To come to Romania as a student or a pupil you must:
- be registered in an accredited high school, undergraduate or graduate course or educational institution, in the form of full-time education; or
- be admitted as a PhD student, postdoctoral studies or for a preparatory year to learn the Romanian language;
- a criminal record certificate or another document with the same legal value;
- medical insurance during the validity of the visa.
You must also obtain:
- a Letter of Acceptance from the Ministry of Education, Research and Youth; and
- a long-stay visa for study purpose.
If you intend to study in Romania for more than 90 days, you must also get a temporary residence permit after you arrive in Romania.
Where and how to apply | Long-stay visa You must obtain a long-stay visa at the Romanian embassy in your country of origin or of residence. Temporary residence permit Upon arrival, you must apply for a residence permit at the General Inspectorate for Immigration. |
Documents required | Long-stay visa To obtain a long-stay visa for studies, you must provide a letter of acceptance for studies from the Ministry of National Education. If you are a student, you must also show:
If you are participating in a student or pupil exchange programme, you must also show:
Language requirements Before being admitted to a Romanian educational institution as a student or a pupil, you must prove good knowledge of the teaching language of the class you intend to attend. If you already speak Romanian, you are not required to attend the preparatory year but must pass a test instead. If you can prove that you have studied in Romanian for at least four years consecutively, you are not required to pass the language test or to attend the preparatory year. More on language requirements to study in Romania Temporary residence permit If you are studying in Romania as a student or a pupil, you can apply to extend your right of residence for a period equal to the total duration of the studies and acquire a temporary residence permit if:
If you are participating in a student or a pupil exchange programme for a period not exceeding one year, you can apply to extend your right of residence for up to one year and acquire a temporary residence permit if:
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Duration of validity of permits | The long-stay visa is valid for 90 days. The residence permit for students and pupils is valid for a period equal to the total duration of the studies. It is renewable. The total duration of your stay cannot exceed the duration of your studies. If you have a scholarship granted by the Romanian state, your residence permit is valid for the entire period of study. The temporary residence right for studies may be extended by a maximum of 6 months after graduation, in order to finalise the school or university situation, as well as to authenticate the study documents for this purpose. The right of temporary residence for studies can be extended by 9 months after graduation, to look for a job and perform employment formalities or to open a business, with the presentation of documents certifying the completion of studies |
Further information | More on obtaining the right to stay in Romania (in Romanian). |
Change of studies | You can change studies, in compliance with national law, if you have already obtained a long-stay visa or a residence permit for studies. The length of your new studies cannot exceed the total initial duration of your residence permit. If the length of your new studies exceeds that duration, you must obtain a new long-stay visa for studies. |
Employment during studies | You are allowed to work part-time during your studies without a work authorisation, for a maximum of four hours per day. The same conditions that apply to other non-EU employed workers will apply to you too. |
Employment after studies | If you are a graduate of a Romanian educational institution and have resided in Romania on the basis of a long-stay visa for studies followed by a temporary residence permit for studies, you can request to extend your right to stay in Romania for work purposes if you can prove that you have a full-time work contract related to your field of studies. If you fulfil these conditions, you will not be required to obtain a visa for work purposes. |
Family reunification | You may apply for family reunification with:
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More on long-term resident status (in Romanian). |
The temporary residence right for study within mobility
Third-country nationals holding a valid long-stay visa or a residence permit for study purposes, issued by another EU Member State, may enter and remain in Romania for a period of up to 360 days, referred to as the student mobility, without the obligation to obtain a visa if:
- he/she participates in courses of anEU higher education institution or multilateral programmes that include mobility measures or an agreement between two or more higher education institutions;
- a notification was sent by the higher education institution to the territorial unit of the General Inspectorate for Immigration on whose radius the third-country national is to carry out his/her
Within a maximum of 30 days from the transmission of the notification, the competent territorial unit of the General Inspectorate for Immigration may formulate objections regarding the student's mobility.
Objections to student mobility shall be communicated in writing, within 5 days from the date of their submission, to the competent authorities of the first Member State and to the higher education institution which sent the notification and shall result in a ban on attending higher education courses in the Romanian territory.
They can work to supplement their maintenance with only a part-time schedule.