Study in Italy

Every year the Italian Government provides scholarships to foreigners or Italian citizens living abroad to complete formal studies and / or follow bilateral and multilateral study or research programs in Italy. All information (such as the list of scholarship recipient countries, the call for applications, the web platform for online applications, etc.) can be found on the webpage Grants for foreign and Italian citizens living abroad awarded by the Italian Government – Ministero degli Affari Esteri e della Cooperazione Internazionale, as well as on the portal Study In Italy.

We recommend checking the requirements and application procedures on the website of the Italian university you intend to enroll in.

For the academic year 2024/2025, the Higher Education academic courses for which pre-enrolment is possible through the UNIVERSITALY portal are the following:

• degree courses, Master’s degree courses (two-year or single-cycle ones);
• courses of the Institutions for Higher Education in Art, Music and Dance (AFAM);
• courses provided by the Higher Schools for Language Mediation (SSML);
• Marco Polo and Turandot international mobility programmes;
• courses of specialisation schools;
• PhD. courses;
• postgraduate and advanced training courses;
• first and second level university Master’s degree courses;
• single courses;
• courses in Italian language and culture at the University of Roma Tre, the University for Foreigners of Perugia, the University for Foreigners of Siena, the University for Foreigners “Dante Alighieri” of Reggio Calabria’;
• preparatory courses (Foundation Course);
• courses provided by the Institutes of Specialisation in Psychotherapy.

Foreign qualifications are not automatically recognized in Italy. For information on recognition methods, please consult the CIMEA website. If you intend to pursue a course of study or a career in Italy and the recognition process involves foreign authorities and Italian consular offices abroad, we recommend starting the process before moving to Italy.

The qualification must be legalized by the competent authorities of the country in which it was issued and accompanied by an official translation. For general information on legalizations and official translations, we recommend reading the Translation and legalisation of documents – Ministero degli Affari Esteri e della Cooperazione Internazionale page on this website.

The Declaration of Value (DV) for a foreign academic or professional qualification is an informative document, produced by Italian consular authorities abroad, which educational institutions and authorities responsible for qualification recognition in Italy can use to evaluate qualifications. You can find information on how to obtain it on the website of the Italian Embassy or Consulate responsible for the place where the qualification was obtained.

You can contact Office VII DGCE of the MAECI, which offers a free assistance service to refugees for requesting the issuing of declarations of value (Declaration of Value for Beneficiaries of International Protection in Italy – Ministero degli Affari Esteri e della Cooperazione Internazionale).

If you need a tourist visa to enter the Schengen area, you definitely need a visa to study in Italy. If you are a national of a country exempted from issuing a Schengen visa for stays up to 90 days, you will need a visa only if your stay for study purposes lasts over 90 days.

Besides the general study visa, there are six other types of study visas: for enrolling in an Italian University; for attending a single university course; for post-graduate studies; for participating in an exchange and mobility program; for traineeship and apprenticeship; for vocational training. With a view to checking the requirements to be met for each of these types of visa, see the database Visa for Italy .

With specific reference to the academic year 2024-2025, if you apply for a visa to enroll in an Italian University, you shall demonstrate you have a minimum amount of financial resources equal to 6.079,45 euros a year. This sum is based on the yearly amount of the so-called “social allowance”. If your studies are staggered over many years, you only need to prove you have these financial resources for the first year. For all the other types of study visa, with a view to knowing the amount of financial resources required, you shall refer to Table A of the Directive issued by the Ministry for Internal Affairs on March 1, 2000, providing for a fixed amount and a daily amount. Hence the total amount varies depending on the length of stay for study purposes.

No, you cannot. In the case of stays for study purposes, the bank guarantee or the insurance policy do not fall within the list of documents deemed suitable for demonstrating you have adequate financial resources. You need to have personal or family guarantees or financial guarantees provided by Italian Institutions and Organizations (including Universities), by local Governments or by foreign Institutions and Organizations deemed reliable by the Italian Diplomatic Mission. For additional information see the MIUR website page Foreign students.

The student regularly admitted to a university, who applies for a visa to enroll in a university, shall prove that his / her family has sufficient financial means to support him / her while studying in Italy. The fact that a subject not belonging to his / her family (associations, friends or relatives living in Italy) ensures support, with a declaration of hospitality and a written commitment (while demonstrating to have the necessary financial resources), is a positive but not decisive factor for obtaining the visa. The decision shall be taken by the local visa offices.

It will not be necessary. The visa is the authorization to enter Italy for the first time with the motivation shown on the visa label (study visa for enrolling in a University, in this specific case). Within 8 days since entry into Italy, you shall apply for a stay permit at the Immigration Office of the Police Headquarters competent for the Municipality of residence. The stay permit is the document that makes your presence in Italy legal. It shall be renewed before its expiry.

It is possible if you are not a beginner and you already have intermediate knowledge of the language. With a view to studying Italian, a requirement to be met for obtaining the study visa is that you attend higher level courses. Furthermore, they shall be full-time and fixed-term courses. The Universities for Foreigners in Perugia and Siena and the University of Roma TRE provide valuable and qualifying courses for the purpose of obtaining the so-called “Italian Quality Certification – CLIQ”. This evaluation and certification system is in line with the scientific standards set by the Council of Europe in the “Common European Framework of Reference for Languages”.

The responsibility to grant the authorization for the extension of stay as residents falls within the competence of the local immigration office, which must be contacted for further information about the requirements to be met and the documents to be submitted.

If you are a citizen of a country for which no visa is needed for short stays (up to 90 days), you can remain in Italy and in the Schengen area, even after your stay permit has expired, up to a maximum of additional 90 days. The responsibility to grant the authorization for the extension of stay as tourists and no longer as residents falls within the competence of the local immigration office, which must be contacted for further information about the requirements to be met and the documents to be submitted. If you are a citizen of a country for which a visa is required even for short stays, you cannot remain in the country after your stay permit has expired.

Yes, you can. The study permit enables you to work part-time up to 20 hours per week, also for the whole year up to 1.040 hours.

Yes, you can if your study permit is still valid. You shall enter into a contract of stay for work purposes with your future employer at the One-Stop Immigration Desk (SUI). All these matters fall within the competence of the Immigration Offices of the Italian Police Headquarters. More detailed information can be found on the websites of the Police Headquarters.

You should check with the foreign educational institution where you will continue your studies. You may be asked to legalize your Italian qualification and translate it into the language of the country in which you wish to have it recognized (or into a common language). In Italy, the legalization of administrative documents (such as academic qualifications) is the responsibility of the legalization offices of the Prefectures. Lists of sworn translators are available from Italian courts. CIMEA has a section on its website dedicated to the recognition of Italian qualifications abroad.