Applying for a long-stay visa (MVV) for residents of Singapore

If you want to stay in the Netherlands for longer than 90 days, you may need a residence permit. In many cases you will also have to apply for a long-stay visa before you travel to the Netherlands. This visa is also called an authorisation for temporary stay (MVV).

You can apply for this visa at the Netherlands embassy in Singapore.

Do I need an MVV and/or a residence permit?

You should check whether you need an MVV and/or a residence permit. This depends on things like your nationality and the purpose of your stay.

Applying for a residence permit and an MVV

You can apply for a residence permit and an MVV in 2 ways:

through a host in the Netherlands (such as an employer, family member or educational institution)
in person at a Netherlands embassy or consulate-general

If you have a host in the Netherlands, in most cases your host will have to submit the application to the Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND).

First check whether you need to take the civic integration examination.

What is your situation?

Applying through a host in the Netherlands

Depending on the purpose of your stay, your host may have to submit the application in the Netherlands. This applies if the purpose of your stay is:

study
work
a work placement
co-habiting with or marrying someone who lives in the Netherlands
family reunification

In these cases your host will be an educational institution, your employer, a family member or your spouse or partner.

Your host can submit the application directly to the IND. How they need to do this depends on why you need a residence permit and/or an MVV, for example for work or study. The IND website has a list of the documents your host will need to provide. It also explains how your host can apply for your residence permit. If you have any questions about this, you can contact the IND.

The IND will send your host a letter confirming that the application has been approved. The letter also explains how you can apply for an MVV and what documents you need.

You must apply for your MVV at the embassy or consulate-general within 3 months of receiving this letter. You have 6 months to apply if you meet both of the following conditions:

You are applying for an MVV for family reunification as a refugee (nareis asiel), and:
You are applying for an MVV in a country that is not your country of residence.

Take the following documents to your appointment:

The MVV issue form.
Your passport and a photocopy of the personal details page. Your passport must be valid for at least another 6 months and have at least 2 blank pages.
If you live in a country of which you are not a national: your residence permit (or equivalent) and a photocopy of the permit.
A photo that meets Dutch requirements.
A copy of the letter stating that your application has been approved and what your alien registration number (V number) is.
All other documents listed in the letter from the IND and a photocopy of each of these documents.

Your MVV will be ready for you to collect from the embassy or consulate-general within 10 working days.

Verify that the information on your visa is correct. This includes your name and the visa’s validity period.

If any of the information is incorrect, contact the embassy or consulate-general where you applied for your MVV.

You must travel to the Netherlands with the MVV in your passport. The IND will let your host know when your residence permit is ready. You can then make an appointment at the IND office to collect your permit.

Applying yourself at an embassy or consulate-general

For the following purposes of stay you should submit your application for an MVV and residence permit yourself:

You will find the application form and all information about the required documents and the application procedure on the IND website.

The IND will process your application within 90 days. If the IND’s decision is positive, you must hand over your passport at the embassy or consulate-general where you submitted the application. Your MVV will be placed in your passport within 10 working days.

Verify that the information on your visa is correct. This includes your name and the visa’s validity period.

If any of the information is incorrect, contact the embassy or consulate-general where you applied for your MVV.

You must travel to the Netherlands with the MVV in your passport. The IND will let you know when your residence permit is ready. You can then make an appointment at the IND office to collect your permit.

Long-stay visa for residents of this country or region

Make an appointment at the Netherlands embassy in Singapore to apply for an MVV.

Check the status of your application.

You can collect your passport with the MVV sticker at the following times:

Monday: 12:00 - 12:30
Tuesday to Friday: 11:00 - 12:00

You do not need to make an appointment. Before you come, check the days on which the embassy is closed.

MVV application for exchange students

Dutch universities and higher professional education institutions (hogescholen) together offer some 1,400 international study programmes and courses in English, making the Netherlands an attractive destination for students from all over the world.

Application process

When you have chosen a university for your exchange, bachelor or master's degree and your application has been accepted, the university will provide you with a list of required documents to apply for your visa at the Immigration Service in the Netherlands.

As soon as you have received the approval for the MVV visa from the IND through your university, you have to make an appointment via our online appointment system to apply for your visa.

Please note

We strongly advise you not to book your flight before you have received the approval from the IND. The Netherlands embassy does not have influence on the decision making process at the Immigration Service (IND) in the Netherlands.

Requirements

Please bring the following documents:

one completed MVV application form
passport (original + photocopy: data and signature pages). Your passport must be valid for at least another 6 months
Singapore ID/NRIC (original + photocopy)
one recent coloured passport photo (important note: light background and mouth closed)

During the application at the embassy we will take your fingerprints. Contrary to what is mentioned above, the processing of the visa will take a maximum of 5 working days. We we will keep your passport during this period.

Registration in the Netherlands

In most cases you need a legalised extract of your birth certificate to register at the municipality in the Netherlands. Please check with your university if this is required as in some cases it is not.

People born in Singapore can use (a copy of) their original birth certificate or get an extract of their birth certificate via the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority. You will have to have it legalised with an apostille from the Singapore Academy of Law.

If you were not born in Singapore, the legalisation needs to be done in the country of birth.

Read more about legalisation of documents on the page Legalisation of documents from Singapore for use in the Netherlands.