International students in universities across Europe are worried about what the spread of the coronavirus will mean about their student visas. The Netherlands international education bureau Nuffic is working with the immigration services and Dutch universities to come up with a solution for international students facing problems as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Students are worried about delays in their studies and visa requirements. Some want to go home but can’t because of travel restrictions. We are currently in talks with immigration services, the education ministry and the foreign affairs ministry to find solutions,” a representative for Nuffic said.
International students in the Netherlands make up 11% of the student body at universities, VisaGuide.World reports.
The coronavirus pandemic has disrupted most people’s daily lives and routines. Just as millions of people across the world have been left unemployed or having to work from home, the pandemic has also changed the traditional method of teaching.
Most universities have shut down in an effort to curb the spread of the COVID-19 and advised their students to return home, as classes will be held in different online platforms. This is troublesome for international students whose homes are not in the Netherlands, as they’re left wondering whether they should just return to their home countries.
However, for the time being, universities, such as Amsterdam University, are advising international students against taking any such “unnecessary risks”.
The Nuffic has reassured international scholarship students studying in the Netherlands (OKP Scholarships) that if they must return home due to the situation created by the COVID-19 pandemic, the decision “will NOT affect a student’s chances for any new scholarship application submitted in the future. It will also not negatively impact the proportion of scholarships allocated to any institution.” But they still have to determine what it will mean “for the completion of [the student’s] course and the current scholarship.”
As for international students whose visas may expire during this time, the Dutch government advises them to contact Dutch Immigration and Naturalization Services (IND).
The Netherlands, along with the other Schengen Countries, closed off its external borders to non-EU nationals earlier in March in an effort to stop the spread of the coronavirus.