Netherlands guide · verified 2026-07-04
Cost of Studying in Netherlands: Tuition, Living and Proof of Funds
Money & proof of funds
Two separate cost lines to plan for: tuition, which is a real institutional fee for non-EU students (not the token EU rate), and the IND's minimum monthly living-cost figure, which your university documents as part of the visa filing.
IND income requirement (2026)
Mandatory€1,130.77/month for WO/HBO study (€928.58/month for MBO)
= €13,569.24 for 12 months (WO/HBO), excluding tuition. This is the 'study norm', the maximum a Dutch student could receive in study finance while living in a dorm, and is revised every 1 January.
How funds are proven
MandatoryBank statement, institution deposit, scholarship letter, or sponsor documentation
Six accepted routes per IND guidance: your own bank account holding the full amount, funds deposited with the institution, a scholarship declaration, employer/company funding, a foreign private sponsor, or a Dutch-resident sponsor showing independent sustainable income. Documents must be dated within 3 months and in Dutch, English, German, or French.
Tuition, statutory (EU/EEA) rate
€2,694 for 2026/27
This rate does not apply to most Indian (non-EU/EEA) students, it is shown here only for contrast with the institutional fee below.
Tuition, institutional (non-EU) fee
MandatoryTypically €9,000 to 20,000/yr (Bachelor's), €12,000 to 30,000/yr (Master's)
Bachelor's and Master's institutional fees are set individually by each university and programme; research-intensive fields, medicine, and business/MBA programmes commonly exceed this range. Always check the specific programme's fee page, there is no single national non-EU rate.
Credential-evaluation cost (if required)
Conditional≈€150 to 200 (Nuffic/IDW), at least 10 working weeks
Only needed if the university requires a formal evaluation rather than its own informal check. Nuffic/IDW's own page currently quotes at least 10 working weeks once the application is complete, plan well ahead of any programme deadline.
Separate 'tuition' from 'proof of living funds' in your planning
These are two different requirements with two different amounts: tuition is paid to the university per its own fee schedule (often payable in instalments or per semester); the IND income requirement is a separate, government-set minimum for living costs that your university documents as part of the visa filing. Budget both, and don't assume covering one satisfies the other.
Choose a funds-proof method early
Decide which of the IND's accepted routes you'll use, a personal bank statement is simplest for most Indian families, but a company/employer-backed or scholarship route can also work if it comes with the right documentation. Whichever route, the paperwork needs to be current (within 3 months) when the university files with the IND, so time it to the filing, not to your own convenience.
Budget realistically beyond the IND minimum
€1,130.77/month is a regulatory floor, not a realistic big-city budget. Amsterdam, Utrecht, and Rotterdam typically run higher once rent is included, and rent is the dominant cost given the housing shortage (see Pitfalls). Counsel students to budget with a margin above the IND figure, and to price in a rent deposit and the health-insurance line separately (see 'After you land').
The IND income requirement changes every 1 January along with other Dutch study-finance norms. Always re-check the current amount on the IND's page before a student's family finalises the funds-proof documentation.
Where this fits
This is one step of the full Netherlands journey: admission, tests, application, visa, money, arrival and stay-back, every figure cited to an official source.
More on Netherlands
Bramica is independent and takes no commission from any university, recruiter or agency. This page is information, not immigration advice. Rules, fees and thresholds change; confirm the current requirement on the official source before acting on it.