Student - November 27, 2008
EU STUDENTS QUALIFY FOR LOCAL GRANTS AFTER FIVE YEARS
Students in the European Union who stay in another EU country for longer than five years can now apply for local student grants, the European Court decided yesterday. This rule already applied in the Netherlands.
The only exceptions to this rule are the children of diplomats and residents of border areas, who can choose, with the proviso that, ‘It is against the rules to get a grant both in the Netherlands and in the country of residence.’
The European Court’s judgement was a response to a court case brought against the IB group in 2000 by the German student Jacqueline Förster, who had lived in the Netherlands for three years but had no right to a grant. Förster felt that she was discriminated against. Eight years later, the European Court has concluded that it doesn’t agree with her.