What makes the Dutch system different

Studying in the Netherlands comes with two separate price tags for the same seat in a lecture hall. One is set by the government and applies to a specific group of nationalities. The other is set by the institution and applies to almost everyone else. Knowing which one applies to you changes your budget by tens of thousands of euros, so it is worth sorting out before you compare programmes.

The two tuition tracks

If you are from an EEA country, Switzerland or Suriname, and you have not already obtained a similar degree from a government-funded Dutch university or university of applied sciences, you pay the statutory tuition fee. Study in NL, the government’s official information portal for international students, lists that fee as €2,694 for the 2026-2027 academic year.

Everyone else pays the institutional fee, set by each university or university of applied sciences individually. Study in NL states that non-EU/EEA students pay on average between €9,000 and €20,000 a year for a bachelor’s programme and between €12,000 and €30,000 a year for a master’s. Those are averages, not a ceiling. Some institutions also charge a separate application or handling fee of €75 to €100, and some refund it once you actually enrol. Check the fee page of the specific programme before you apply. The range is wide enough that “the Netherlands is cheap” is not a safe assumption if you are outside the EEA, and it’s worth comparing against funding a master’s degree elsewhere in Europe before you settle on one country.

The one scholarship that applies nationwide

Most Dutch funding is programme-specific or institution-specific, decided department by department. The one exception is the NL Scholarship, formerly called the Holland Scholarship, financed by the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science together with a number of Dutch research universities and universities of applied sciences. It amounts to €5,000, received in your first year of study. It is not a full-tuition award, and Study in NL says so directly.

To apply you need a non-EEA nationality, a place on a full-time bachelor’s or master’s programme at a participating institution, and no degree from a Dutch institution. You also have to meet the specific requirements of the institution you choose. The list of participating institutions changes every year: for 2026-2027 it names 11 research universities and 23 universities of applied sciences. Treat the scholarship as a partial offset, not a funding plan, and check your chosen institution’s own website for its requirements, fields of study and closing dates.

Getting the residence permit

If you are a non-EU/EEA national coming for a full degree, you need a student residence permit, and depending on your nationality an MVV entry visa first. The important procedural detail: you cannot apply for this yourself. The Immigration and Naturalisation Service, the IND, states plainly that only the educational institution can apply for the residence permit for you. Study in NL adds that your host institution will contact you to start the application once you enrol, and that once it receives the IND’s letter of approval, you can apply for the MVV at the embassy or consulate in your home country.

Study progress matters too. The Netherlands Labour Authority’s flyer for international students says you need to obtain at least 50% of the required credits for each academic year to maintain your residence permit. The IND’s study page sets out the full conditions, so read it before you assume a lighter course load is safe.

How much money you have to show

For 2026, the IND’s published monthly amount for students in university or higher professional education (HBO) is €1,130.77, valid from 1 January to 31 December 2026. This is not the amount you pay in tuition. It is a separate monthly income requirement, meant to show you can support yourself while you study. Ask your institution what evidence it needs to see, since that depends on how you are financing your stay.

Health insurance rules that catch people off guard

By law you need health insurance while you are in the Netherlands, but the rule that trips people up is which kind. If you are there purely to study, Study in NL states you are legally not allowed to take out Dutch public health insurance. You need either adequate coverage from your home country or a private health insurance policy instead. That flips once you take a job: Study in NL says you are required to have Dutch public health insurance as soon as you have a (part-time) job. Paid internships have their own rules, so ask the SVB if you are unsure.

Getting this wrong has a real cost. If the CAK, the government body responsible for the uninsured regulation, sends you a letter about your insurance obligation and you do not act within three months, the fine is €529.72, even if the letter reached you by mistake. The SVB, the Dutch social insurance bank, will investigate your insurance position free of charge. Study in NL warns that the assessment can take six to eight weeks, so ask for it as soon as the letter arrives.

Working while you study

If you are from outside the EU/EEA and Switzerland, the Netherlands Labour Authority’s flyer says you can work as an employee only with a personal work permit, called a TWV. With it you can work up to 16 hours a week during the year, or full-time in June, July and August. Your employer, not you, applies for the TWV, at least five weeks before the job starts. The application is free, and the flyer says working without one, or for more hours than allowed, counts as illegal employment. The flyer is dated February 2020 and is still linked from Study in NL, so confirm the current rules with your institution before you rely on it.

There is a cleaner route if you want to freelance. The flyer says you can work as a self-employed person alongside your studies with no work permit and no limit on hours, as long as you keep meeting the requirements of your residence permit. It points to the Chamber of Commerce (KVK) for the practical steps. An internship that is relevant to or part of your study programme also does not need a work permit. Instead, you, your host institution and the internship employer sign an internship agreement.

If your earlier degree was not taught in the Netherlands, your institution may ask for a credential evaluation, which is a separate step from admission. Our guide on credential evaluation for scholarship applications explains how those work.

After you graduate: the orientation year

If you are a non-EEA citizen and you completed your studies or research in the Netherlands in the past three years, Study in NL says you are eligible to apply for the “orientation year” residence permit. The permit is valid for one year and gives you free access to the Dutch labour market, whether you want to find a job as a knowledge migrant or start your own business. Check the IND’s orientation year page for the current conditions before you plan around it, and make sure you have enough money saved up at the start, since housing, insurance and daily costs add up while you look for work.

What to actually check before you apply

Confirm which tuition track applies to you on the fee page of each specific institution, since the ranges above are averages, not quotes. Ask the admissions office directly whether NL Scholarship funding is available for your specific programme and what its deadline is, since each institution sets its own. Budget separately for diploma evaluation and any document translation and notarisation your application requires, since neither is included in the tuition figures above. And before you commit to a city, work out your monthly cost of living against the €1,130.77 figure the IND sets for student permits in 2026.