All students staying in the Netherlands for four months or longer must register as a citizen of Groningen or any other Municipality in the Netherlands, depending on where you live. You need to report to City Hall where you will be registered in their database, the ‘Gemeentelijke Basis Administratie’.
As stated in your letter of acceptance, Hanze University of Applied Sciences, Groningen requires you to do this before 1 October for September intake and before 1 March for February intake.
For your registration, you need to complete the following form and you need to bring the following documents:
- Your passport or ID
- Your rental agreement
- Your residence permit (non-EU/EEA nationals)
- Your legalized* birth certificate
- Your legalized* marriage certificate (if applicable)
*More information on legalization of documents for use in the Netherlands can be found on the site of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
For students starting in February 2013, City Hall Groningen has special opening hours for EU students, which are:
Monday 4 February: 09.00 - 12.00 hours
Tuesday 5 February: 17.00 - 20.00 hours
Wednesday 6 February: 17.00 - 20.00 hours
For non-EU students whose residence permit is ready on our Welcoming Day: City Hall will be present on our Welcoming Day to register you on location! Please make sure to bring everything you need to register as a citizen of Groningen.
If you miss these dates, you can make an appointment on www.gemeente.groningen.nl, click on ‘English’, choose ‘Living’ and select ‘Immigration’ and click on ‘Make appointment’. Non-EU/EEA students always need to make an appointment. Student from Hanze Institute of Technology, who live in Assen need to make an appointment by phone. For more information please click here.
BSN (Citizen Service Number)
Once you have registered as a citizen of Groningen you will receive your personal citizen service number. This is an important number for your stay in The Netherlands. With the BSN you can apply for a DigiD-code. A DigiD-code can be used for a large number of administrative matters in The Netherlands. Especially if you will be staying here for several years, the DigiD-code may come in very handy. How to apply for a DigiD-code.
Changing address or leaving Groningen?
If you move to another address within Groningen you always need to change your registration at City Hall. Please note that when you leave Groningen permanently you need to deregister with City Hall. You can do this digitally at www.gemeente.groningen.nl (you will need a DigiD for this). Another possibility is sending an e-mail with the following form attached filled with your details to burgerzaken.verhuizingen@groningen.nl.
City Hall Groningen
Kreupelstraat 1
9712 HW Groningen
tel. + 31 50 3677070
fax + 31 50 3677075
email: info@groningen.nl
www.gemeente.groningen.nl