We understand that studying abroad is an important and life-changing decision which goes hand in hand with a number of bureaucratic steps. Especially, almost all of our students are international ones coming from abroad. Our Educational Management Office is here to help our students with the pre-arrival arrangements.
On this page you can find the information that you need to know before your travel and during your stay.
Information for master students
If you need a visa to enter the Netherlands, IHS will apply for your visa/residence permit, and we can only start your visa procedure after the payments of both your tuition fee and the living costs deposit. If this visa application is approved by the EUR Immigration Office, you will receive a visa (a stamp in your passport) at the Dutch embassy or consulate in your home country.
A residence permit is automatically issued once your visa application has been approved. This permit, as such, replaces your visa and defines the real period of your legal stay in the Netherlands. Nowadays, this permit is valid for three months longer than the actual duration of your educational program. After your arrival in the Netherlands, you can pick up the permit at the office of Immigration Services in the Netherlands.
The visa procedure for 2025 intake will start from 1 April, and it can take 4 -8 weeks until it has been approved. Read here for more information about the MVV visa process.
As part of the visa application requirements, you must transfer this payment to the institute as a deposit. You will later receive the full refund of this deposit on a monthly basis to your Dutch bank account after the programme has started.
Below, you can find two videos explaining the legalisation of documents and visa procedures.
International students are required to have health insurance during their stay in the Netherlands.
We usually work with the insurance company AON. You can apply for and manage your insurance online easily via their website.
European Health Insurance Card (EHIC)
Citizens from the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway or Switzerland can apply for a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) free of charge. EHIC covers most basic and emergency healthcare costs, while an additional insurance package might be necessary on top of this basic package in order to cover some costs in the Netherlands. Please contact your local health insurance provider for more details.
For the 2025 intake, IHS offers a number of rooms in Rotterdam in collaboration with the Social Hub, which is located close to the EUR Campus. You can check out the Social Hub facilities here. Please find more information below.
- Type of room: Deluxe Queen
- Price: €1246 per month
- Rental period: 1 September 2025 - 31 August 2026
- If you book the room after the 1st of June, the price per room per month will be higher than indicated above.
- In case you are interested in reserving a room, please complete this form. After submission of this form, you will be kept updated on the registration procedure.
You can find further information on housing here.
Unlike most of Dutch study programmes, we only ask our confirmed students to make a registration via Studielink. Therefore, please do not submit an application via Studielink until we ask you to do so.
After you have successfully created a profile at Studielink and registered for the programme, in a couple of weeks you will receive your student number and ERNA account.
Please also be aware that an application via Studielink is NOT an academic application to our master programme. You should follow the admission & application procedure stated on our website.
Information for short courses participants
When you stay in the Netherlands up to 90 days, you should apply for a short stay visa yourself from your home country. Once you have completed the necessary fees, we will send you a visa support letter that you can use for your visa application. We therefore strongly recommend you to finalize your payment at least 10 weeks before the course starts, to avoid any delay receiving your visa in time.
International students are required to have a health insurance during the stay in the Netherlands. We can arrange the insurance for our short course participants via the insurance company AON.
The monthly cost is around 55 euro. You can find the package details here.
If you would like IHS to arrange it for you, you can indicate this in the Admission Acceptance Form (AAF) when you request for an invoice.
European Health Insurance Card (EHIC)
Citizens from the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway or Switzerland can apply for a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) free of charge. EHIC covers most basic and emergency healthcare costs, while an additional insurance package might be necessary on top of this basic package in order to cover some costs in the Netherlands. Please contact your local health insurance provider for more details.
Would you like to know more?
Cannot find what you were looking for? Below, you can find videos from Study in NL that could come in handy or visit our Frequently Asked Questions page.
You can also check other practical information from the EUR website.
Kindly note that not all the EUR arrangements apply to IHS students, as IHS has its own team for administrative arrangements.
Erasmus University Rotterdam
Student life in Rotterdam...
...is fun & cultural
The Dutch education system...
...may differ from your home country
Learning the Dutch language...
...is not necessary but great to do!
Housing in Rotterdam...
... is your own responsibility, know what to expect!
Public transport in The Netherlands...
...is well organised: the trams, buses and metro are scheduled to link pefectly
Photo credit: Rotterdam Partners
Around June/July, we will create a WhatsApp group for the upcoming master students. The group links will be shared by email in that period (to confirmed students only).