Foreign Student in Belgium: Documents to Translate

Are you coming to study in Belgium? Between enrolling at university, having your diploma recognised and applying for residence, several foreign documents will need to be translated. Here is the translation checklist for a foreign student in Belgium, step by step.

📖 See also: have a diploma recognised · translate a birth certificate · apostille and legalisation

Which documents do the university and the administration require?

Belgian institutions and administrations only accept foreign documents in the language of the Community: French (Wallonia-Brussels Federation) or Dutch(Flanders). Official documents must be translated by a sworn translator recognised by a Belgian Court of Appeal.

The foreign student's checklist

• Diploma and transcript of records: for enrolment and, where applicable, academic equivalence.
• Birth certificate: required for registration with the municipality and certain scholarships.
• Passport or identity card: translation if the document is in a non-Latin alphabet.
• Financial supporting documents: depending on the student visa, attestations may be required.
• Residence documents: for the long-stay visa and the student residence permit.

Three steps, three priorities

1. Enrolment / admission: the university may request the translated diploma and transcript as early as the application stage.
2. Diploma equivalence: if your studies require it, the equivalence service requests the diploma and transcript translated into the language of the Community. See our guide on diploma recognition.
3. Residence: for the visa and the student residence permit, certain civil status documents must be translated and sometimes apostilled.

Is an apostille needed on the diploma?

Often, yes. Depending on the country, the diploma must be apostilled (Hague Convention) or legalised before being translated and submitted. The apostille is obtained in the country of issue: request it before your departure to avoid delays at a distance.