Financial information for refugee students
There are different options for financing your studies at UU. Below we summarized the most important options, specifically for refugee students.
On this page you will find:
- Student finance and loan system by DUO. This is the most commonly used type of financial aid in the Netherlands, offered by the government.
- Potential impact of funds/gifts on your social benefits.
- Incluusion travel cost support.
- Utrecht University Fund support.
- UAF support.
- Right to student finance when enrolling in a pre-master's programme
Each scholarship fund has different conditions, as well as different application procedures and deadlines. Please read the information below carefully and see what applies to your situation.
General information for refugee students? Click here for Bachelors and here for Masters!
Student finance is distributed by the DUO (the executive agency of the Dutch Ministry of Education). Student finance is a financial aid that helps students cover their study expenses, living expenses and travel costs. The financial aid can be a gift, an interest-bearing loan or a combination of both and is meant for bachelor and master's students who have a residency in the Netherlands and are under the age of 30. For most students, student finance is essential, so that they can finance their studies and travel for free with public transport to the university on week days.
Many refugee students with a status in the Netherlands can apply for study finance. Unfortunately, not all refugee students meet the criteria for student finance. Also, for some students, student finance might not be enough to cover all their costs. Therefore, you will find several options below of funds and organizations that may be able to support you in this matter.
If you are 29 years old when you start following free UU courses through Incluusion, and you are considering pursuing a Master's degree in the near future, please contact us at incluusion@uu.nl and we will be able to advise you about the options regarding Student Finance.
If you are over 30 years old, you can take a look at the LifeLong Learning Credit as an option for a loan.
If you are receiving social benefits while applying for funding, please check with your municipality about what this means for you. If you receive a fund while also receiving social benefits, your social benefits might be cut. Sometimes this means you have to pay back money.
It differs per municipality which amount of funding/gifts you are allowed to receive in one year, and whether it means your benefits will be cut if the funding you receive is higher than that amount. Sometimes municipalities are more flexible, when the funding/gift is directly related to education.
It is important that the Fund you are applying to knows you receive social benefits, so always include this in your budget if you do. This way, they can take this into account and make sure that you don’t run into any unwelcome surprises from the Belastingdienst (Tax and Customs Administration) afterwards.
Incluusion offers limited travel costs support for students with a Dutch asylum status who are currently studying at UU, either through Incluusion, or as a regular student in a Bachelor or Master programme.
The following conditions apply:
- You need to be registered through Incluusion as a student, or you need to be a regular UU student in a Bachelor or Master programme.
- You are not eligible for study finance (studiefinanciering).
- You therefore do not have a student travel card.
- Your travel costs are not paid for by another organisations, such as but not limited to:
- UAF
- Your municipality
- COA
- You can proof your travel expenses to UU through invoices/receipts from, for instance, OV-chipkaart and NS.
- We can only refund your travel costs based on your invoices, we cannot give an advance.
- It can take over a month to receive your refund.
- You will need a bank account where we can refund the money to. A foreign bank account is accepted and it doesn’t have to be your own. For example, a bank account of a friend or family member is fine too.
If you are receiving social benefits, they may be cut if you receive too much funding/gifts per year. Please check the information above about this carefully.
For more information about receiving travel cost support via Incluusion, please contact Incluusion@uu.nl.
The Utrecht University Fund has different types of funds to which students can apply if they need financial help. For the following funds you need to be an enrolled student in a Bachelor or Master programme at Utrecht University.
- Rosanna Fund for Women: A fund that supports talented female students and researchers in their career at Utrecht University. Application moment is once a year. You can ask for funding if you need help paying your tuition or travel expenses, for instance.
- First-Generation Fund: supports students whose parents did not go to (a Dutch) university. The fund provides small grants (and sometimes laptops) for students who need support.
- Emergency Fund for students in acute financial distress, which leaves them unable to afford basic needs. The funding can provide a modest contribution that will be used to meet the initial acute financial need.
- Right To Learn Fund for refugees in a disadvantaged financial position, to promote their progression to higher education, where it is clear that the requested amount is necessary to achieve academic goals.
It differs per fund how complicated an application is. For most funds, you will need to write a motivation letter. Sometimes you might need a letter of recommendation or provide an overview of your annual budget, proving that you need the funding.
The Foundation for Refugee Support (UAF) provides financial and other support to refugees and asylum seekers who plan to study in the Netherlands. UAF can advise, guide and support refugees and asylum seekers, but also works together with municipalities, educational institutions and employers.
UAF Academy
The UAF Academy is an online platform where you can start learning Dutch and where you can find useful information about what you can do whilst you are in your asylum procedure or whilst you are waiting for your integration to start. The use of the platform is free, as is the consultation given by the UAF. You do need to become a UAF client and certain conditions apply. Please read the information on the UAF website carefully.
Personal support by UAF
It differs a lot what they can offer you, depending on when you started your civic integration (before 1 January 2022, or after). It also differs per case whether their financial help is gift or a loan. Support that they might potentially be able to offer includes: help with study choice, language courses, help with study preparation of finding a transition year, help with arranging financial matters for your studies and financial support such as travel costs or expenses for study books.
Contact UAF to see what they can do for you.
Unfortunately, you do not always qualify for student financial aid when following a pre-master's programme. First of all, you have to be younger than 30. If this is not the case, you can consider the Lifelong Learning Credit as an option for a loan.
Are you under 30? Even then, certain conditions apply. For example, you must be enrolled as a bachelor’s student (full-time or dual). Are you enrolled in a university bachelor's programme during your pre-master that is linked to a multi-year master’s programme? Then your potential additional right to student financial aid will be granted immediately.
Do you have further questions about this? Please contact Student Services.
Did you start your integration before January 1, 2022? In that case, the UAF may be able to provide financial support. If so, contact the UAF to discuss the possibilities.
Did you start your integration after January 1, 2022? Then, contact your case manager from the municipality where you are integrating to discuss the situation. If the municipality approves your study plan, they may cover the costs of the pre-master's programme.
On top of support specifically aimed at refugees, you can also find a list of the scholarships most commonly awarded to international students on the UU page about scholarships and grants.