Budapest University of Economics and Business

As you are all aware of it by now, a new immigration law has been introduced at the beginning of 2024. The law brought several changes which affected the whole system. It is crucial to get familiar with these changes as previous deadlines, rules and steps might not be applicable anymore. Not knowing about the changes will not grant you any flexibility or leniency!

Below we have highlighted the most important changes and what you should pay attention to.

YOU ARE SUBMITTING A VISA APPLICATION ABROAD

When booking an appointment with the Embassy/Consulate choose a date which allows you to join your studies in time, but it is not too early. For example, submitting a visa application in April for the Fall semester would be considered ungrounded by the Directorate as from their perspective you cannot have a valid reason to arrive so much earlier before your studies begin.

If you need a visa before you can enter Hungary and your request has been approved, you have 3 months to enter Hungary. These 3 months are not counted from the moment you receive your visa but from the moment the decision is made. It may happen that the period shown on the visa will be shorter than 3 months, since those days between the decision and the issuance of the visa will be deducted. Always check your visa to see what the last date is when you can enter Hungary and make your travel arrangements accordingly.

The e-certificate of accommodation (the document confirming your Hungarian address) should be given to you when you pick up your passport/visa at the Embassy or should be sent to you via email in a couple of days. If you do not receive this certificate till your arrival, reach out to the Directorate (bp2@oif.gov.hu).

EXTENSION OF PERMIT AND RELATED PROCEDURES

If you have a valid residence permit, you must start the extension procedure at least 45 days before the permit officially expires. This new rule is taken very seriously by the Directorate so pay special attention to the expiry date of your permit. If you only submit a request within these 45 days, you must add a document to your application in which you explain the specific reason for the delay.

Those who are extending a study permit issued BEFORE 2024.01.01. must follow a one-time, special procedure.

According to this:

• They shouldn’t choose extension when submitting their request via the EnterHungary website,
• A new request should be submitted, choosing the relevant case and choosing “no” for an answer at the question about extension.
• The procedural fee is 24 000 HUF (scholarship-holders, Ukrainian and Belarusian citizens do not have to pay this).

This screenshot is just an example, fee-paying students shouldn’t choose that the procedure is exempt of fee.

Those who have a permit issued AFTER 2024.01.01. have to choose the option for extension when the time comes to extend their permit. The procedural fee in this case is 23 000 HUF (scholarship-holders, Ukrainian and Belarusian citizens do not have to pay this).

Under no circumstances should you wait till your permit expires before submitting an extension request. If there’s no way to obtain a mandatory document in time, submit an incomplete application rather than wait till your permit expires. Of course, it should be your priority to obtain all documents in time as the Directorate will check whether you could have collected everything before submitting the request.

Since the option for leniency has been erased if your permit expires and you haven’t submitted an extension request, you will automatically be expelled from Hungary and you will need to leave the country till the deadline given by the Directorate. There’s no possibility for flexibility or an appeal, the Directorate won’t consider unique circumstances. If you must leave Hungary, do that before the deadline to avoid very serious consequences. Those who fail to leave the country in time will face legal action, deportation and their data will be shared with EU member states as well.

Third-country nationals, who submitted their application at a Hungarian Consulate abroad and hold a type D visa, must do the following.

1. Travel to Hungary with the type D visa. Please keep in mind that your visa only allows you to enter Hungary to pick up your permit. The permit will be the document confirming the purpose of your stay.
2. You can get the issued residence permit at the university. You will receive an e-mail about the collection details after we received the permit. Please DO NOT turn up without any notification and take into consideration that issuing the card and posting time might take as long as 7 weekdays . You are NO longer supposed to visit the Immigration Office to pick up the card. Make sure to check the validity date. This date should be remembered as you will have to submit your extension request 45 days before your permit expires.
3. Your e- certificate of accommodation will be sent to you electronically. In case your address is different from the one you indicated during your visa application, you will have to report the change. Please check the relevant section for instructions.

Those students who are nationals of a visa-exempt country (non-EU) can either submit a residence permit application in their home country or can enter Hungary and start the procedure online here, via the EnterHungary website.

Third-country nationals, who already stay in Hungary and want to extend their residence permit

If you move to a new accommodation, you must report the change via EnterHungary within 3 days’ time.
More info here.

To renew the residence permit, please follow the steps here which are shared below as well. Keep in mind that you must submit an extension request at least 30 days before your permit expires. If you miss this “deadline” make sure to include an explanation as well, detailing the reasons for the delay.

1. You have to submit your application for extension of residence permit through EnterHungary, so firstly register or sign in to your account at EnterHungary. You can find a guide for the page here.
2. Select “Application for residence permit”, then click “Study or student mobility”
3. Fill out all the obligatory fields.
4. Upload all the mandatory attachments to your Enter Hungary case.
5. Pay the procedural fee if not exempted (see Procedure fees) through Enter Hungary
6. After submitting your application, you must visit the client service of the regional directorate according to your accommodation within 15 days for giving biometrical data. Always check the status of your application and messages received from the Directorate as if you miss this deadline, your case will be automatically deleted.

Message of the NATIONAL DIRECTORATE-GENERAL FOR ALIENS POLICING.

What makes a perfect application as told by the Directorate:

Perfect Know How is a third country national living in Hungary, who has a valid residence permit for study purposes.
Perfect Know How submits an application for the extension of the residence permit online through the Enter Hungary system 2 months (but a minimum of 30 days) before the expiration of the residence permit. Perfect Know How continuously monitors the status of his/her application on the Enter Hungary website, so that, if necessary, he/she can upload the required documents in time. Perfect Know How thus saves herself/himself a lot of inconvenience and receives her/his residence permit in time, before her/his previous residence permit expires.

Act like Perfect Know How!

If you move to a new accommodation, you must report the change via EnterHungary within 3 days’ time.

1. Third-Country Nationals might report the relocation (change) of address ONLY ONLINE via EnterHungary.
2. You will receive the new e-certificate via EnterHungary. You will find it in your storage.
3. When submitting application for the residence permit, it is also possible to report a new address. However, please remember, if the relocation/change of address is earlier than the application, then you should do the report separately.
4. If your accommodation has not been changed since you applied at the Embassy, please do not apply for it. In this case you will get your e-certificate automatically.

More info here.

Substitution of residence permit: If one of your personal data (e.g. in surname because of marriage/divorce) has been changed, or it is misspelled on the residence permit, you have to apply for a substitution.
Replacement of the residence permit card: If your permit was lost, destroyed, stolen or damaged, you have to apply for a replacement. Always report a stolen permit to the police as well.

Latest rules, regulations and more info about Substitution or Replacement of the permit can be found here.