Residence of the student, pupil – residence permit for the purpose of studies, the student mobility residence permit, the student mobility certificate
Residency route facts
Identity
| Official name (local) | A hallgato, tanulo tartozkodasa as of 2026-08-07[3] |
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| Official name (English) | Residence of the student, pupil – residence permit for the purpose of studies, the student mobility residence permit, the student mobility certificate as of 2026-03-02[7] |
| Legal basis | Act XC of 2023 s.60(3)-(4) (validity and extension of the study-purpose residence permit) as of 2026-08-07[2] NDGAP's factsheet cites no Act or section. The validity rule is at the section of the Government's published text of Act XC of 2023 reading 'A tanulmanyi celu tartozkodasi engedely ervenyessegi ideje a) legalabb egy ev, de legfeljebb harom ev, vagy b) – egy evnel rovidebb kepzesi ido eseten – a kepzes tartamahoz igazodo hosszusagu idotartam. (4) A tanulmanyi celu tartozkodasi engedely alkalmankent legalabb egy, legfeljebb harom evvel meghosszabbithato.' The section number is recorded as read from that document and should be checked against the enacted consolidated text; the document is the Government's submitted bill text, not the consolidation. |
| Instrument type | residence permit as of 2026-03-02[7] |
Who can apply
| Nationals not served by this route | EEA as of 2026-03-02[7] Open to third-country nationals only; EEA nationals and their family members hold the right of free movement and residence. Stateless persons qualify as third-country nationals. |
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Permit terms
| Initial duration | 1 to 3 years as of 2026-03-02[2][7] Study-purpose permit: minimum 1 year, or the duration of the training where the training is shorter than 1 year, capped at 3 years. It may not exceed the validity of the applicant's travel document. The student mobility residence permit and the student mobility certificate are each capped at 360 days and may not exceed the validity of the permit issued by the first Member State. |
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| How the initial term is set | matches the course |
| Renewable | Yes as of 2026-03-02[7] |
| Renewal duration | 1 to 3 years as of 2026-03-02[2][7] Extension requires a statement by the education establishment on the applicant's academic advancement, giving the number of semesters in the training and the number of active semesters. NDGAP may refuse extension or revoke the permit if the student fails to obtain a degree within one and a half times the period of study set out in the training and exit requirements. |
| Maximum total duration | Not established from a qualifying source No cumulative cap is published beyond the one-and-a-half-times-the-programme rule, which is a ground for refusing extension rather than a stated ceiling. |
| Work rights | hours capped as of 2026-03-02[7][8] NDGAP: holders of a study permit, a student mobility residence permit or a student mobility certificate 'may engage in employment during their study period for maximum thirty hours weekly, and outside their study period full-time for a maximum period of ninety days in a year'. Tempus Public Foundation's Study in Hungary portal states the same 30-hour term-time cap. CAVEAT ON THE CORROBORATING SOURCE: the Tempus page carries a 2019 copyright, cites the pre-2024 authority name and links bmbah.hu URLs, and elsewhere states a general residence-permit ceiling of two years that contradicts the three-year study validity in Act XC of 2023. It is used here only for the 30-hour figure, on which it agrees with NDGAP. See notes/hu.md. |
Permanent residence and citizenship
| Counts toward permanent residence | No as of 2026-03-02[7] NDGAP: 'Third-country nationals holding a residence permit for study purposes, a student mobility residence permit or a student mobility certificate may not be granted a national residence card.' |
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Requirements
| Enrolment status required | admitted as of 2026-03-02[7] NDGAP accepts 'a certificate of admission from the relevant educational institution', 'a document verifying student status', or other credible means, and requires proof of payment of tuition fees. Admission is therefore sufficient; enrolment is an alternative rather than a precondition. The permit is open to a learning relationship with a full-time public education institution, to full-time studies at a state-recognised higher education institution or a foreign higher education institution authorised to operate in Hungary, and to participation in a preparatory course organised by a higher education institution – and a preparatory-course permit may only be extended on proof of admission to a higher education institution. |
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| Means requirement | Not established from a qualifying source NDGAP publishes no figure, currency or period. The condition is qualitative: sufficient resources to cover subsistence, accommodation, return or onward travel and healthcare from legally acquired income and savings, evidenced by a credit-institution certificate, a notarised family maintenance declaration plus proof of the supporter's capacity, an employer or tax-authority income document, or other credible means such as a scholarship certificate. |
| Work-hours cap | 30 as of 2026-03-02[7][8] Hours per week during the study period. Outside the study period, full-time work is allowed for a maximum of 90 days in a year. Same caveat on the Tempus source as at permit.work_rights. |
| Post-study route exists | Yes as of 2026-03-03[5][7] The residence permit for the purpose of seeking a job or starting a business, modelled here as hu-job-search. NDGAP states it can only be applied for while the applicant is still a holder of a valid study permit, and that the intended job or business must match the level of the completed studies. |
| Post-study permit duration | 9 months as of 2026-03-03[5] Validity of hu-job-search, which cannot be extended. |
| Post-study income requirement | Not established from a qualifying source NDGAP publishes no figure for the job-search permit's means test; see hu-job-search.requirements.own_means_requirement. |
Process
| Where to apply from | either as of 2026-03-02[7] Abroad where entry is not covered by the visa-exempt regime and the applicant holds no residence permit; in Hungary during a legal visa-free stay. Extensions only in Hungary via Enter Hungary. The student mobility residence permit and the student mobility certificate cannot be extended at all. |
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| Statutory processing time | 15 days as of 2026-03-02[7] Excludes deficiency-remedy periods. Outer deadline: decision as to merits within 60 days. |
| Fees |
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Physical presence
| none stated | to keep the permit as of 2026-03-02[7] |
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Family inclusion
| Family members may be included | No as of 2026-03-10[1][4][7] NDGAP: family members of a holder or applicant may not be granted a residence permit for family reunification. The single exception is a third-country national child born in Hungary during the permit's validity, who receives a family-reunification permit on notification of the birth. |
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Your next step
Read the requirements above considering your own situation: the income multiple, the absence limits, who you can bring. Check the country record for the reference figure those amounts are calculated from, and for anything that has changed recently.
The next step is your own case. That assessment is legal work. Create profile for our assistance in this.
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Verification
| Sources cited | 8 |
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| of which official (tier 1) | 7 |
| Oldest as-of date | 2026-03-02 |
| Newest as-of date | 2026-08-07 |
| Reviewed on | 2026-08-11 |
| Schema version | 1.1 |
Sources
- [1] EU Immigration Portal – Hungary, family member
European Commission · international organisation · Tier 2 · Accessed 2026-08-07 - [2] Act XC of 2023 on the general rules for the admission and right of residence of third-country nationals – text published by the Government
Government of Hungary (kormany.hu) · official guidance · Tier 1 · Accessed 2026-08-07 - [3] Tajekoztatok – Hungarian-language factsheet index (official permit designations)
National Directorate-General for Aliens Policing (NDGAP/OIF) · official portal · Tier 1 · Accessed 2026-08-07 · Archived copy - [4] Residence permit for the purpose of family reunification
National Directorate-General for Aliens Policing (NDGAP/OIF) · official portal · Tier 1 · Published 2026-03-10 · Accessed 2026-08-07 · Archived copy - [5] Residence permit for the purpose of seeking a job or starting a business
National Directorate-General for Aliens Policing (NDGAP/OIF) · official portal · Tier 1 · Published 2026-03-03 · Accessed 2026-08-07 · Archived copy - [6] Procedural fees
National Directorate-General for Aliens Policing (NDGAP/OIF) · fee schedule · Tier 1 · Published 2026-03-03 · Accessed 2026-08-07 · Archived copy - [7] Residence of the student, pupil
National Directorate-General for Aliens Policing (NDGAP/OIF) · official portal · Tier 1 · Published 2026-03-02 · Accessed 2026-08-07 · Archived copy - [8] Work in Hungary – Study in Hungary
Tempus Public Foundation · official guidance · Tier 1 · Accessed 2026-08-07