University

Updated : 3/2013

Fees and financial help

Course fees and grants

University fees in Europe vary considerably – while in some EU countries admission to higher education is free, in others university can be rather expensive. Financial support in the form of scholarships, grants and loans also depends on different criteria.

Overview of fee structures and grants.

However, as an EU citizen studying at university in another EU country:

you cannot be required to pay higher course fees.
you are entitled to the same grants to cover course fees as nationals of that country.

This treatment does not necessarily apply to support or maintenance grants and loans. Some countries may nevertheless choose to provide maintenance grants to foreign students, on their own initiative.

Foreign students who are already residents

Even if you are not a national of the country where you want to study, if you have been living there for five years or more, you are entitled to a maintenance grant on the same conditions as nationals of that country.

Financial help by country

The European Commission is not responsible for the content of the national websites linked from this page.

I want to know about fees and grants for foreigners in:

Choose :

Find and compare the main grants and scholarships in EU countries (and beyond).

For information on grants to study abroad, you can also contact your national education ministry.

If you choose to study abroad, you might still be able to get a maintenance grant from your home country. This is up to your own national authorities. Such grants may only be available for a limited period, however.

Sample story

Check the conditions attached to your country’s student grants

Johs is a Dane who decided to embark on a two-year Master’s degree course in the United Kingdom after four years of studying in the United States. At that time, the Danish government provided maintenance grants to Danish students for a maximum of six years. However, there was a four-year cap on the number of years a Danish student could receive this grant if the studies were outside Denmark. Johs was not aware of this condition; as he had been receiving the grant for four years in the United States, he was unfortunately left with no grant during his course in the United Kingdom.

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