Dear Student,
Greetings from Budapest, Hungary! We are pleased to welcome you to the Budapest University of Technology and Economics (BME) for the fall term of the 2024/2025 academic year.
The following letter contains important information related to your stay in Hungary:
- Arrival in Hungary,
- Accommodation options in Budapest,
- Your scholarship and its worth,
- All necessary official steps as a Stipendium Hungaricum scholarship holder,
- The International Mentor Team (IMT) and other useful contacts.
- Arrival in Hungary
The following steps are needed to enter Hungary.
- Apply for a D-type visa if you need it.
- Buy a traveller’s health insurance to cover any medical costs (very important)
- Fill out the “Arrival in Hungary” questionnaire.
As the semester begins on the 2nd of September 2024, we would advise you to arrive no later than the 26th of 26th of August 2024, to ensure a smooth administrative process and to have time to settle down.
More information about registration, requests and education: https://kth.bme.hu/en/
Please note: your Acceptance Letter says that Martos Dormitory is your temporary accommodation. However, this is written only to help you with your visa application, not because you can stay there. Consequently, please do not even attempt to check in there after your arrival, because they cannot host anybody.
2. Accommodation
The university can provide dormitory placement for only a limited number of students. For everyone else, Tempus Foundation grants you an extra 40.000 HUF (appx. 100 EUR) as a monthly accommodation allowance on the top of your regular scholarship.
If you are a Stipendium Hungaricum or Diaspora scholarship holder student and wish to live in a university dorm, you will have to apply for a place in the KEFIR system. You have to fill out the correct form, which is called “Freshmen – Stipendium Hungaricum and Diaspora 2024/25/1” (https://kefir.bme.hu/form/2276 ) and submit it. This application is only for Stipendium Hungaricum and Diaspora scholarship holder students and it opens on the 8th of August at 18:00 and closes on the 16th of August at 23:59. SCYP scholarship holders will receive separate instructions regarding dormitory arrangements at a later date.
Dorm places are awarded based on your admission points to the university (and not a first come, first served basis). Hence, it does not matter when you submit your application as long as you do so before the deadline. Once you are accepted for a dormitory placement, you can cancel your place within the first 5 days counted from the day you move in or if you already know earlier that you do not need the dorm placement, please cancel it before even moving in.
Furthermore, we would like to inform you that by requesting a dormitory place, you agree to the following terms:
- You receive your place for a fixed period: from moving in – until 31st January 2025. During the semester, you are not eligible to swap your dormitory place for the accommodation allowance.
- By filling out and submitting the KEFIR request, you are signing a contract which obliges you to live in the dormitory until the specified move-out date, if your request is accepted.
- When moving in, you must sign a tenancy agreement with the dormitory, which also counts as a contract. A System Policy and the House Rules are included in the tenancy agreement, and you are obliged to follow them.
- You are allowed to stay in the dormitory ONLY if you have an active status at BME. You must move out within 10 days once you are no longer an active student (i.e., you graduate, complete all the necessary criteria to have your state exam, decide to interrupt your studies, or go on a passive semester).
Please note that PhD students are not eligible for dormitory places.
For further information, please visit our website. Here you will find various links for Facebook groups and websites where you can search for long-term accommodation. The most affordable options are private dormitories if you can secure an empty place in any of them. If you prefer a calmer living environment, you should consider renting an apartment or a room with friends. Additionally, you can also find guides and a sample contract on our site to make your accommodation search easier and faster. Moreover, the mentor team regularly organizes flat-searching events for new students at the start of the semester to help you. These events aim to overcome language barriers, so it is expected that you come prepared with options that you would like us to contact on your behalf. Keep an eye on these events at the BME International Students Facebook group.
3. Scholarship payment, cost of living in Budapest
As a Stipendium Hungaricum scholarship holder, you will be receiving around 43.700 HUF (~ 115 EUR) every month. The planned pay-out days are available on this page. However, you should keep in mind that the university cannot transfer any money to you until you have the following data uploaded and approved on the Neptun system:
- Hungarian address
- Hungarian bank account number
Arranging the above mentioned official documents can take up to 2 months. Consequently, we strongly suggest that you come prepared with funds enough to sustain you for the first couple of months of your stay. Also, the university cannot make payments outside the planned dates.
You can open a bank account after arriving to Hungary. You can find all the relevant information about it on this page.
To make your planning easier, we have collected standard costs of living, which may vary depending on your lifestyle:
- Accommodation: from 200 EUR/month for a bed in a shared room, or from 400 EUR/month for a 1-bedroom flat,
- Utilities (water, gas, electricity, common costs): 80 – 120 EUR/person/month,
- Public transportation: 2.5 EUR/month with a student ID, 9 EUR without it,
- Food: 250 EUR/month if you cook for yourself, 500 EUR/month if you live on takeaways and eat out most of the time.
4. Compulsory official steps
- Residence permit:
- If you are travelling with a D-type visa, you are obliged to have your residence permit within 30 days of crossing the borders of the Schengen Area. When you submitted your visa application, the Immigration Office has started your residence permit application as well. After arriving to Budapest, you can collect your residence permit on campus. There will be more information about the exact process later.
- If you are travelling without a D-type visa, you are obliged to have your residence permit within 90 days of crossing the borders of the Schengen Area. In this case, please register on the website of the Immigration Office and upload all the required documents there. There is a detailed guide about the process on these pages [link1, link2].
- Please be aware that you can only stay in Hungary on legal terms if you have your residence permit, so it is an inevitable bureaucratic step! The residence permit is also necessary for many other official steps, such as applying for a TAJ card (Hungarian health insurance card). Hence it is crucial to start the application process as soon as you have your accommodation.
- TAJ card (Hungarian national health insurance):
- As a scholarship holder student, you are eligible for the national health insurance scheme offered by the Hungarian government. This provides free access to public healthcare, but it is important to apply on time, as the application procedure can take a few months.
- Once you have received your residence permit, it is crucial that you apply for a TAJ card! Having access to public healthcare in Hungary (by having a TAJ card), can truly save lives!
- The application procedure is available here.
- Groupama insurance:
- Please note that as a student it is mandatory for you to have health insurance until you get your TAJ card. The university provides such an insurance for free, but you do have to register for it.
- Having the Groupama Insurance can also be lifesaving in case you need medical attention, but you are having issues with your TAJ card!
- More details on the insurance and the application procedure are available here.
5. International Mentor Team
The International Mentor Team (IMT) is a student organisation at BME. We offer you a helping hand with your official duties at the beginning of your stay. Furthermore, IMT organises community activities such as game nights, movie nights, hiking trips and so on, to make the best of your stay. If you have any questions or problems, do not hesitate to contact us!
You probably noticed that the links above mostly lead to the same website, which is our official website. It covers practically all aspects of your official duties and many more! We strongly recommend reading through its pages before your arrival and also before contacting us. You will probably find suitable answers to your questions, sometimes hidden in the FAQ. You can find useful contact details both for us and for other university officials on this page.
You can also follow us on social media. We have a YouTube channel, an Instagram page and please make sure you join our community on Facebook group to connect with your mates, find relevant up-to-date information and get updated about current events.
Best regards,
BME IMT Mentors