Information residence permit
This information is intended for international students coming to Maastricht University to study for more than 3 months and who hold passports issued by the following countries:
Australia, Canada, Japan, Monaco, New Zealand, South Korea, United States of America, Vatican City State.
Residence permit (VVR)
If you are a passport holder from one of the following countries coming to Maastricht University to study for more than 3 months, you MUST apply for a Residence Permit to avoid staying in the Netherlands illegally: Australia, Canada, Japan, Monaco, New Zealand, South Korea, United States of America, Vatican City State.
How to apply
Applications for a Residence Permit can only be submitted through Maastricht University, so you will not be able to apply for this Permit yourself. Please note that some requirements have to be met BEFORE your arrival and some AFTER your arrival in the Netherlands.
The application process – BEFORE arrival
Once you have been admitted to a program at Maastricht University, your name and registration period will be forwarded to the Visa Office. The Visa Office will then send you an e-mail with all information and requirements for the Residence Permit procedure. You will first be asked to submit scanned documents digitally by e-mail, so that the Visa Office can check whether they meet the requirements. Once they do, you will be informed about this and, if necessary, asked to bring originals of certain documents with you when travelling to the Netherlands.
You will also have to pay the legal fees for the visa and the residence permit (which is € 600), unless you have been awarded a scholarship from Maastricht University. For more information on scholarships please visit their webiste.
Requirements
A. Copy of your passport
Your passport must be valid until at least one month after the end of your registration period at Maastricht University. If you have travelled to the Netherlands in the last 3 years you must send us a copy of all pages of your passport. This will avoid delays to your application. If you have already had Residence Permit application refused for any reason, it will also be helpful to send us copies of any letters you have received at that time, indicating the reason for refusal. Again, this will help to avoid delays.
B. Proof of sufficient financial means
Dutch Immigration also requires proof that you are able to support yourself financially in the Netherlands during your registration period.
This amount is considered a minimum to pay for your rent, food, insurance and other general expenses during your period of study, but not any tuition fees. Your options to prove sufficient financial means depend on whether you are a degree seeking (bachelor or master) or an exchange student.
If you are a degree seeking student, you are required to prove the availability of € 820 for each month you are registered (or € 28 for each day). Your options to prove this are:
- OPTION 1 Deposit the required amount into the account of the Visa Office. The legal fees will be deducted from this amount and the remainder will be refunded to you upon request after arrival in the Netherlands.
- OPTION 2 Proof of a scholarship, covering the required amount.
These options are the easiest and fastest ones. You can also combine them.
If you are an exchange student, you are required to prove the availability of € 820 for every month you are registered (or € 28 for every day). Your options to prove this are:
- OPTION 1 Deposit the required amount into the account of the Visa Office. Upon your request, this deposit will be refunded after your arrival in the Netherlands.
- OPTION 2 Proof of a scholarship, covering the required amount.
- OPTION 3 Proof of enough money in your own bank account.
- OPTION 4 Proof of financial support by a company or a private person, either in the Netherlands or abroad.
You may combine these options, but from experience, the Visa Office recommends option 1 or 2, because these are the easiest and fastest.
The Visa Office will e-mail you personally regarding these options and the documentation required ensuring that the documents you supply meet the requirements of Dutch Immigration.
C. Completed consent form
In the e-mail you will receive with all information and requirements for the residence permit procedure, there is also a consent form you have to complete. On this form you provide additional information and by signing the form you authorize the Visa Office to act on your behalf concerning residence issues.
D. Fees
Maastricht University does not charge students for the services of the Visa Office. However, Dutch Immigration does charge for the processing of applications. These so-called legal fees are €600.
The legal fees must be transferred to the Visa Office bank account in advance, unless:
- you have a scholarship from Maastricht University that covers your legal fees
- you prove sufficient financial means through a deposit. In that case the legal fees will be deducted from your deposit
- your study program has offered to pay the legal fees for you.
When all documents and payments meet the requirements, the Visa Office will confirm this by email. This confirmation mail will indicate which original documents should be brought along and you will be asked to inform the Visa Office on your date of arrival in the Netherlands.
The application process – AFTER arrival
In the email you receive on the approval of your visa, you are asked to inform the Visa Office on your date of arrival in the Netherlands. Upon receipt of your arrival date, the Visa Office will schedule you for a group session to complete the Residence Permit application.
Requirements
You must bring the following documents with you to the meeting for the completion of the Residence Permit:
- Your original passport
There will be an identity check at the entrance, after which your passport will be collected to make copies for the registration at City Hall. You will get it back at the end of the meeting. - Passport photograph
The passport photograph should not be older than 6 months. It has to be made in the Netherlands to satisfy the requirements of Dutch Immigration, which are almost certainly different from the requirements in your home country.
The Visa Office will send your application to Dutch Immigration on your behalf and all communication from Dutch Immigration will be sent to the Visa Office.
The Visa Office will receive confirmation that your Residence Permit application has been approved. Dutch Immigration will then inform the Visa Office when your Residence Permit card is ready to be collected by you. The Visa Office will contact you via e-mail explaining that your Residence Permit card is ready.
How long will the process take?
It is very difficult to say exactly how long the application process will take. You should receive your Residence Permit card within three months after sending your application to Dutch Immigration. However, this may take longer in the summer, due to the number of applications received in August and September.
Validity of your Residence Permit
Your Residence Permit will be valid for your registration period, but never longer than one year.
Students who will be studying at Maastricht University for more than one year, including those following a Bachelor’s or 2 year Master’s program or those who are following a preparatory year, such as a language course or a pre-Master’s program before joining either a Bachelor’s or Master’s program, will need to extend their Residence Permit each year.
An application for an extension to your Residence Permit must be sent to Dutch Immigration two months before your Permit expires and while you are still in the Netherlands.
Again, the Visa Office will guide and support you through the process. More information will be given to you at the appropriate time.
Additional requirements
Tuberculosis screening
International students from South Korea are required to be screened for tuberculosis. This can only be done after your arrival in the Netherlands and only by the Dutch Municipal Health Authority (GGD). You will be extensively informed on this subject during the meeting for the completion of the Residence Permit.
Registration at City Hall
Different countries have different ways of recording their population – some countries choose to carry out a census every 10 years, but the Netherlands has a system whereby a so-called Municipal Records Database (GBA) is maintained on a daily basis, recording the most important information about the population. Dutch law therefore requires all those living in the Netherlands (both Dutch and non-Dutch nationals) to register in the GBA at City Hall in the area in which they live in order to keep this database up-to-date.
If you will be living somewhere other than Maastricht, you must contact your local City Hall yourself to arrange for your registration. However, if you will be living in Maastricht, you can take care of your GBA-registration during the meeting for the completion of the Residence Permit because City Hall will be present at those meetings. For that, you need to take the following to the meeting:
- your original passport
- your full address in Maastricht (street, house number, room number and postal code)
- a legalised birth certificate (only in case you are staying longer than one year). Please contact your local Dutch embassy on the exact requirements the certificate should meet.
Your GBA-registration will be finalised when the Visa Office has received a confirmation of receipt of your Residence Permit application from Dutch Immigration and has forwarded this to City Hall. You will then receive an overview of your registered data and a Citizen Service Number.
Additional issues
Working
Although it is easy to survive in the Netherlands without speaking Dutch, it is difficult to get a job here, even part time, without some knowledge of the Dutch language.
If you want to work alongside your studies, you will also have to ask your employer to apply for a Work Permit on your behalf.
Important
The process of applying for your Residence Permit (VVR) is a joint effort between you and the Visa Office. We need your help and cooperation to ensure your application is dealt with quickly, efficiently and successfully.
Please mind the following:
- Check your e-mail regularly. The Visa Office will contact you via e-mail about your application. In order to avoid delay, we need you to respond quickly if we have any additional requests or questions.
- Read all information and requirements carefully and follow the instructions given to you by the Visa Office. Our expertise will ensure that, if you follow the instructions given, there should be no problems with your application.
- Contact the Visa Office if you do not understand the instructions given to you.
We are more than happy to explain what is required via e-mail because it is important that you understand what is required. - Bring an originally legalized birth certificate with you for your registration at City Hall if you are planning to be registered longer than one year. The certificate should not be older than six months and should be translated if the original language is not Dutch, English, German or French. Do not forget to find out from your local Dutch embassy whether additional stamps and/or a translation of the document is required.
- Do not bring passport photos with you, as we will be unable to use them for your application for a Residence Permit (VVR).
- Attend the meeting about your application for a Residence Permit (VVR), the registration at City Hall and the tuberculosis test (if required).
