Stipends for International Students

Foreigners admitted to studies on the terms applicable to Polish citizens (see below), who according to the Law on Higher Education have the right to apply for financial support for students (Ph.D. students including) submit the same set of documents as Polish students but

NOTE!  all documents should be translated into Polish by a sworn translator as defined by the Act of 25 November 2004 on profession of sworn translator (i.e. Journal of Laws of  2016, item1222) https://bip.ms.gov.pl/pl/rejestry-i-ewidencje/tlumacze-przysiegli/lista-tlumaczy-przysieglych/search.html?City=opole– (it may not be a translator from other countries)

If the student – the foreigner (OR PARENT) in the tax year preceding the academic year stayed in Polish territory they shall also submit a certificate from the Polish tax office. If the student or the student’s parents have not settled at the office corresponding to the Polish tax office they submit a certificate of not submitting the tax return and proof of income from employers or benefits providers.

Pursuant to Article 323-324 of the Law on Higher Education on the principles applicable to Polish nationals foreigners may pursue education and participate in scientific research and development work, if they:

• have been granted a permit to settle;
• are holding refugee status as granted by the Republic of Poland
• who have been granted temporary protection in the territory of the Republic of Poland;
• are migrant workers who are citizens of a member state of the European Union or  a member state of the European Free Trade Agreement (EFTA) –  parties to the agreement on the European Economic Area, and members of their families, if they abide in the territory of the Republic of Poland;
• have been granted a long-term EU resident permit in the territory of the Republic of Poland;
• have been granted a temporary residence permit due to circumstances stated in Art. 127, Art. 53, Section 1 or Art. 186, Section 1, Subsection 13 or 14 of the Act on Foreigners of 12 December, 2013 (Journal of Laws, Item 1650) in the territory of the Republic of Poland; Laws of 2002, No 128, Item 1175 as amended).

All persons who are listed in Article 43 section 2 of the aforementioned Act, may apply for financial support available for Polish citizens (i.e. maintenance grant, scholarship for disabled persons, Rector’s scholarship for the best students and doctoral students, and aid grants).

Citizens of the European Union Member States or the Member States of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) – parties to the Agreement on the European Economic Area and members of their families possessing financial means necessary to cover the cost of living during their studies, may undertake and continue regular studies, doctoral studies and other forms of education, and participate in scientific research and development on the basis of principles applicable to third-countries nationals or on the basis of principles applicable to Polish nationals.
If such persons study on the principles applicable to Polish nationals, they are not eligible for receiving social benefits, i.e. maintenance grants, scholarships for disabled persons and aid. However, they may apply for the Rector’s scholarship for the best students and doctoral students.

Persons with a valid Card of the Pole are entitled to both pursuing studies (education) on the terms applicable to Polish nationals, which entails the right to apply for all kinds of financial support provided to students and doctoral students with Polish citizenship, as well as on the terms applicable to non-Polish citizens. Studying on terms other than those applicable to Polish citizens (e.g. as beneficiaries of a scholarship awarded by a Polish institution), they cannot apply for scholarships paid by the universities with budget subsidy allocated to non-repayable financial aid for students and doctoral students.

Foreigners admitted to studies on the terms applicable to Polish citizens who according to the Law on Higher Education have the right to apply for financial support for students are required to submit the following set of documents:

• application for a maintenance grant – (to fill in  and print only through the scholarship system of the USOSweb).  It is not possible to fill in the application by hand. The application must be registered in the scholarship System. The application includes a declaration on the completed studies in which one should mark by hand YES or NO, and if YES is ticked  all degree study programmes the student has completed need to be enumerated;
• statement of family income (to be filled in and printed from the USOSweb) – a set of screens use to calculate family income, in which the student, in addition to the income, enters the family composition and information on the place of employment of family members (NOTE! Student’s family members include: the student, the student’s parents/legal guardians, siblings under the age of 18, or 26 receiving education, or siblings with disabilities, regardless of age; the student’s spouse; the student’s children under the age of 18, or 26 receiving education, or children with disabilities, regardless of age).

In the declaration of income, enter the income of all adult members of the family from all sources of income for the tax year preceding the academic  year and attach certificates, including:

1. – certificate from the Tax Office or an institution corresponding to the tax office, for example, State Fiscal Service on the amount of income taxable under the general rules, including the income from business activity – if the family member did not file a tax return they must submit a certificate confirming this fact and a certificate from the employer stipulating the income. All documents must be translated by a sworn translator – NOTE: it must not be a sworn translator from a foreign country.

If the student or their family member in the tax year preceding the academic year was staying in the Polish territory they must also submit a certificate from the Polish Tax Office!

1. income from business activity taxed in the form of a lump sum or tax card – stating the actual annual amount of net income earned from this source (declaration-lump sum to be downloaded from the income declaration in the USOSweb system and filled in by hand);
2. other income, i.e. alimony, income from farming, and work outside Poland. ( the declaration of untaxed income – download the income declaration  from the USOSweb system and fill it by hand;
3. certificate stating that student’s siblings between 18 and 26 years of age are still in education; along with a translation made by a sworn translator of the Polish language;
4. certificate of ownership of a farm by the student or family member,  together with information from the appropriate authority of the principles of calculating the income from the farm, along with a translation made by a sworn translator of the Polish language;
5. verdict in the case of divorce of the student or the student’s parents; together with a translation provided by a sworn translator of the Polish language; if the document has already been submitted before, it is not necessary to re-submit it, however, when submitting the application, the employee should be informed about it;
6. an abridged copy of the death certificate  in the case of death of one or both parents with a translation made by a sworn translator of the Polish language; if the document has already been submitted previously there is no need to re-submit it, as above;
7. a complete birth certificate,  if the father is unknown student with a translation made by a sworn translator of the Polish language; if the document has already been submitted previously there is no need to re-submit it, as above;

The income declaration should take into account the changes in the family during the tax year preceding academic year and after this year, i.e. income earned and income forfeited (a catalogue of such income sources and detailed provisions are included in the Rules of benefits for students and doctoral students at the University of Opole). The ways of declaring the earned income and the deduction of lost income can be found in the guidelines on the appropriate pages of the income declaration in the USOSweb.