Entry visa and residence permit prospective students
Some international students need to have an entry visa with a residence permit and some only a residence permit when studying in Wageningen. See what applies to your situation.
Do i need an entry visa and residence permit?
Not all students need to apply for an entry visa (MVV) and/or a residence permit. In the table below you can check if you need to apply for either one of them. After that you can check the information that applies to you.
Not all students need to apply for an entry visa (MVV) and/or a residence permit. Below you can check if you need to apply for either one of them. After that you can check the information that applies to you.
EU/EFTA countries*
- MVV entry visa needed? NO
- Residence permit needed? NO
- Working permit needed? NO
Croatia
- MVV entry visa needed? NO
- Residence permit needed? NO
- Working permit needed? YES
Australia, Canada, Japan, Monaco, New Zealand, South Korea, U.K., U.S.A., Vatican City
- MVV entry visa needed? NO
- Residence permit needed? YES
- Working permit needed? YES
All other countries
- MVV entry visa needed? YES
- Residence permit needed? YES
- Working permit needed? YES
Student Immigration Office (SIO) of Wageningen University & Research will apply for both your entry visa and residence permit based on study in the Netherlands. It is not possible to start this procedure yourself.
Wageningen University & Research will start this procedure* as soon as your payment and/ or fellowship letter has been received.
Student Immigration Office (SIO) of Wageningen University & Research will send you instructions and forms using your OSIRIS portal after you have been admitted and we have received your payment and/or fellowship letter.
What can you expect?
The steps to Legal Residence:
- You will receive an email with a link to your portal
- Fill out the questionnaire on your portal and upload the necessary documents
- SIO will check the answers and forms, and will inform you if the forms have been filled out correctly
- SIO confirms the start* of the procedure. If you start in September, SIO will send the application to the IND around the end of May. If you start in February, SIO will send the application around the end of October.
- SIO will keep you updated through your portal
- SIO will inform you and send you the approval letter including the “Admission and Residence, MVV issue form”, after receiving the entry visa and residence permit approval letter from the Dutch Immigration and Naturalisation Services (IND)
- After receiving the approval letter in your mailbox/portal, you should contact the Dutch Embassy yourself and make an appointment to collect your entry visa and submit your biometric data (passport photo and fingerprints). For additional information concerning the process at the embassy, we refer you to the concerning Dutch Embassy mentioned in your approval letter from the IND
- Book your flight as soon as your entry visa sticker is in your passport
- After arrival, SIO will keep you updated regarding the few remaining steps to follow in order to receive your residence permit
- During the entry visa and residence permit application process you may contact SIO through Questions and Answers.
- Please keep in mind that this process may take 4-6 weeks and that SIO is not able to speed up the procedure of the Dutch Immigration and Naturalisation Services (IND) nor the process after with the Dutch Embassy.
A MVV is an entry visa to enter the Netherlands; it is a sticker in your passport issued by the Dutch Embassy. Note that an entry visa is not the same as a residence permit.
A MVV is a part of the application process TEV that SIO applies for on your behalf (MVV+VVR=TEV). The other half is the residence permit (VVR) for the period of the program you will be following at Wageningen University & Research. The residence permit VVR will be issued in the Netherlands after you have provide the Embassy with your biometric data.
How will I get the sticker in my passport?
Steps of getting the MVV sticker in your passport:
- Once the MVV has been approved by the IND, you may contact the Dutch Embassy mentioned on the approval letter you got from SIO to make an appointment to collect your entry visa.
- MVV is a sticker in your passport issued by the Dutch Embassy: make sure they give you a type D/ multiple entry visa.
- The type D/multiple entry visa allows you to travel within the Schengen countries. With multiple entry visa you can also travel outside the Schengen countries and re-enter several times up to the expiry date on the MVV.
- When you book your flight to the Netherlands you are also allowed to travel through another Schengen country.
- Most of the times the Embassy requires a Healthcare insurance certificate when you collect this type of entry visa.
- Starting from the date on which the IND authorized the Embassy to issue the MVV to you, you may have 90 days to go to the Embassy to apply for your MVV.
- The Embassy will be able to tell you how long it will take before you will get your MVV sticker issued in your passport.
- ·When you receive your MVV, it will be valid for another 90 day up to the expiry date. You may travel to the Netherlands during this period.
Please note that the MVV is only valid for 90 days from the date you entered the Netherlands or one of the other Schengen countries, but no longer than the expiry date on it. You will get a date stamp in your passport when flying internationally at the airport.
Your MVV still needs to be valid when you collect your residence permit in the Netherlands after arrival. Student Immigration Office (SIO) will keep you updated about every step necessary regarding the legal residence.
Under NO condition should students, who plan to stay longer than three months, enter the Netherlands on a short-term or tourist visa so called a C-type. It is NOT possible to change a tourist visa status into a residence permit.
More about Visa and Immigration Procedures
Students from Austria, Canada, Great Britain, Japan, Monaco, New-Zealand, South Korea, U.K., U.S.A. and Vatican City do not need an entry visa. However, if the student need to stay in the Netherlands for more than 90 days, a residence permit for the Netherlands is required.
Student Immigration Office (SIO) of Wageningen University & Research will apply for your residence permit based on study in the Netherlands. It is not possible to start this procedure yourself.
Wageningen University & Research will start this procedure* as soon as your payment and/ or fellowship letter has been received.
Student Immigration Office (SIO) of Wageningen University & Research will send you instructions and forms using your OSIRIS portal after you have been admitted and we have received your payment and/or fellowship letter.
What can you expect?
The steps to Legal Residence:
- You will receive an email with a link to your portal
- Fill out the questionnaire on your portal and upload the necessary documents
- SIO will check the answers and forms, and will inform you if the forms have been filled out correctly
- SIO confirms the start* of the procedure. *Start September SIO would send the application to the IND around end of May and start February would be end of October.
- SIO will keep you updated through your portal
- SIO will inform you about the residence permit approval letter details that they received from the Dutch Immigration and Naturalisation Services (IND)
- After receiving the approval letter in your mailbox/portal you may book your flight
- After arrival, SIO will keep you updated regarding the few remaining steps to follow in order to receive your residence permit
During the residence permit application process you may contact SIO through Questions and Answers.
Please keep in mind that this process may take 4-6 weeks and that SIO is not able to speed up the procedure of the Dutch Immigration and Naturalisation Services (IND).
As a part of the Dutch Immigration Law, Wageningen University & Research is obliged to inform the Immigration Naturalisation Service (IND) every year about the study progress of non-EU students with a Residence Permit based on study. This is called the Study Progress Monitor.
When you have a study residence permit you are allowed to study up to 360 days in a different EU country under Directive (EU) 2016/801. Find the requirements and process information below.
Directive (EU) 2016/801 enables students from outside the European Union (EU), European Economic Area (EEA) or Switzerland to study in several EU countries. This is called intra-EU mobility. Students choose the EU country where they are going to study. Afterwards the student can follow part of the studies in one or more other EU countries. The student uses the study residence permit from the first country for this.
Incoming (going to Wageningen University)
You have a study residence permit in a different EU country (not from the Netherlands) and you are coming to study at Wageningen University under the intra-EU mobility regulation for up to 360 days.
Requirements
These are the requirements that apply to intra-EU mobility for the purpose of studies, when you are going to study at Wageningen University:
- You have a valid residence permit for the purpose of studies in a different EU country, other than Ireland and Denmark.
- You are following an educational programme in which you study in several countries. Or you are coming to the Netherlands under a agreement between 2 or more schools for higher education.
- You will stay for a maximum of 360 days to study in the Netherlands. Your residence permit for the purpose of study from the other EU country will be valid during your stay in the Netherlands.
- You have enough money. You need to prove your Living expenses. There are no reasons to assume that you want to live in the Netherlands for a purpose other than studies.
- You do not pose a danger to public order or national security.
Process
SIO (Student Immigration Office) will send you the process in Osiris. We will explain how to fill in the forms and upload them. We also provide the document that you need to use.
Student Service Centre
Do you have questions about admission, enrolment, tuition fees or housing? Feel free to contact the Student Service Centre — we’ll be happy to help you!