visa and residence permit

You want to enroll in a degree programme at a Dutch university. Whether you need a visa or not depends on your nationality and might also depend on the nationality of your family members.

EU/EEA Member State or Switzerland

You are a citizen of an EU/EEA Member State or Switzerland? You don’t need a visa/residence permit. You can just come to the Netherlands and start your studies. You need no visa, no residence permit, no work permit, you do not need to report to the IND. This might also be applicable if a family member of yours has one of these nationalities.Other nationalities

You need a residence permit.

Conditions for a visa/residence permit

General conditions

  • Valid passport or another travel document
  • Antecedents certificate
  • Tuberculosis Test (you will undergo the medical test once you have arrived in the Netherlands)

Certain conditions

  • Accepted by a university as a student in a fulltime accredited day-programme; the university is a Recognised Sponsor
  • Sufficient independent long-term funds by student
  • Study progress monitoring (at least 50% of the required credits for each academic year)

For Turkish citizens and their families other conditions might be applicable.

When to apply for a visa/residence permit?

First of all you enroll in the study programme.

How does the application procedure for a residence permit work?

How do you apply for a visa/residence permit? First of all you enroll in the study programme. It is not you but the university who submits the application for your residence permit. Once you are enrolled in the programme the university will contact you to start the application procedure for your visa. Otherwise you should contact the international office.

Documents for visa/residence permit application

The university you will attend can provide you with a list of documents you need.

Costs for a visa/residence permit

The application for a residence permit is € 317.

Do you need a work permit? Needed in case you would like to work while studying.

You want more information on visa/residence permit?

Check it all out at IND.nl IND (Immigration and naturalization Service) belongs to the Dutch Ministry of Security and Justice.







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