Checklist - Before your exchange
Essential
| ☐ | Make a financial plan and ensure you have sufficient funds |
| ☐ | Make sure your passport is valid for the time that you’ll be staying in the Netherlands and check with the authorities in your home country how many months your passport still needs to be valid for when you return there |
| ☐ | Prepare the necessary documents for your visa and/or residence permit (if applicable), and if you need a visa, obtain it before you travel |
| ☐ | Arrange your healthcare (and other) insurance |
| ☐ | Decide how and when to get to Rotterdam |
| ☐ | Arrange accommodation in Rotterdam, at least for your first few nights |
| ☐ | Register for your courses (you will receive an e-mail from the exchange coordinator about the registration procedure) |
Optional
| ☐ | Follow Erasmus School of Economics on social media channels ( Facebook, Twitter, Instagram) |
| ☐ | Subscribe to Erasmus University’s YouTube channel |
| ☐ | Sign up for the orientation programmes |
| ☐ | Register for a Dutch language course |
| ☐ | Appoint someone you trust to act as your representative. For instance, for your bank account: if you lose your bankcard, it will be easier if someone in your home country is authorised to arrange a new one for you. |
Essential things to pack before departure
| ☐ | Your passport |
| ☐ | Proof of your healthcare insurance |
| ☐ | Tickets and journey details |
| ☐ | Credit card |
| ☐ | Some money in the form of cash (euros) |
| ☐ | Clothing for temperatures between -5°C and 25°C (between 23°F and 77°F) |
| ☐ | Toiletries Bag |
| ☐ | Medications (if applicable) |
| Emergency phone numbers |
Optional things to pack before departure
| ☐ | Your (international) driver’s licence |
| ☐ | Passport photos (you will need a few during your first few days here) |
| ☐ | Camera |
| ☐ | Mobile phone |
| ☐ | Laptop / tablet |
| ☐ | Travel adapter |
| ☐ | Extra contact lenses or spare pair of glasses |
| ☐ | Umbrella (it rains quite often in the Netherlands) |
| ☐ | Towels |
| ☐ | Bed linen (some housing agencies offer linen) |
| ☐ | Travel guide |
| ☐ | International Student Identity Card |
| ☐ | First Aid kit |
Checklist - During your exchange
Essential
| ☐ | Register at City Hall if you will be living in the Netherlands for more than 4 months |
| ☐ | Be properly insured (you are by law obliged to be insured in the Netherlands) |
| ☐ | Register yourself at a general practitioner and dentist |
| ☐ | Get your Student ID card (you will receive this from the exchange coordinator) |
| ☐ | Pick up your residence permit (if applicable, you will receive an email once it is ready) |
| ☐ | Take a tuberculosis check (if applicable) |
Optional
| ☐ | Open a Dutch bank account |
| ☐ | Attend our orientation programmes |
| ☐ | Buy a bicycle |
| ☐ | Buy an OV-chipkaart (public transport chip card) |
| ☐ | Buy a mobile phone or Dutch SIM card |
| ☐ | Become a member of one of the student organisations |
| ☐ | Buy an Erasmus Sport Pass |
Checklist - After your exchange
| ☐ | Cancel your accommodation and pay the final month’s rent |
| ☐ | Return your keys to get the deposit back for your housing |
| ☐ | De-register at City Hall (if applicable). You can do so at https://www.rotterdam.nl/loket/deregistration |
| ☐ | Cancel your Dutch health insurance. Be sure to file your insurance claims before leaving |
| ☐ | Return all your library books, cds, dvds, magazines etc. from the EUR and/or public library |
| ☐ | Close your bank account (if applicable). Bank charges will be continued, if you do not close your account. When moving to another city in the Netherlands, inform the bank of your new address |
| ☐ | Settle/cancel any outstanding contracts or subscriptions (i.e. mobile phone.) otherwise they may be renewed automatically. Please check the conditions of your contract, because in some instances you are required to cancel 3 months before the contract is due to end |
| ☐ | Forward important emails and/or export contacts from your ERNA account, as your ERNA account will be discontinued two months after your unenrolment date |
| ☐ | When you have furniture, books or a bike that you would like to leave behind in the Netherlands, you could try to sell them, for instance at the ESN-Rotterdam Marketplace group |
| ☐ | Non-EU/EEA students who would like to stay in the Netherlands, need to change their residence permit. When you decide to continue your studies at another Dutch institution, you must ask the new institution to register you at the Dutch Immigration Department (IND) as we will automatically deregister you. Please see the Nuffic website for more information > international students > alumni > continuing your studies |
| ☐ | When you would like to work in the Netherlands, students who obtained a degree in the Netherlands have the option to apply for a so called ‘orientation year permit’ Read more at the Nuffic website international students > alumni > working after your studies |