The Voluntary Social Year (FSJ)

Period of deployment
An FSJ usually lasts 12 months, but at least six and a maximum of 18 months. If you are between 16 and 27 years old and are interested in an FSJ, you must first contact a legally approved institution.

In order to carry out the FSJ and consequently to function as a place of assignment, the Senate Department for Education, Youth and Family must approve the sponsor of the FSJ.

Sponsors of the Voluntary Social Year If you want to be recognised as a sponsor of the Voluntary Social Year (FSJ) in Berlin, please contact the information office of the Senate Department for Education, Youth and Family for referral to the appropriate office. On the current list you will find the FSJ organisations recognised in the State of Berlin:

• List of FSJ sponsors (as of october 2020)
• Youth portal jup!, Information about the sponsors in the FSJ
• Information for administrations, partners, EU

In addition to welfare and health care facilities, the FSJ assignment locations are increasingly also children’s and youth welfare facilities, including the field of extracurricular youth education and youth work.

The FSJ in sports, the FSJ in culture and the FSJ in monument preservation offer other assignment options. There is also the option of completing the voluntary social year abroad.

• Information and directory of contact points – Federal Ministry for Families, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth

• To the International Youth Voluntary Service

In addition to the youth volunteer service, the Federal Volunteer Service (BFD) offers all interested parties aged 16 and over the opportunity to do something for themselves and for other people. Unlike the FSJ and the European Voluntary Service, people of all ages can get involved in the BFD for six to 24 months.

• To the Federal Volunteer Service

The European Voluntary Service (EVS) enables young people between the ages of 17 and 30 to work and live in a non-profit project in another European country for two to twelve months. Registration takes place within certain application deadlines.

• To the European Voluntary Service

Voluntary Social Year (FSJ)

• Jugendring Berlin (Information and examples for FSJ possibilities in Berlin)

• Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth (Information and contact points)

• Voluntary Social Year – Federal working goup

Voluntary Social Year sports

• German Sports Youth
  Contact and experiences

Voluntary Social Year Culture

• Regional Association for Cultural Education Berlin (Information and locations in Berlin and Brandenburg)

Voluntary Social Year at Landesjugendring Berlin e. V.

• Landesjugendring Berlin (Information and locations in Berlin and Brandenburg)

Voluntary Ecologic Year (FÖJ)

• Berlin Department for Environment, Transport and Climate Protection (Information and locations in Berlin and Brandenburg)

Further Voluntary Services

• International Youth Voluntary Service
• Federal Youth Voluntary Service*
• European Solidarity Corps

Legal basis

Since 2008 there has been a joint federal legal regulation for the Voluntary Social Year and the Voluntary Ecological Year:

• Youth Voluntary Service Act (JFDG)