Applying for an AVGS voucher: how to proceed

What is an AVGS?

AVGS stands for Aktivierungs- und Vermittlungsgutschein, the Activation and Placement Voucher. It is issued by the Employment Agency (Agentur für Arbeit) or the Job Center (Jobcenter). With it, you take part free of charge in an approved measure that supports you in entering or returning to work.

An AVGS measure is the specific programme you take part in, for example coaching, application training or further training. For a programme to be funded with an AVGS, it must be officially approved.

This can include, for example:

• career orientation
• developing a realistic career goal
• support with application documents
• preparing for job interviews
• returning to work after a career break
• developing an application strategy
• support with a career change
• stabilisation after starting a new job

The legal basis is Section 45 SGB III.

The voucher does not automatically mean that every measure you want will be approved with every provider. The coaching programme, the provider and the conditions of the voucher must fit together. Your specific participation is checked once more before it starts.

Which AVGS do you need for coaching?

For coaching at Good Prospects, the relevant voucher is the AVGS-MAT, a measure with a provider.

A “provider” (Träger) is the organisation that carries out the coaching or training, for example Good Prospects. For a provider to be able to bill via an AVGS, it must be officially approved.

Good Prospects is a private, certified training provider and coaching provider. Good Prospects is not a private job placement agency. The coaching supports you with, among other things, career orientation, applications, returning to work and planning your next career steps.

You can find out more about the content on the pages about AVGS Coaching and Academic Coaching.

Who can apply for an AVGS?

An AVGS can be an option in particular for people seeking vocational training, job seekers at risk of unemployment and people who are unemployed. People who are able to work, receive benefits and are supported by the Job Center can also be funded through an AVGS-MAT.

This can apply, for example, to people who:

• are unemployed and need professional support
• are at risk of unemployment, for example after being given notice or before a fixed-term contract ends
• want to start or return to work after their studies, parental leave or a longer break and are registered as job-seeking or unemployed
• need support with career orientation, job searching or applications

Studies, parental leave or a career break alone do not automatically lead to funding. What matters is your current situation on the job market, your specific need for support and the assessment of your advisor.

Do I have to be unemployed?

Not necessarily.

People who are at risk of unemployment can in principle also be considered for an AVGS. This can be relevant, for example, after being given notice or before a fixed-term employment contract ends.

However, people who simply want to change jobs from a permanent position without being at risk of unemployment do not automatically belong to the group eligible for funding.

Can I get an AVGS without receiving unemployment benefit?

Actively receiving unemployment benefit (Arbeitslosengeld) is not always strictly required. What matters is whether you belong to the group eligible for funding and whether your advisor sees a specific need for support.

Registering as a job seeker alone does not automatically lead to approval.

Job Center or Employment Agency: where do I apply for the AVGS?

Which office is responsible depends on your personal situation.

Applying for an AVGS at the Employment Agency

The Employment Agency (Agentur für Arbeit) is often your point of contact if you:

• receive unemployment benefit
• are registered as unemployed or job-seeking
• are at risk of unemployment
• need support with a career change after being given notice

Ask your placement advisor about professional coaching and whether an AVGS-MAT is an option in your situation.

Applying for an AVGS at the Job Center

The Job Center (Jobcenter) is usually responsible if you receive basic income support (Grundsicherung).

Here, too, your integration or placement advisor decides which support is suitable for your professional integration. This can be an AVGS. However, the Job Center may also offer you another existing measure.

That is why it is important not just to ask for a voucher, but to explain clearly why one-on-one coaching could suit your situation and your career goal.

How coaching via the Job Center works and which two funding routes exist is explained on our overview page.

Am I entitled to an AVGS?

In principle, there is no automatic legal entitlement to an AVGS for coaching.

The AVGS-MAT is a discretionary benefit.

A “discretionary benefit” (Ermessensleistung) means that the authority decides case by case whether to approve the funding. So you are not entitled to it simply because you belong to a certain group; your advisor weighs up whether coaching makes sense and is necessary in your situation.

Your placement or integration advisor will consider, among other things:

• what career goals you are pursuing
• what support you need
• whether the coaching can improve your professional integration
• whether a suitable other measure is already being offered
• whether the content and scope of the measure you want are appropriate

Good preparation does not guarantee approval. But it can help you explain your need for support and the expected benefit of the coaching clearly and comprehensibly.

What does the entitlement after six weeks of unemployment mean?

In connection with the AVGS, people often talk about a legal entitlement after six weeks of unemployment.

Under certain conditions, this possible entitlement applies exclusively to the AVGS for private job placement, the AVGS-MPAV. It does not automatically apply to professional coaching with an AVGS-MAT.

As Good Prospects offers coaching and not private job placement, this entitlement does not affect the coaching offered by Good Prospects.

Applying for an AVGS: step by step

Step 1: Clarify what you want coaching to help you with

First think about what you want to achieve professionally and what is currently making the next step difficult.

Possible questions are:

• Are you not yet sure which professional direction you want to take?
• Can’t you find jobs that match your experience?
• Are your applications getting no response?
• Do you find it hard to name your strengths?
• Do you want to return to work after parental leave, illness or another break?
• Are you looking for a suitable way into work after your studies?
• Do you want to change careers but don’t yet know how?
• Do you feel unsure about applications or job interviews?

The more specifically you can describe your situation, the easier it is to check whether coaching is suitable.

Step 2: Contact your advisor

Bring up the AVGS with your placement or integration advisor.

Depending on the office, this can happen, for example:

• in a personal consultation
• in a phone appointment
• via a message in the online portal
• via another contact channel provided by the office

Not every office uses the same procedure for the first request. Your advisor can tell you whether further information, documents or forms are needed.

Step 3: Prepare for the conversation

You don’t need to memorise a perfect justification. A simple structure with three points helps:

1. Your career goal

What do you want to achieve?

Example:

I would like to return to my profession after my parental leave.

2. Your current hurdle

What is making the next step difficult?

Example:

I’m unsure which jobs suit my current situation and how to explain my longer break well in applications.

3. The expected benefit of the coaching

How exactly should the coaching help you?

Example:

In the coaching, I would like to develop a realistic career goal, revise my application documents and create a suitable strategy for returning to work.

Step 4: Bring up the AVGS openly

You may bring up the voucher directly. What matters is that the conversation doesn’t stop at the sentence “I would like an AVGS”.

One possible way to put it:

I would like to clarify my professional situation and improve my chances of finding suitable employment. At the moment, I find it particularly difficult to develop a clear professional direction and to present my experience convincingly in applications. One-on-one coaching would help me develop a realistic goal, a suitable application strategy and concrete next steps. Could we please check whether an AVGS is an option for this?

For returning to work, you could say:

I would like to return to work after my career break, but I’m unsure which jobs suit my current situation and how to prepare my return well. In the coaching, I would like to clarify my options, update my application documents and develop a realistic plan. Could we discuss whether an AVGS is an option for this?

After your studies, it could sound like this:

I have finished my studies, but I haven’t yet found a clear professional direction and find it hard to apply my qualifications to specific jobs. One-on-one coaching could help me identify suitable career fields and align my application strategy with them. That’s why I would like to have it checked whether an AVGS is possible.

Please keep in mind that these are only general examples. Always adapt the wording to your actual situation.

Step 5: Receive the AVGS and check the details

If an AVGS is issued, you receive it from the Employment Agency or the Job Center.

Then check carefully which conditions it states. These can include:

• the goal of the measure
• the desired coaching content
• maximum duration or scope
• individual or group measure
• validity period
• possible regional restriction
• format
• further conditions

The validity period is set individually. There is no uniform standard deadline that applies to every AVGS.

The issued AVGS generally confirms that funding is possible within the conditions stated on it. It is then checked whether the specific coaching measure with the provider you have chosen matches exactly these conditions.

So only start the coaching once you have received the approval letter for your specific participation.

Step 6: Choose a suitable coaching provider

With an AVGS-MAT, you can in principle look for a suitable provider yourself.

Several requirements must be met:

• The provider must be approved to carry out such measures.
• The specific coaching measure must be approved.
• The measure must match the goals and conditions of your voucher.
• Your advisor must approve your participation in writing.

A provider certification alone therefore does not mean that every coaching programme automatically matches your voucher.

Step 7: Confirm participation and wait for approval

Once you have found a suitable provider, the process usually continues like this:

1. You send the coaching provider your AVGS or the relevant details.
2. The provider checks whether the measure matches the conditions.
3. You receive the required confirmation of participation or other documents.
4. You submit the documents to your placement advisor.
5. Your advisor checks the specific participation.
6. You receive a written approval letter.
7. The coaching can then begin.

Important: The issued AVGS alone does not mean that you should start the measure straight away. Wait until your specific participation has been approved in writing.

What information helps when requesting an AVGS?

The following information can be helpful for the conversation:

• your current career goal
• your professional experience so far
• your vocational or university degree
• your application activities so far
• specific difficulties with your job search or return to work
• the coaching content you would like
• the expected benefit for your professional integration
• information about a suitable approved coaching measure
• your preferred start date
• whether you prefer on-site or online coaching

Not all documents are required in every situation. Your advisor decides which information is needed for the review.

How long does AVGS approval take?

There is no standard processing time for the decision.

How long it takes can depend, among other things, on:

• when a consultation appointment is available
• which information is still needed
• whether a specific offer has to be checked
• how the office in question is organised
• whether questions come up

So bring up your wish for coaching as early as possible. If you don’t hear back for a long time, you can politely ask your advisor about the current status.

How long is an AVGS valid?

The validity period is stated directly on your voucher and is set individually.

After receiving it, check:

• from which date the voucher is valid
• by when a measure must start
• whether further deadlines are mentioned
• whether the voucher is regionally restricted
• whether a particular format is specified

If the deadline is not long enough or the voucher has expired, talk to your advisor as early as possible. Whether a new or adjusted voucher can be issued will be checked again.

Can I choose the AVGS provider myself?

In principle, you can look for an approved coaching provider and a suitable approved measure yourself.

However, free choice does not mean that any measure must automatically be accepted. Your advisor checks whether:

• the measure fits your career goal
• the conditions of the voucher are met
• the provider and the measure are approved
• the scope and content match the funding decision

You can get to know and compare different providers in advance. Don’t only look at certificates, but also at whether the coaching really suits your situation.

Helpful questions to ask a provider are:

• Is the coaching one-on-one?
• Which content can be adapted to my situation?
• Who carries out the coaching?
• Is online coaching possible?
• Is there on-site coaching?
• In which languages is the coaching offered?
• How is it checked whether the measure matches my AVGS?
• Which documents will I receive for the authority?

What does AVGS coaching cost?

If your participation has been approved in writing before the start, the coaching measure costs you nothing.

Travel costs or necessary childcare costs can also be covered under certain conditions. You should clarify these additional costs with your Employment Agency or Job Center before the measure starts.

Do not start a measure you have to pay for in the expectation that the costs will automatically be reimbursed later.

What to do if the AVGS is not approved?

A negative decision can be disappointing, but it does not automatically mean that no other support is possible.

Try to proceed step by step:

1. Ask for the reasons

First clarify why your advisor does not consider the AVGS suitable.

Possible reasons can be:

• Your specific need for support has not yet become clear enough.
• In your advisor’s view, the coaching you want does not fit your career goal.
• Another existing measure is considered more suitable.
• The content or scope of the programme does not meet the funding requirements.
• Information or documents are still missing.
• The provider or the measure does not meet the required conditions.

2. Clarify whether there is a formal decision

A verbal assessment is not the same as a written decision.

If there is a written decision, you will find information about possible legal remedies and deadlines in the instructions on legal remedies (Rechtsbehelfsbelehrung). For legal questions, you should contact an independent advice centre or qualified legal advice.

Good Prospects does not provide individual legal advice.

3. Review your justification

Check whether your career goal, your current hurdle and the specific benefit of coaching have become clear enough.

Instead of just saying:

I would like help with applications.

you can put it more specifically:

Despite suitable qualifications, my applications have not led to interviews so far. In the coaching, I would like to review my documents, sharpen my professional positioning and target my application strategy more closely at suitable jobs.

4. Ask about alternatives

Ask your advisor which other support could be an option for your situation.

Depending on your needs, this could be, for example:

• another coaching measure
• an existing measure of the Job Center or the Employment Agency
• further training
• an education voucher (Bildungsgutschein)
• support from the placement budget (Vermittlungsbudget)
• another form of career advice

5. Raise the topic again later

Professional situations change. If new difficulties appear after a longer job search or your need for support changes, it can make sense to have it reviewed again later.

You have an AVGS, but the specific measure was not approved

It can happen that you have already received an AVGS, but participation in a particular measure is not approved. This does not automatically mean that the voucher as a whole is invalid.

In principle, the AVGS remains in place as originally issued. Within the validity period, you can look for another approved measure that better matches the conditions of the voucher.

Ask for an explanation of why the first measure was not accepted, and then check these points with the next provider.

AVGS or Bildungsgutschein: what’s the difference?

The AVGS and the Bildungsgutschein (education voucher) are different funding instruments.

Coaching can help, for example, to clarify first whether further training makes sense and which training goal suits your professional situation. However, the AVGS itself does not replace an education voucher.

Does the AVGS still exist after the 2026 basic income reform?

The AVGS has not been abolished. The new basic income support (Grundsicherung) has applied since 1 July 2026; the reform did not touch the legal basis of the AVGS in Section 45 SGB III. Measures for activation and professional integration continue to be funded.

Whether an AVGS-MAT is issued in a specific case remains an individual decision of the Job Center or the Employment Agency.

Last updated: August 2026

AVGS coaching at Good Prospects

Good Prospects is a certified training provider for professional coaching in Berlin.

The programme is aimed, among others, at people who need support with:

• career orientation
• application documents and application strategy
• preparing for job interviews
• returning to work after a break
• starting a career after university
• a career change

Good Prospects does not decide on issuing or approving an AVGS. The funding decision always lies with the Job Center or the Employment Agency.

If you have already received an AVGS, we can check whether an approved measure from Good Prospects matches the conditions of your voucher. Contact us.

The coaching takes place on-site in Berlin and, depending on the approved measure, also online. It is also available in English.

Frequently asked questions about applying for an AVGS

Does Good Prospects help me apply for the AVGS?

You submit the request yourself, to your placement or integration advisor at the Job Center or the Employment Agency. Nobody can take this step for you, and the decision on funding is always made by the authority.

You still get support. Get in touch with us before your appointment. We clarify with you which coaching suits your situation and help you with the application.

Do I already need a coaching provider?

Not necessarily. A specific approved coaching programme can make the conversation easier, though, because the content, goal and benefit of the support you want become easier to understand.

Can I apply for the AVGS online?

The procedure can vary from office to office. You may be able to contact your advisor via the online portal or submit certain documents digitally. Whether a fully digital process is possible, you can find out from the office responsible for you.

Do I have to be unemployed?

Not necessarily. People seeking vocational training and job seekers at risk of unemployment can in principle also be funded. Your personal situation and specific need for support are checked case by case.

Am I entitled to coaching after six weeks of unemployment?

No. Under certain conditions, the possible entitlement after a certain period of unemployment applies to private job placement. It does not automatically apply to coaching at Good Prospects.

How long is the AVGS valid?

The validity period is set individually and is stated on your voucher. Check the start and expiry date stated there as well as any further conditions.

Can I choose the provider myself?

In principle, yes. However, the provider and the specific measure must be approved and match the conditions of your AVGS. Participation must be approved in writing before it starts.

Can the coaching take place online?

That can be possible if the approved measure includes online coaching and the conditions of your voucher allow it.

How long does AVGS coaching take?

That depends on your voucher. Your advisor decides individually how many teaching units, usually of 45 minutes each, your coaching includes, for example 20 units or more. You decide together with your coach how to spread them across individual sessions: within a few weeks or over several months.

What does the coaching cost?

If participation has been approved in writing before the start, the measure costs you nothing. You should clarify any travel or childcare costs with your advisor beforehand.

Can I contact Good Prospects before an AVGS has been issued?

Yes, and that is actually a good idea. If you know beforehand which coaching suits you, you can say more precisely in the conversation with the Job Center what you need. The application and the decision still go through your advisor.

Is the AVGS the same as a Bildungsgutschein (education voucher)?

No. The AVGS is used in particular for coaching, activation and support with professional integration. The education voucher is used to fund further vocational training or retraining.

What is a measure number (Maßnahmenummer)?

An approved coaching measure has a unique identifier, the measure number. It helps the authority check the specific measure and its approval. The coaching provider can give you the details you need.

Can I raise a rejected AVGS again later?

That can be possible if your professional situation or your need for support has changed. First clarify the reasons for the previous decision and discuss with your advisor which alternative support could be an option.