| Tuition Fees: None in Austria, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Greece, Luxemburg or Sweden. |
| Grants and Loans: Most countries operate a system of grants, so that a high proportion of students have some form of financial assistance but in some countries -- Sweden -- this depends on local governments. A system of loans used in Germany, Luxemburg and Greece is spreading to other countries. |
| Means Testing: is applied in all countries except Denmark, Netherlands and Sweden. |
| Academic criteria: these are applied in most states, some stringently, e.g. in France and Belgium repeating a year leads to withdrawal of a grant. |
| Portability: Only Luxemburg and France guarantee full portability of grants within the European Union; Belgium, Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands for some parts of a course. |
| Family allowances: these are available in Belgium, Germany, Greece, Italy, Luxemburg, Netherlands. |
| Source: EURYDICE, The Main Systems of Financial Assistance for Students in Higher Education in the European Community, Brussels, June 1993. |