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EACEA National Policies Platform:Eurydice
Fee policies applied to international students
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Comparative Data

fees and support_international

STUDENT FEES

<h3>STUDENT FEES</h3><p class="text-align-justify">Student fees are understood as any cost charged to students, including tuition fees but also administrative fees (eg for registration, examination, certification<em>)</em>. Contributions to student organisations are not considered.</p><p class="text-align-justify">European higher education systems differ substantially with regards to the fee amounts charged for higher education studies. Various criteria for fee differentiation are applied, considering:</p><ul><li><p class="text-align-justify">education cycle;</p></li><li><p class="text-align-justify">student category: home/international, students on non-state subsidised places, students studying in specific disciplines, students studying in foreign language programmes</p></li><li><p class="text-align-justify">student status: full-time/part-time</p></li><li><p class="text-align-justify">field of study (specific disciplines)</p></li><li><p class="text-align-justify">type of programme (offered in a foreign language; second- or further-degree programme at the same educational level etc.);</p></li><li><p class="text-align-justify">type of institution (universities, universities of applied sciences, colleges, art schools etc);</p></li><li><p class="text-align-justify">students’ socio-economic background (need-based differentiation);</p></li><li><p class="text-align-justify">students’ educational performance or study progression (performance-based differentiation)</p></li></ul><p class="text-align-justify">Information in this section includes comparative data for 39 education systems on:&nbsp;</p><ul><li><p class="text-align-justify">fees policies applied to students&nbsp;</p></li><li><p class="text-align-justify">criteria influencing the amounts</p></li><li><p class="text-align-justify">fee amounts and share of fee-payers</p></li><li><p class="text-align-justify">fee policies applied to international students</p></li><li><p class="text-align-justify">waivers and reductions to fees</p></li></ul><p class="text-align-justify">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>

Students from the EU/EEA/EFTA area are subject to the same fee policies applied to home students. 

The fee policies applied to international students (ie students from countries outside the EU/EEA/EFTA area) depend on national regulations, and may differ to those applied to home and European students. 

In some systems higher education institutions have more autonomy over charging fees to international students compared to home and European students. Details on specific eligibility criteria and measures applied can be found in the national information section.

12 Feb 2025
EURYDICE

In some education systems the higher education institutions may set their own fees for this student category. In some countries, top-level regulations allow higher education institutions to charge students fees or higher fees for programmes delivered in a foreign language. Although programmes delivered in a foreign language may be more accessible and attractive to international students, this particular policy does not differentiate in the fees charged to home and international students.

Further Readings

European Higher Education