Coming to Bosnia and Herzegovina for educational purposes
This page explains the following topics for regulating your status in Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Travel documents
- Visa to enter B&H
- entering without visa
- entering with visa
- Regulating your residence in Bosnia & Herzegovina <<< for exchange students and staff staying longer than three months:
- White Card
- Residence permit
- Foreign Affairs Office
1 TRAVEL DOCUMENTS
Entry of international students and staff members to Bosnia and Herzegovina is regulated by the Ministry of Security of Bosnia and Herzegovina. To enter Bosnia and Herzegovina, you need a valid ID or passport. If you hold a European Union (EU) Member state ID or passport, you can enter our country for a short stay of up to 90 days. For all other countries, please check the status of your travel document with the Embassy or a Consulate of Bosnia and Herzegovina in your country. Please note: citizens of non-EU countries (holders of the non-EU passport) who live and stay in the EU and have a valid EU visa can enter for a short stay in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Please let us know if you need a visa to enter B&H. Providing a visa is a lengthy procedure that can take up to two months.
Please note:
- Students coming for educational purposes and staying longer than three months must bring their passports.
- Staff members (who do not require a visa to enter Bosnia and Herzegovina) and stay less than three months can use their ID.
2 VISA TO ENTER BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA
- Without visa
Nationals of the following states may enter Bosnia and Herzegovina with a passport or a valid identity card proving their identity and citizenship without a visa:
- Member State of the European Union
- State signatory to the Schengen Agreement
- Albania, Andora, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Liechtenstein, Monaco, San Marino, Serbia, the Holy See, the Swiss Confederation, Turkey
You can check whether your home country needs a visa to enter Bosnia and Herzegovina on the official website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of B&H. We recommend contacting your country’s embassy or consulate of Bosnia and Herzegovina for correct information.
Below you can check if your home country has an official representation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (embassy or consulate). If not listed, you will see which country covers the administration for your home country. Blue pins show the country with the embassy or consulate of Bosnia and Herzegovina in that country. Red pins mark countries that don’t have an embassy or consulate of Bosnia and Herzegovina and connect your country’s representation.
- With visa
Suppose you need a visa to enter Bosnia and Herzegovina. In that case, you need to obtain a verified invitation letter to enter/stay in B&H (which differs from the invitation letter from the University of Sarajevo).
A verified invitation letter to enter/stay in B&H is prepared by the University of Sarajevo’s member unit (faculty, academy, centre, institute) and confirmed by the Foreign Affairs Office. Its content is focused on inviting a student or staff member to visit B&H for a specific purpose and a certain period when they need a visa to enter B&H.
Students and staff can stay in B&H for a shorter or longer period, so documents for issuing a “C” or “D” visa are prepared accordingly:
- “C” visa – This visa is issued for foreign students and staff staying in B&H for less than 90 days.
- “D” visa – This visa is issued for foreign students and staff who will stay in B&H for more than 90 days to 1 year (this is the most common type of visa required since one semester lasts longer than three months).
Please note: It is essential to know about your visa status a few months prior, as preparing and collecting documents is bureaucratic and can last up to two months. Check the deadlines for nomination.
More detailed information is provided in the Instructions for the verified invitation letter for the local staff at the University of Sarajevo. This document is available to the local staff that will prepare and administrate the invitation letter and can be downloaded from this link (titled: DOLAZNI – Uputstvo za pripremanje pozivnog pisma za vizu za inostrane studente).
3 REGULATING YOUR RESIDENCE IN BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA
As in every country in the world, Bosnia and Herzegovina has regulations regarding foreign entering, staying and exiting. As an international student/staff member staying in Bosnia and Herzegovina for more than 90 days for academic/teaching purposes, you must regulate your residence status. For this, you need to obtain two documents:
- White card
- Residence permit
Please note: these documents are obtained upon your arrival in Sarajevo, so you do not need to get them before. However, you must bring certain supporting documents from your home country for the residence permit.
Regulating your residence (white card and residence permit) in B&H – instructions – <<< please download it and read carefully!
4 HOW TO GET TO THE FOREIGNER AFFAIRS OFFICE?
The Foreign Affairs Office is placed at the address: A transverzala-Michael Schumacher, broj 8, Braće Mulić 38, Sarajevo 71000. You will notice black – glass building and official flags of Bosnia and Herzegovina next to it. Before going there, ensure your documents are prepared as instructed in our guides.
How to reach it?
By taxi: depending on where you are leaving, from the Old Town Baščaršija until the Office, the taxi should charge you approximately 20-25 KM. The price is less the closer you are to the Office. Make sure that the taxi meter is turned on.
By trolleybus: make sure to catch the electric bus from the centre towards Dobrinja. You’ll need to exit at the second-to-last station and walk approximately 800 meters back to the Foreign Affairs Office.