General

This depends on your nationality and the duration of your stay.

If you have a residence permit card for one of the Schengen countries, then you do not need an MVV. However, you will need a Dutch residence permit if your stay is more than 90 days. Please make sure that your residence permit card is valid at least until the starting date of your study programme at the University of Groningen starts. Please check our student journey tool to see if you need a visa and/or residence permit.

If you are from Argentina, Australia, Canada, New Zealand or South Korea and you have applied for the Working Holiday Program (WHP) / Working Holiday Scheme (WHS) please contact the Immigration Service Desk via the contact form. 

The University of Groningen helps students who have been admitted (or provisionally admitted) to a degree or an exchange programme, to apply for a visa and residence permit. Under Dutch law, students cannot apply for a visa and residence permit individually. 

The mvv is a long-term multiple entry visa, which allows you to enter the Netherlands. An mvv is valid for 90 days and will only be issued in combination with a residence permit.

The IND will inform the Immigration Service Desk (ISD) and Dutch embassy or consulate general in your home country once your application is approved. The ISD will notify you of this via email. 

You will then have to arrange an appointment with the Dutch embassy or consulate general to provide your biometric information (fingerprints, passport photo and signature) in order to be able to make your residence permit and determine your identity. Afterwards, you can collect your mvv from the embassy or consulate general.

The University of Groningen helps students who have been admitted (or provisionally admitted) to a degree or an exchange programme to apply for a residence permit. Under Dutch law, students cannot apply for a residence permit individually. 

The residence permit allows a foreigner to live in the Netherlands for a period longer than 90 days. It is issued in the form of a pink-and-blue coloured card and for the purpose of 'study'. 

Upon arrival in the Netherlands you first need to go to an Immigration and Naturalisation Services (IND) Desk to give your biometric information (fingerprints, passport photo and signature) in order for the IND to be able to make your residence permit and determine your identity. If you require an mvv, you have provided your biometric information at the Dutch embassy or consulate general in your home country when you have picked up your mvv.

After approval of the application and receival of your biometric information, the IND will produce your residence permit card. The ISD will inform you when your residence permit card is ready and how and where to collect it. 

If you have a Dutch residence permit with a purpose other than ‘study’ (in Dutch: studie), please send a scan (front and back) of your residence permit to the ISD, via the contact form, to determine which procedure you should follow. 

If you already have a Dutch residence permit with a purpose of ‘study’ (in Dutch: studie), you may have to apply for a change of guarantor at the Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND). Please send a scan (front and back) of your residence permit to the ISD, via the contact form, to determine which procedure you should follow.

The IND is the Dutch Immigration and Naturalisation Service and is part of the Ministry of Security and Justice. The IND assesses all visa and residence permit applications from foreign nationals who want to live in the Netherlands or want to become Dutch citizens. The Dutch law does not allow students to apply for a study residence permit themselves. That is why the University of Groningen will contact the IND on your behalf to arrange your visa and/or residence permit application.

In some cases, it is possible to study in the Netherlands within the context of intra EU-mobility. This applies if you are already following a study programme at another university in Europe and if you have a residence permit for that country with the purpose of study. In the case of intra-EU mobility, you can follow a part of your studies in the Netherlands for a minimum of 90 days and for a maximum of 360 days. For more information about intra EU-mobility, please check the website of the Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND).