KLU is a private university, so none of its programmes are tuition-free, for EU or non-EU students alike. Fees are set per programme and per track, and they are substantial by German standards: the Business Foundations Program (Studienkolleg) runs 4,800 to 5,800 EUR a semester depending on track, the Bachelor in Business Administration runs 7,300 EUR (Standard Track) or 8,150 EUR (Intensive Track), all three Master's programmes charge a flat 8,200 EUR, and the part-time MBA charges 11,400 EUR.

Unlike at public universities, no separate semester contribution covering a nationwide transport ticket was found on any KLU page; KLU's own cost-of-living estimate treats housing, food, insurance and similar costs as separate personal budget items rather than a single bundled fee collected at enrolment.

Tuition this high does not remove the separate proof-of-funds requirement. For the student visa you still need to show about 11,904 EUR for the year, usually in a blocked account, transferred months before the semester starts.

These are the deadlines that apply to applicants from outside the EU who need a visa; visa-exempt nationals, EU citizens and residence-permit holders instead follow the later date shown for European applicants. For the Master's programmes, non-EU applicants must submit by 31 May, well ahead of the 31 July date for European and visa-exempt applicants. The Bachelor gives non-EU applicants a recommended date of 31 March and a final cutoff of 31 May, against 15 August for European and visa-exempt applicants.

An Early Bird period offers a 10% tuition discount for applications submitted between 1 November 2026 and 15 February 2027, across all programmes. All KLU programmes have a single September intake; there is no separate summer intake at the Hamburg campus.

Through KLU's own application portal at apply.klu.org. KLU does not use uni-assist, but unlike some universities with their own portal, KLU charges a flat application fee of 50 EUR to every applicant, EU and non-EU alike.

Application portal: apply.klu.org

All of KLU's programmes are taught fully in English: the BSc in Business Administration, all three MSc programmes (International Management; Business Analytics & Data Science; Global Logistics & Supply Chain Management), the part-time MBA, the PhD programme, and the Business Foundations Program (Studienkolleg) pre-degree track. That is seven degree-level offerings, split fairly evenly between Bachelor's and Master's level and concentrated in business, management, data science and logistics. Because the entire catalogue is English-taught, no programme requires German for admission, though everyday German still helps with housing, part-time work and the authorities.

KLU accepts a wider range of tests than most partner universities, including Pearson PTE, Cambridge Linguaskill and the Oxford ELLT, and unlike some universities it does accept TOEFL iBT MyBest Scores. The catch is that the TOEFL scoring scale changed mid-cycle: a minimum of 90 applies to tests taken before 21 January 2026, and a minimum of 4.5 on the new scale applies from that date on. Score reports must not be older than two years at the time of application. A Bachelor's degree earned in any English-taught programme, from any country, is itself accepted as proof, in addition to the standard native-speaker waiver for degrees earned in the UK, Ireland, the US, Canada (excluding Québec), Australia or New Zealand.

Work backwards from the lecture start rather than the semester date. KLU runs a single September intake for the Bachelor, all three Master's programmes and the MBA, with the programme year formally beginning 1 September; you'll want to be in Hamburg some weeks earlier for city registration, a bank account, and housing, since KLU steers students to the private rental market rather than university halls.

Hamburg is one of Germany's largest and most expensive cities, and KLU students are not part of the Studierendenwerk Hamburg halls system the way students at public universities are: KLU's own guidance points international students toward the private rental market (WG-gesucht and similar sites) and private student-housing providers rather than Studierendenwerk halls. Apply for a room the moment you're admitted, since good options disappear within hours.

Private dormitory-style housing through providers such as Smartments or The Fizz runs 700–900 EUR per month as a middle option.

The monthly payout from your blocked account is transferred to a German current account, which you open after you arrive.

Kühne Logistics University is a small, private business school in Hamburg's HafenCity, founded in 2010 by the Kühne Foundation and named for shipping and logistics entrepreneur Klaus-Michael Kühne. AACSB-accredited and holding the right to award PhDs since 2017, KLU specializes in logistics, supply chain management and general business and management, taught entirely in English across a Bachelor's, three Master's programmes, a part-time MBA and a doctoral programme. Its HafenCity campus sits in one of Hamburg's most international districts, close to the port and the logistics and shipping firms, including Kühne + Nagel and Hapag-Lloyd, that feed its internship and career pipeline. KLU also runs a second campus in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, opened in 2025.