If you want to enhance your resume with a European degree or if you want to visit beautiful Italy while taking advantage of the time for up to a year, the study visa is for you.

Not only for professionals and university graduates, but also to improve your language skills or your knowledge of art and cooking.

Depending on what you want to study, the specific type of visa and its requirements vary.

Visa for Italian language studies and/or other courses

This visa is ideal if you want to perfect your Italian, but also if you want to improve your knowledge of other subjects such as art and cooking. To apply, you will need:

Certificate of registration from the institute or academy that will give the course with the description of the level to be taken, starting date, duration and daily hours.
Documentation of the study previously conducted in Colombia.

Notes: Although it is possible to apply for Italian language study without any previous study, it will be at the discretion of the officer whether or not to grant the visa.

Exchange Visa

Those who wish to spend a semester or two in Italy to complement the university experience will require:

Letter of acceptance from the Italian university, indicating the starting date, duration and description of the course.
Letter of introduction from the Colombian university indicating the student’s personal data and the agreement between the universities, specifying the course to be taken.
A simple copy of the existing agreement, provided that the university has not already registered it at the embassy.
B2 level certification in Italian issued by CILS, CELI or PLIDA or B2 level certification in English issued by TOEFL, MICHIGAN or IELTS, depending on the language in which the course will be given.

Note: Please note that there must be a pre-existing agreement between the universities and that the visa will only be granted for 1 or 2 semesters, depending on the number of cycles remaining to complete the study.

Visa for post-graduate specialization

To complement your Colombian university studies with an Italian postgraduate degree you will need:

Letter of acceptance from the Italian university, indicating the starting date, duration and description of the course.
B2 level certification in Italian issued by CILS, CELI or PLIDA or B2 level certification in English issued by TOEFL, MICHIGAN or IELTS, depending on the language in which the course will be given.

Visa for enrollment in an Italian university

Those who, with a bachelor’s degree, wish to continue their university studies (undergraduate, laurea and laurea magistrale or master of science) in Italy, will require:

Original of the legalized, apostilled and translated high school diploma.
Original of the ICFES tests apostilled and translated.
Since the Italian institutions have 12 years of study, while the Colombian institutions have 11, the course of the twelfth year must be accredited:

-Transition grade course certificate.

Post-secondary education equivalent to at least 1 year.

-Original transcript of two fully passed semesters at a Colombian university.

Any of the above must be legalized, apostilled and translated.

Proof of university pre-enrollment.
Letter of acceptance to the Italian university
B2 level certification in Italian issued by CILS, CELI or PLIDA or B2 level certification in English issued by TOEFL, MICHIGAN or IELTS, depending on the language in which the course will be given.

General requirements for study visa for Italy

Medical insurance with coverage of at least €000 for the first 10 days after arrival in Italy.
Travel document whose expiration date exceeds the requested stay by at least 3 months.
Proof of availability of accommodation in Italy by means of hotel or residence reservation or letter of invitation issued by an Italian, European or foreign citizen regularly residing in Italy.
Registration or pre-registration.
Completion of the national visa application form.
Declaration of the value of the qualifications required for admission to the course.
Two 3×4 cm photographs with white background and color.
Colombian citizenship or foreigner’s identification card.
Original receipt of payment of consular fees.
Reservation of round-trip flight or one-way flight + accreditation of financial means to purchase the return ticket, taking into account that the trip can only be made a maximum of 8 days prior to the start of the course.
Availability of financial means for a minimum amount of €206.58 + €27.89 for each day of the course, which can be demonstrated by:

-Last six months’ statements – stamped by the issuing bank – from an Italian, EU or country of residence bank account in the name of the student or his/her parents.

– Notarized letter of commitment issued by the parents (or close relative, only in the case of the visa for Italian language study and/or other courses) together with bank statement(s) of the bank account(s) for the last six months and a simple copy of the applicant’s birth certificate.

-In case of scholarship, letter from the entity indicating the name of the applicant, the purpose of the scholarship and the exact amount of coverage, signed by the person in charge of the entity and accompanied by a copy of his/her identity card.

-Last six months statements – stamped by the issuing bank – from a bank account in a country outside the EU or Colombia. In this case, the embassy reserves the right of acceptance.

How do I pre-enroll in college?

This pre-registration must be done personally and in person at the embassy in Bogota, after requesting an appointment by e-mail to [email protected]. For a successful process, it must be carried out:

Pre-enrollment form to the university of your choice through the Universitaly website.
Validation and approval of the pre-registration, issued by the chosen Italian university.
Other required documents will depend on the study to be performed. To consult them, please click on the following link.

Note: If a declaration of value is required, a single appointment may be requested through the same mail.

Request

It must be done in person at the embassy in Bogota, requesting an appointment through the Prenot@Mi platform.

Please note that the appointment must be confirmed 3 to 10 days prior to the appointment. Otherwise, it will be automatically cancelled.

Other benefits

You can work up to 20 hours per week, 1040 hours per year.
Ease of obtaining employment.
Facility for the exchange of the study visa for the work visa.

Cost of Student Visa for Italy

The application for administrative processing has a cost of €50.

To take into account

The visa application must be made at least 15 working days and no later than 3 months before the start date of the course.
The embassy reserves the right to check the level of Italian asserted during the application.
Once in Italy, you must apply for a Permit to Stay (permesso di soggiorno) within the first 8 working days.

Still don’t know where to study?

The Italian Ministry of Education provides the following list of institutions.

No time to learn Italian?

Don’t worry! Italian universities offer many courses and degrees in English.

Haven’t you started the process yet?

Hurry up! The deadline for submitting visa applications for 2023 is November 30, 2022.

Do you need Expert Advice?

Don’t worry, at Servicio Legal we have a team of lawyers who are experts in visa procedures.

Study visa for Italy