Non-EU students need to apply for an MVV entry visa and a VVR residence permit.
Please read the steps carefully on our website to know what you need to do.

Exceptions:

• Nationalities from Australia, New Zealand, Canada, United Kingdom, Japan, Monaco, Vatican City, USA, or South Korea.
• You don’t need an MVV entry visa, but only need to apply for a VVR residence permit, if you have a Schengen residence permit that is valid until at least the start of the academic year/semester (1 September or 1 February).

Citizens of Australia, New Zealand, Canada, United Kingdom, Japan, Monaco, Vatican City, USA, or South Korea can apply for a VVR residence permit and don’t need an MVV entry visa for the Netherlands.
Please note that if you are in possession of a valid Schengen residence permit that is valid until at least the start of the academic year/semester (1 September or 1 February) you are allowed to apply for a VVR residence permit without having to apply for an MVV entry visa as well.

Please read the steps carefully on our website to know what you need to do.

If you already have a Dutch residence permit for another purpose (orientation year, employment, stay with a family member, au pair, etc.) and you need to change it to a residence permit for study, the UvA Immigration team will submit a so-called ‘Change of the purpose of stay’ application to the IND on your behalf.

Please read the steps carefully on our website to know what you need to do.

You will not need an extra permit for the purpose of 'study' if you already have a valid Dutch residence permit that we have had the chance to review. Please note that your current permit needs to be valid until at least the start of your study programme.

If at any point during your degree programme your personal situation changes and you would like to change the purpose of your permit to ‘study’, please send us an email through our contact page so that we can send you an invitation to apply.

If you have a residence permit (VVR) for the purpose of study in the Netherlands at a different Dutch educational institution than the UvA, and you are going to start a study programme at the UvA, you will need to apply for a transfer of your residence permit (VVR).
We will need to send a new application to the Dutch Immigration Service (IND) to advise them of your transfer. This is the so-called ‘Change of educational institution’ application.

It is important to make sure you remain enrolled and that your current educational institution is still you sponsor until your application through us has been approved by the IND. Otherwise your permit application will be revoked by the IND before we can request the change of sponsor. This means that the current expiration date of your permit will remain the same and that you will therefore not receive a new residence permit card, even though the UvA will have become your legal sponsor.

Please note that when you will have to extend your permit, you will be able to do so through our website from 3 months before its expiry date. You will then receive a new residence permit card from the IND.

If you have a residence permit (VVR) for the purpose of study in the Netherlands at a different Dutch educational institution than the UvA, and you are going to start a study programme at the UvA, you will need to apply for a transfer of your residence permit (VVR).
We will need to send a new application to the Dutch Immigration Service (IND) to advise them of your transfer. This is the so-called ‘Change of educational institution’ application.

It is important to make sure you remain enrolled and that your current educational institution is still you sponsor until your application through us approved by the IND. Otherwise your permit application will be revoked by the IND before we can request the change of sponsor.

Please note that we will request an extension of your residence permit at the IND at the same time as that we will request a switch of educational institution if your current residence permit expires within 3 months of the start of your study programme.

A Working Holiday Scheme (WHS) is a cultural exchange programme and is meant for students who would like to study in the Netherlands for a shorter period of time.
The UvA will provide students with the necessary application forms but it is the responsibility of the student to apply for the WHS directly at the IND. Please visit the IND-website for more information.

If you have a residence permit for the purpose of study, with the UvA as your sponsor, you can submit an extension within 3 months of its expiration date.
Please note that you will not be automatically invited to this process and will need to start the application yourself through our website. All required documents are mentioned on the page.

Students who have obtained a degree in the Netherlands can choose to apply for an orientation year residence permit after graduation.

The orientation year residence permit allows you to stay in the Netherlands for one year after graduation to look for a job and/or to study. Check the IND website for the conditions and more information on applying for the orientation residence permit. Please note that you have to apply for this permit directly at the IND and not through the UvA.

You will have to wait until you have received either your degree certificate or have your faculty fill out the IND's completion of study form which can be found on the IND website.

If you already actively study at another university in Europe and if you have a residence permit for that country with the purpose of study, then in some cases you can follow a part of your studies in the Netherlands within the context of intra EU-mobility. This application is free of charge.
Please note that you will have to apply for it yourself directly at the IND. You can check the requirements on the IND website of Intra-EU mobility.

When at least conditionally admitted to your study programme, it is important that you reply to the invitation to apply for a residence permit before your deadline. Please note, however, that your application dossier doesn’t need to be complete yet by that deadline date, although it is preferable of course, but that we do need to have it in our system on time so that we can start reviewing it. Please do not delay submitting your application because you are missing an item or think it is incomplete. We will let you know what is still required through our review. You will have met the deadline from the moment we have your dossier in our system, even if it is incomplete.

No, you cannot start your application before we send you the invitation mail. The IND does not allow  educational institutions to send in applications earlier than three months prior to the start of a student’s degree programme.

We start sending the invitation mails to start the application three months prior to the start of each semester. If you haven’t received it in that period of time, please contact your admissions department to see whether they have forwarded your details to the Immigration team. Please note that we will start sending invitations to MVV students at the beginning of May and to VVR students at the end of May.

For us to be able to send your application to the IND, your passport must be valid for at least 6 months from the start of your programme. If your passport expires within the next 6 months, we advise you to start an extension application through your home country. Once your new passport is approved, you will be able to upload it to your application in MyInfo. Please note that your passport scan should be in PDF-format and not exceed 20MB.

Yes, a sponsor can be a relative, partner or friend. It doesn’t matter what your relationship is with your sponsor but it should always be a person who can legally fulfil the obligations acquired and not a company.

You can check on our website what the required documents are to show a financial proof with a sponsorship. The documents need to meet the requirements stated on the website.

A bank statement, either from yourself or a sponsor, should meet certain requirements. Please visit our website for a detailed overview of the IND’s criteria for submitting a correct bank statement.

Yes, although you must reside and be registered for at least 3 months in the country in which you wish to collect your MVV.

This is only possible in very exceptional situations and not because it would be easier to collect at another location (a holiday trip to another country is not a valid reason, for example). You will have to contact the Dutch embassy or consulate that you initially chose as MVV pick-up location in your application as well as the new Dutch embassy or consulate where you want to collect your MVV and arrange with both parties to collect your MVV at the new location.

You can find the contact details of all Dutch embassies and consulates on this website.

Chinese students can change their MVV pick-up location directly through this link.
 

If there is no Dutch embassy in your home country, please find the one closest to you by using this link to the Dutch government’s embassy website.

Once your MVV (entry visa) has been approved by the IND, along with your residence permit, you have 90 days to collect your MVV at the Dutch embassy you chose in your application. From that moment on you have 90 days to travel to the Netherlands.

If your MVV expires before you have travelled to the Netherlands, you will lose your right to residency and will have to apply for an MVV + VVR again.

Yes, an MVV (entry visa) is a multiple-entry visa that allows you to travel to the Netherlands and the Schengen countries from outside the Schengen area more than once as long as your MVV (entry visa) is valid (90 days).

Yes, once you have collected your residence permit card, you are allowed to travel with it to and within the Schengen area for every time a maximum of 90 days within a period of 180 days.

As an international student, you must register as a resident if you plan to stay in the Netherlands for longer than four months. You have to register at the municipality of the town where you are going to live. If you fail to do so, you can risk losing your residence permit.

It is only possible to register in person and only on or after the start date of your rental contract, not before this date.

The municipality of Amsterdam organises special registration day for students so that they can register without making an appointment. You can check the dates on the Upon arrival website.

Please visit our webpage with information on how to register at a Dutch municipality. If not visible yet, please note that this page will be updated once every semester with the information on which documents to bring to your registration at the municipality.

Please note that the information below is the standard procedure for registering in Amsterdam. This September, however, the municipality of Amsterdam will organise special registration days for international students to register. For more information, please visit our Upon Arrival page.

No, you do not have to. However, and only if the special registration days for students have passed, you do need to make an appointment to register at the municipality within 5 days of your arrival in the Netherlands. Please note that, by law, you are required to have registered at the municipality within 3 months of your arrival in Amsterdam.

Please follow the steps as shown on the Checklist on our Upon Arrival page.

Once you've registered at the municipality, you'll be given a citizen service number (burgerservicenummer, BSN).  This is a unique personal number allocated to everyone who is registered in the Personal Records Database (BRP) from the Netherlands.

A BSN is similar to a social security or tax identifier number in other countries and is required for many things in the Netherlands, including opening a bank account, visiting a doctor or getting hospital treatment.

If you leave the Netherlands and deregister at the municipality, your details will be entered into the Non-residents Records Database (RNI). The RNI is part of the BRP. Therefore, if at any moment you return to live in the Netherlands, you will have the same citizen service number/BSN.

Please note that the information below is the regular procedure for collecting a residence permit in Amsterdam. For students who are starting/returning to their studies in September, however, the IND will organize special residence permit collection days in Utrecht. For more information, please visit our Upon Arrival page.

You can collect your residence permit card at the IND desk in Amsterdam approximately 3 weeks after submitting your biometric details, which you provided either at the embassy when you collected your MVV or at the IND-desk in Amsterdam. For more information, please visit our Upon arrival website.

If your residence permit card has been lost or stolen, you can apply directly through the IND for a new residence permit. You can read about all the necessary details on the IND-website.

You will first need to make sure you have a copy of a police report before you can start the process with the IND.

Unfortunately not, we can only assist UvA students (and in some cases, their children) with their application for a Dutch residence permit.

Yes, we can assist with the residence permit application of your child if you are a UvA student, but only when just your child comes with you to the Netherlands. Please let us know if you need us to assist you with applying for a residence permit for your child. If you are moving to the Netherlands with both your child and your partner, you will need to apply for their permits through the IND yourself.

One of the criteria students must meet while holding a residence permit for study is sufficient study progress. Sufficient study progress means that you must obtain at least 50% of the required ECTS credits each academic year. As this is a strict annual requirement, the UvA Immigration Office will check your progress three times a year, in March, June, and July. If you have not obtained sufficient ECTS by 31 August, the Immigration Office will inform the IND.

Please note that in addition to reaching the minimum amount of credits, students are also required to be actively studying. This means that a student with a study permit must be following courses, attending lectures, and taking exams.

If you have questions about this requirement, please contact the UvA Immigration Office.

For more information of this process on this page.

You will need to start the application for an extension yourself. The UvA Immigration team does not automatically invite you for this process. You can find more information on the Extension page.

This depends. To check your personal situation, we recommend visiting the MyIND website as it will be shown there whether or not your biometrics are needed again

Yes, by law you must have a health insurance covering all health costs for the duration of your stay in the Netherlands.

Please check our website for further information.

Please consult your insurance company to check if your insurance policy covers all health costs for the duration of your stay in the Netherlands.

We would recommend for your specific question to contact Zorgverzekeringslijn: please visit zorgverzekeringslijn.nl or (if you are in the Netherlands) call 0800 64 64 644 (week days 09:00-17:00). From abroad, you can call +31 88 900 6960.

Yes, you are allowed to work next to your studies, but please bear in mind that there are strict rules for working to abide to for students from non-EU/EEA countries. The number of hours you are allowed to work in the Netherlands is restricted and you will need a work permit, that your employer or employment agency will need to apply for you on your behalf, if you want to work.

You can find more information about work and internships during your studies at our website.

The number of hours you are allowed to work in the Netherlands is restricted. Every calendar year, you must choose between part-time work throughout the year of no more than 16 hours per week, or full-time seasonal work in June, July, and August. You cannot do both.

Yes, as a non-EU/EEA student you are allowed to follow an internship according to strict IND and UvA regulations. Please visit our website for more information.

No, as a non EU/EEA students who holds a study permit, it is only possible to extend your residence permit to follow an internship if it is part of your study programme (mandatory/elective or voluntary) and the UvA internship agreement for Academic education has been signed by your employer, the UvA and you yourself.

Please note that you are not allowed to artificially extend your residence permit if you are all set to graduate.

If you choose to unenroll from the UvA, we are legally required to inform the Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND) about it as they will need to revoke your residence permit.

Once we have notified the IND, they will send you an official letter to your Dutch address stating that you have 28 days to leave the country. Please visit our page about Discontinuing your study for more detailed information.

If you are planning on returning to the UvA for a later academic year, we will be happy to send you a new invitation to apply for another residence permit.
Please note that you will have to send us an email three months before the start of the semester to ask for an invitation to start the immigration process. You will not be sent the invitation automatically this time if you interrupted your studies.

A residence gap is a period when you live in the Netherlands without holding a valid residence permit. It may have consequences for future applications through the IND. However, this is not something the UvA can influence. You can avoid a residence gap by ensuring that you hold a valid permit for the duration of your studies at the UvA.

In order to be allowed to switch programmes or continue following the same study programme when you did not obtain at least 50% of your ECTS in your academic year, you will need to make sure to de-enroll before May 1^st. We will then ask the IND to revoke your permit. Please note that you will have to leave the Netherlands within 28 days of your de-enrollment date.
In order to apply for a new permit, and only once you have been at least conditionally admitted to your (new) study programme, please make sure to send us an e-mail at the beginning of May so that we can send you an invitation to apply. Invitations will not been sent automatically to you this time.

As a general rule, the IND allows you to stay abroad for a maximum of 6 months, as long as you remain registered at a Dutch municipality during that period of time. Beyond that period of time, the IND will revoke your residence permit.

In all cases where your residence permit was revoked by the IND, please contact the UvA Immigration team for more information on what to do next.

The municipality allows you to stay abroad for a certain period of time during your studies. Please visit the website of the Municipality of Amsterdam for information. Please note that you have to stay registered at the municipality during your stay abroad if you want to keep your residence permit!

For extra information about staying abroad during your studies, please contact the UvA Immigration team.

Yes, if you deregister from your address, the IND will automatically receive a notification about your deregistration from the municipality. The IND will then revoke your residence permit. Therefore, in order to keep your residence permit, it is very important to stay registered at the municipality.

If you have not yet collected your residence permit and cannot do so before traveling outside of the Netherlands, then you will have to request a return visa before you leave through the IND website or through the Dutch embassy in the country you will be staying. This only applies to students with a nationality that require an entry visa to travel to and within the Schengen Area.

You can find all the details about this process here.

Yes, you can travel with your residence permit card when your residence permit is in the process of being extended as long as your card is still valid. In case the validity of your residence permit card expires while abroad and if you are not exempt from requiring an entry visa to travel to and within the Schengen area, you will need to apply for a return visa at the IND before you leave or at a Dutch embassy when already abroad.

The UvA only applies for residence permits for our students. We cannot apply for the permits of the partners of our students. You will need to do this yourself through the IND.

You can find all the information relating to a partner visa here.

If you have questions about the partner visa, please contact the IND.

Unfortunately the UVA does not assist in the application for the partners of our students. We do assist in the application for children of our students. However, the IND recommends that when students are applying for both a partner and a child that they submit them together themselves through the IND. This is so that the applications are processed at the same time and that the IND is aware of both applications.

You can find all the information relating to a partner residence permit here and child residence permit here.

The UvA Immigration team would be happy to assist you in applying for a Dutch residence permit for your child.

An application for a student's child is an exceptional case.
The entire application process for your own and your child's permit takes longer than a normal residence permit application for students.

Before you can start the application for your child, we have to have reviewed your own application and submitted it to the IND.
When the IND has received your application for a residence permit as a student, you will receive a v-number. With this v-number you can start the application for your child. 

When applying for your child's permit (and MVV entry visa if necessary), please fill in the attached forms and submit the following documents:

• A copy of your child's passport, or a copy of the parent's passport with whom the child is registered
• A copy of your child’s birth certificate, or if the parent's name is not on the birth certificate, other documentation, such as an adoption document
• Proof that the parent has custody of the child
• A copy of your marriage certificate
• A copy of the passports of both parents
• Proof of sufficient financial means
• In the event that more than one person has guardianship, but not both parents or guardians are coming to the Netherlands:
  • Hand-signed statement from another parent or guardian that the child is allowed to go to the Netherlands
  • Passport of another parent or guardian (to check authenticity of signature)

Please prepare all the documents and send them as attachments to our email address once you have received your v-number.

Your residence permit remains valid for another 3 months after your graduation date.
If you do not apply for another residence permit in the Netherlands in the meantime, you will have to leave the country within the 3 months.

If you wish to stay in the Netherlands to look for work or another study, you can apply for the orientation year residence permit.

More information can be found here.

As long as you apply for this type of residence permit before the expiration date of your current residence permit, you will continue to reside legally in the Netherlands until the IND has made a decision on your new application.

Students who have obtained a degree in the Netherlands can choose to apply for an orientation year residence permit after graduation.

The orientation year residence permit allows you to stay in the Netherlands for one year after graduation to look for a job. Please visit the IND-website for the conditions and more information on how to apply for the orientation year residence permit. Please note that you have to apply for this permit directly at the IND and not through the UvA.

You will have to wait until you have received either your degree certificate or have your faculty fill out the IND's completion of study form before you can apply for the orientation year permit.

Once we have notified the IND of your de-enrollment, they will send you an official letter to your Dutch address stating that you have 28 days to leave the country.

Yes, you must deregister from the municipality when you leave the Netherlands. You can do this from 5 days before your departure until the day of departure at the latest. Saturday, Sunday and public holidays also count towards the 5-day period.

How to deregister varies from one municipality to another. For more information, contact the municipality where you want to deregister.

Your residence permit card is property of the Dutch government. Invalidate the residence document before you give it back to the IND. You do this by cutting a corner off the document, or by making a hole in it.

There are different ways to give the residence document back to the IND:

• Send the card in an envelope to this postal address:
  IND Bureau Documenten
  Postbus 49
  9560 AA Ter Apel
• Enclose the card with the Notification form for foreign nationals. The form contains the address of where you need to send it.
• Hand the card back to the IND at an IND-desk. First make an appointment for this by calling the IND. Do not forget to fill in a Notification form for foreign nationals and bring it to the appointment.