an official visa rejection, the general cancellation regulations of Phonem Sprachschule according to the AGB apply.
Cancellation must be made in writing with proof sent. Only then will Phonem refund the course amount. However, Phonem does not cover additional costs such as transfer costs, processing fees, fees of the sending, receiving, and/or correspondent bank & exchange rates.
In the event of the participant failing to appear for the course without notification, no cancellation/refund is possible.
If, at the request of the participant, additional future courses are listed in the invitation letter or in the certificate for the language visa without these having already been paid for in full, the participant undertakes to book and pay for these courses in good time after arrival in Germany according to the agreed course schedule.
The inclusion of further courses in the certificate is exclusively for presentation to the embassy or foreigners' registration office and assumes the serious intention to actually attend the specified courses.
Should the participant not attend or not continue the planned courses without notification, a comprehensible reason, or contrary to the original information, Phonem Sprachschule reserves the right to pass on the current participation status and relevant changes to the competent authorities.
VIGeneral Provisions
In the event of damage caused by the participant, the course participant is liable and obliged to provide compensation.
In the event of loss of personal items, clothing, valuables, etc. or injuries sustained, Phonem is not liable.
For minors, parents/legal guardians assume full responsibility.
Phonem uses your personal data only for the purpose of course administration and will not be passed on.
In order to ensure the best possible support for course participants, data such as email addresses or WhatsApp/Telegram contacts of participants are used. This enables course participants to have all learned materials, photos of the board, course information, notifications, etc. processed in the course in digital form without limit.
Inappropriate Behavior
Insults, disrespectful behavior, disruption of lessons, or attacking teachers or other participants, in any form, will lead to immediate exclusion from the course. A refund of the course fees is excluded in these cases. The school reserves the right to issue a permanent ban on participation.
In the event of extraordinary circumstances beyond the control of Phonem Sprachschule, in particular strikes, extreme weather conditions, official orders, epidemics, pandemics, or other cases of force majeure, Phonem Sprachschule reserves the right to hold lessons either in person or alternatively online.
A refund of course fees, a course reduction, or a claim to make up lessons does not exist in these cases, provided that the lessons are properly offered and held in person or online.
If more than 50% of the course participants present agree to the lessons being held in an online format, the lessons can take place online. A claim to lessons exclusively in person does not exist in this case.
In the event of teacher absence, Phonem Sprachschule reserves the right to have the lessons held by a substitute teacher or alternatively online, provided that a substitute in person is not organizationally possible.
If more than 50% of the course participants present agree to the lessons being held in an online format, the lessons can take place online. A claim to lessons exclusively in person does not exist in this case.
In these cases, too, there is no entitlement to a refund, price reduction, or making up of lessons, provided that the lessons are properly held.
Right of Withdrawal
You have the right to withdraw from the contract with Phonem within fourteen days without giving reasons. The withdrawal period is fourteen days from the day on which you or a third party named by you took advantage of the service received.
To exercise your right of withdrawal, you must inform us in writing (letter or email) about the termination of the contract.
Upon withdrawal from the contract, we shall repay all payments received from you no later than fourteen days from the day on which we received the notification of your withdrawal from this contract.