Study visa for Italy

A non-EU national enrolling at an Italian university or higher-education institution for a course longer than ninety days needs a national long-stay study visa. The route turns on admission to the course and on a foreign qualification the Italian institution accepts, which is where most of the preparation lies. We prepare the qualification and the supporting documents from abroad, and follow the enrolment through to the residence permit (permesso di soggiorno).

What this visa is for

The study visa, governed by Article 39 of the Consolidated Immigration Act (Testo Unico sull’Immigrazione), admits non-EU students to a degree course, a master’s, a doctorate or a specialisation programme in Italy. For a stay longer than ninety days it takes the form of a national long-stay visa for university enrolment.

Pre-enrolment and the Universitaly portal

The first step is pre-enrolment through the Universitaly portal, which links the student, the chosen institution and the Italian consulate. The institution confirms admission, and the pre-enrolment supports the visa application at the consulate.

What the consulate asks for

Alongside proof of admission, the consulate looks for sufficient financial means for the stay, set each year by the Ministry of University and Research. For the 2026 to 2027 academic year the figure is 10,179.85 euro a year, around 848.25 euro a month, a marked rise on earlier years, and the current consular checklists ask degree students to show resources on this basis for the full length of the course. The applicant also holds health insurance valid in Italy and suitable accommodation, with the source of the funds shown to be lawful and traceable. A bank or insurance guarantee (fideiussione) does not satisfy this requirement, and a scholarship on its own is not accepted either, since the consulate looks for means genuinely available to the student or the family. The figure is revised yearly, so it is checked against the current consular instructions.

Your foreign qualification

To enrol, the foreign school-leaving qualification or degree usually has to be presented with a Declaration of Value (Dichiarazione di Valore) from the Italian consulate, or with a comparability statement from CIMEA, and with sworn translations and the legalisation or Apostille of the originals. These are prepared in the country of origin, before the application, and a qualification presented without them is the commonest reason an enrolment stalls.

After you arrive, and working while you study

Within eight working days of arriving, the student applies for the residence permit (permesso di soggiorno) for study at the police headquarters (Questura), and renews it before it expires. A study permit allows part-time work of up to twenty hours a week, to a limit of 1,040 hours a year.

Turning a study permit into a work permit

Not every study permit opens the way to work, and the type of course decides it. A permit held for a university course, a bachelor’s or master’s degree, a doctorate, a university master or a qualifying academic diploma, converts into a work permit, employed or self-employed, outside the Decreto Flussi quota and at any time while the permit is valid, a route opened by the 2023 reform (Decree-Law 20/2023, converted by Law 50/2023). A permit for an internship or a vocational-training course converts only once the cycle is complete. A permit held for a language course, or another short course leading to no recognised Italian qualification, gives no conversion route at all, so a plan to stay on for work should weigh the kind of course from the outset.

A graduate who has obtained one of these qualifications in Italy has a further option, a job-seeking permit (permesso per attesa occupazione) of nine to twelve months, to look for work or to set up a business in the field of study. The conversion itself is requested through the Single Immigration Desk (Sportello Unico per l’Immigrazione) on a genuine job offer, or on a self-employment activity genuinely open to the holder, under Article 6 of the Consolidated Immigration Act and Article 14 of its implementing regulation.

How we assist, from abroad and in Italy

We prepare and translate the qualification and the supporting documents, obtain the Declaration of Value through the consulate or prepare the documents for a CIMEA statement, and guide the pre-enrolment. We then follow the student into Italy through the residence permit, so the enrolment and the immigration steps are handled as one.

Legal references: Articles 4(3) and 39 of the Consolidated Immigration Act (Legislative Decree 286/1998), Presidential Decree 394/1999, Interministerial Decree No. 850/2011, Annex A, point 17, Ministry of the Interior Directive of 1 March 2000, Article 5, on means of subsistence, and the Ministry of University and Research circular for 2026 to 2028 setting the financial capacity at 10,179.85 euro a year. On conversion to work, Article 6 of the Consolidated Immigration Act, Article 14 of Presidential Decree 394/1999, and Decree-Law 20/2023 converted by Law 50/2023.