scholarship.sk Independent guide to scholarships in Slovakia SK

Coming to Slovakia on a scholarship

Updated · facts checked on

The scholarship is the first step. Before you travel, you need to sort out entry and residence, health insurance and a place to live. This overview follows the guidance SAIA gives to its scholarship holders. Binding information on visas comes only from Slovak embassies and consulates and from the foreign police in Slovakia.

Visa and residence

Citizens of the EU, the EEA and Switzerland

You do not need a visa. Longer stays still come with a few registration duties, which Research in Slovakia describes.

Stays of up to 90 days

If your country is exempt from the Schengen visa requirement, a stay of up to 90 days in any 180 days needs no visa and no residence permit. The Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs lists the countries whose citizens need a visa. Visa-exempt travellers will also need an ETIAS travel authorisation, which the EU plans to launch in the last quarter of 2026. Check travel-europe.europa.eu before you book.

Longer stays: the national visa for scholarship holders

Holders of National Scholarship Programme (NSP) and CEEPUS scholarships can apply for a national visa (type D) under Government Resolution No. 731 of 8 December 2021. It allows you to enter Slovakia and to stay for the whole duration of your scholarship, so you do not need a separate temporary residence permit. It is meant for scholarship holders who need a visa to enter the Schengen area, and for those from outside the EU, the EEA and Switzerland whose stay is longer than 90 days.

  • The visa is issued for at least three months and at most one year, and it cannot be extended.
  • The recommended way is to apply at the Slovak embassy or consulate responsible for your country before you leave. The procedure can take more than 40 days, so apply as soon as you receive your Letter of Award.
  • You can also arrive and apply in Slovakia, but the timing is tight. The decision can take up to 30 days, and at least 90 days of your stay must remain after the visa is granted.

If you already held this kind of national visa in the past, the procedure may not apply to you again and you may need a temporary residence permit instead. Research in Slovakia explains the alternatives.

Health insurance

Since 1 January 2023, international holders of scholarships from programmes approved by the Slovak government, including the National Scholarship Programme, are covered by public health insurance paid by the state. The scholarship has to last more than one month and you have to live in Slovakia during the stay.

You register yourself with one of the three health insurers:

  • Dôvera – application at a branch office
  • Všeobecná zdravotná poisťovňa (VšZP) – paper form, signed and handed in at a branch office
  • Union – online registration in English or at a branch office

The insurers handle these registrations in slightly different ways. Contact the one you choose before you arrive and ask which documents to bring.

Accommodation

Your host institution can help you with accommodation and with the formalities of entering and staying in Slovakia, or you can arrange everything yourself. Ask your host about a place in a university dormitory as soon as you know the dates of your stay.

Money

The NSP scholarship is paid monthly, usually to a bank account in a SEPA country. The first payment comes only after SAIA has your bank details and a confirmation that your stay has started, so plan your budget for the first weeks without it.

Learning Slovak

Slovak is the official language, and a few basic phrases help a lot in shops, offices and dormitories. SAIA recommends these options:

  • Slovake.eu – a free online course from level A1 to B2
  • E-Slovak – a free online course for levels A1 and A2 with tutors
  • Free online intensive courses run by the IOM Migration Information Centre, open, among others, to international students at Slovak universities (mic.iom.sk)
  • Courses at universities, for example at the Catholic University in Ružomberok, the University of Ss. Cyril and Methodius in Trnava and Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Košice

To look up a word, use the Slovak dictionary slovensky.eu, which gives the meaning, synonyms and declension of more than 34,000 Slovak words.

Official guides

Still choosing a scholarship? Start with our overview of scholarships in Slovakia or the National Scholarship Programme guide.