Information for non-Belgian nationals

Every student who does not have the Belgian nationality is required to register at the Foreigners Office of the city were they are residing. The exact procedure can differ slightly from city to city and will depend on your situation. Below you can find the most common regulations on registering at the city hall for the first time, renewing your residence permit and applying for an orientation year.

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First time registration at the city hall

When you arrive in Belgium you need to register at the city hall of your place of residence. Different procedures apply depending on your nationality.

EEA nationals

You have to present yourself to the local authority of the commune where you are staying, within 3 months after arrival and after having secured a permanent address in Belgium. However, you are not obliged to apply for an electronic residence permit.
Depending on the commune where you reside you may have to make an appointment first either online or by phone. Check the website of your commune for more information.

You will need to present:

  • a valid passport or identity card
  • 1 recent passport size photographs
  • your certificate of registration at Odisee (your admission letter is not sufficient)
  • the official European Health Insurance Card which proves your affiliation with a health insurance company in your home country
  • proof (for instance a study grant) or a declaration of sufficient means of subsistence (students can fill in and sign a standard form at the counter)
  • € 25 fee (approx. - in case of applying for an electronic E-card)

Upon submitting all required documents at the city hall, you will receive a Registration Certificate (Annex 8). The city hall will also send a police agent to your house to confirm your address.

You can apply for an electronic residence card if you wish to do so. It is important to know that the Annex 8 might constitute a problem during certain specific administrative procedures (such as handling bank transactions), which occur smoothly with an electronic E-card. Applying for an E-card is therefore still recommended. Your E-card is valid for 5 years, on the condition that you continue to comply with the residence conditions as a student.

Please bear in mind that the city hall needs to be notified of any change of address.

If you will reside in Brussels, please check this overview of the procedure to register at the city hall.

Non-EEA nationals

After your arrival in Belgium, you should register within the first 8 days. Depending on the commune where you reside you may have to make an appointment first either online or by phone. Check the website of your commune for more information.
Do bear in mind you can only register once you have secured a permanent address in Belgium.

As a non-EEA national you need to present the following documents at the city hall:

  • A valid passport
  • A valid Authorisation for Provisional Sojourn (Student Visa type D) stamped in your passport
  • 1 recent passport size photograph
  • Proof of registration at Odisee specifically for the commune - Annexe 1 (Once you are registered you can obtain this document through the Self-service certificates application -> Certificates regarding your registration -> Registration certificate commune non-EEA)
  • Proof of health insurance
  • Proof of solvency (Your sponsorship document (Annex 32) or the financial certificate of your blocked account issued by Odisee)
  • € 35 fee (approx.)

During the first visit to the City Hall you will receive a temporary residence document (annex 15). 
In the following weeks a police officer will come to your house to check whether you are really residing at the address you provided.

As soon as your application file is entirely processed you will be invited (by appointment) to go to the City Hall again to complete the registration and to apply for an electronic residence card. A few weeks later you will then need to return to the City Hall one more time to pick up your card. You will receive an invitation document by postal mail to do so, this document will contain activation codes which you will need to activate your card when you go and pick it up.

Please make sure you don’t miss any appointments, if you do so you will be bumped to the back of the queue and the whole process will become very lengthy!

The procedure to obtain a residence permit may take several months. As long as you haven’t obtained your residence permit you are not allowed to travel abroad if you are a non-EEA student. If you do leave the country there is a chance you won’t be allowed to re-enter Belgium.

Please also bear in mind that the city hall needs to be notified of any change of address.

If you will reside in Brussels, please check this overview of the procedure to register at the city hall.

Renew your residence permit as a non-EEA student

This information only applies to you if your residence permit is based on your studies.

As you are aware, the Belgian residence permit you received is only valid until the end of the current academic year (or until the 31st of October).
If you wish to continue your studies at Odisee next academic year you will therefore need to renew your residence card.
 

To do so you will need to present yourself again at local authority of the commune where you are residing - by the latest 15 days before the expiry date of your current card.
If you are not able to do so (e.g. you don’t have all the required documents) you need to inform them and the commune will give you an additional 15 days to collect the required documents.

If you fail to provide them by the end of this period your renewal request will be deemed inadmissible.
This means your card will not be renewed and you might have to leave the country.
It is therefore VERY important you take the required steps to renew you card and do so on time! You should personally take the initiative in view of a timely renewal of your residence document. You won’t receive an invitation letter.
The residence conditions as a student are re-examined at each renewal.

If you reside in Brussels, please check this overview of the procedure to renew your residence permit at the city hall.

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You will need to provide the following documents when applying for a renewal of your card:

  • A valid national passport and your current residence permit

  • Proof of registration at Odisee specifically for the commune for academic year 2024-2025 - Annexe 1.  Please note: if you are taking part in the third examination period, you will only be able to register for academic year 2024-2025 once the results of the third examination period have been released. 

    You can obtain this document through the Self-service certificates application -> Certificates regarding your registration -> Registration certificate commune non-EEA.

  • Proof of health insurance
  • Proof of solvency (sufficient financial means):  the annex 32 form if you have a sponsor or the financial statement provided by Odisee if you want to make use of the blocked account procedure.  If you want to make use of the blocked account please check Using a blocked account
  • Your exam results for academic year 2023-2024. It is very important that you take part in all the exams!  If you have an NA on your exams results the immigration office will question why you did not take part in the exam and they could refuse to renew you card. So if you have retakes please make sure you take part! To request this form, go to the Self-service certificates application -> Certificates regarding your results and degrees -> Transcript.
    If you did not study at Odisee in 2023-2024, you will have to request this document to the institution where you were registered last academic year. 
  • A form that confirms the study progress you made in academic year 2023-2024 (Standard form - Annexe 2). To request this form, go to the Self-service certificates application -> Certificates regarding your results and degrees -> Standard form study progress. 
    If you did not study at Odisee in 2023-2024, you will have to request this document to the institution where you were registered last academic year. 
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Orientation year

Since 15 August 2021, non-EEA nationals with a residence permit linked to studies can prolong their stay in Belgium one year after graduation to look for a job in Belgium or start their own company. This is known as an orientation year.

To find out whether you are eligible for an orientation year and know how to apply for it, check the website of the Belgian Immigration Office. You can find some tips and tricks on the website of Study in Flanders. 

You will notice that the procedure to extend your residence permit is similar to the procedure you followed the previous year to extend your student residence permit. You have to submit your application at the municipality where you have your main residence, at the latest 15 days before the expiry of your residence permit.

Important to know: Proof of financial solvency is required to apply for an orientation year. To do so, you can choose to open a blocked account at Odisee. If you are interested in this option, please send an email to bbm@odisee.be (make sure to indicate in your email that you are applying for an orientation year).

Need help? Questions?

FAQ

If you lose your residence permit, you must immediately report this in person at the police station and make an official statement of loss. By providing this statement to the local authority of the commune where you reside, together with two passport size photographs you will be given a duplicate residence permit.

Please be aware that your residence permit is a very important document and that you are required to carry it with you at all times.

You need to notify your change of address to the city hall of your new place of residence .

At the end of your stay in Belgium and before your actual departure, you should give notice of your departure to the local authority of the commune where you are staying and return your residence permit.

To change the status of your Belgian residence permit you will need to present yourself again at local authority of the commune where you are residing at least one month before the expiry date of your current card.

 

As a non-EEA national you need to present the following documents at the city hall:

  • A valid passport and your current residence permit
  • 1 recent and identical passport size photographs
  • Proof of registration specifically for the commune at Odisee (Once you are registered you can obtain this document through the Self-service certificates application -> Certificates regarding your registration -> Registration certificate commune non-EEA)
  • Proof of solvency (Your sponsorship document (Annex 32) or the financial certificate of your blocked account issued by Odisee)
  • Proof of health insurance
  • €35 fee (approx.)

Unfortunately, Odisee can't help you to speed up the process to obtain a residence permit. However, most Belgium city halls offer an express procedure to receive your new residence permit within 24 or 48 hours.

Note that the fee linked to this procedure is higher (between 110 EUR and 150 EUR).

You need to request this express procedure when you submit your documents at the city hall.