Inability to take an examination due to illness

From 1 January 2025, a medical certificate confirming inability for examinations due to illness will be required in accordance with § 36 Abs. 10 of the Sächsisches Hochschulgesetz. A certificate of incapacity for work (‘yellow paper’) is not sufficient! 

As part of the change in the law, Leipzig University provides a form for proof of incapacity for examinations due to illness, which is limited to the necessary information required under examination law. The medical certificate can also be issued informally, provided it contains the required information. The student declaration for withdrawal or cancellation due to illness, missing an examination due to illness or the interruption of processing times can be found on the back of the form. This declaration can also be made informally. 

The form does not ask for information describing the health impairment or the exact diagnosis.

However, the legal regulations stipulate that further information on the health impairment may be requested in exceptional cases, in particular if

• students are conspicuously often or conspicuously often only unable to take certain examinations,
• a prior announcement of the inability to take examinations would appear to be abusive,

• the inability to take examinations has been determined by a doctor who has become conspicuous due to the frequency or manner of the certificates of inability to take examinations issued by him or her 

  or

• the assumption of doubt is justified on the basis of other evidence.

You will be informed if a qualified medical certificate and, in case of doubt, an official medical certificate with further information on the health impairment is required in your case. 

The submission of the new proof is not based on the examination date or the date of submission of an examination, but on the date of entry (initial certificate) or the continuation of the inability to take the examination (follow-up certificate). 

In concrete terms, this means that if the doctor determines that you are still unable to take an examination in 2024 (up to and including 31 December 2024), the certificate of incapacity to take an examination due to illness that was previously accepted for your degree programme will apply. If the doctor determines that you are unable to take the examination on or after 1 January 2025, the new form must be used.

The medical certificate, which can be found on the first page of the form, must be submitted for 

• examinations that take place on a specific examination day, usually no later than the day of the examination (e.g. examination date)
• for examinations with longer processing times (e.g. term papers) within the processing time, usually at the latest from the day for which the inability to take the examination is claimed

The form with both fully completed and signed declarations must be submitted to the faculties and the responsible contact persons immediately, i.e. no later than the fourth working day after the doctor's visit (the date of receipt or receipt applies!). The specific submission modalities and responsible contact persons can be found on the homepage of your study office.

A decision will be made on the application based on the certificate and your declaration.

If the application is approved, a sick note will be entered in the AlmaWeb portal for the corresponding examination (see: Examinations > Module results > Select module > Examination) and you will be registered for the next possible examination date. You do not have to register again for this date.

However, if the processing time of an examination with a longer processing time (e.g. term paper) is to be interrupted due to illness, you will be informed of a new submission date (postponed by the days of the examination incapacity) via AlmaWeb after approval. In this context, please note that the examination work may not be continued during this interruption period. 

You must pay the fees incurred for the issue of the medical certificate, qualified medical certificate or official medical certificate yourself. Please ask your treating doctor for the amount of the fees.

Teacher training programmes:

• In the teacher training programmes, a certificate of incapacity to work is still sufficient for non-attendance at school due to illness (practical school studies). However, if examinations are also to be taken during the same period, the form for proof of incapacity for examinations due to illness (medical certificate) and student declaration must also be submitted.

State examinations:

• For state examinations, different proof requirements may apply due to state or federal regulations.