The MAECI Amount and Payment Schedule

The amount

For the master’s, doctoral and research categories, the award has stood in recent years at around €9,000 for an academic year. For Italian language and culture courses it is lower and usually paid in one instalment. Since the figure can move with each call, verify the current value in the bando before applying — and weigh the city you’ll live in as you judge it: the same €9,000 strains against rent in Milan and stretches comfortably in Perugia or Bari.

The payment pattern: three instalments

The master’s/doctoral award is paid not monthly but in three instalments, into a bank account opened in your own name in Italy. Opening one generally requires the codice fiscale (tax number) and the residence application (permesso di soggiorno) — which is why the first instalment tends to arrive in late October.

The fee exemption

Scholarship holders are generally exempted from university tuition. The university itself applies the exemption — you present your award letter at enrolment. With Italian fees varying by region, university and income, the exemption’s value should not be underestimated: on some programmes annual fees run to several thousand euros. The logic of the waiver — and the difference between “no tuition fee” and “tuition waiver” — is laid out on our fee waiver page.

Health insurance

Under the MAECI scholarship, health insurance is covered by the ministry — sparing you a separate private policy. The visa and residence procedures ask for proof of insurance; confirm in advance that your scholarship covers the item and which document proves it. For longer stays, registration with the national health system (SSN) can also come into play.

What the scholarship covers — a summary

Housing and transport fall outside the scholarship — but the regional DSU halls and canteen can cut the accommodation line dramatically. Conditions allowing, the MAECI + DSU pairing can carry a year in Italy almost completely.

Budgeting the first months

A realistic starting budget covers the first two months’ rent and the deposit, food, transport, the codice fiscale and residence fees, and the unexpected. Until the first instalment arrives, all of it comes from your own funds. The deposit and first rent are the biggest starting items in most cities; a hall of residence lightens the load considerably.

The same scholarship, city by city

The MAECI award is broadly uniform across the country; the life it buys is not. In the large, touristic cities — Milan, Rome, Florence — rent and daily costs run high, and the scholarship means a tighter budget. In Perugia, Pavia, Bari or Catania the same money goes much further, and can even leave room to save. Weigh the cost-of-living dimension alongside the academic one when choosing university and programme — and note that cities with DSU halls soften the big-city disadvantage considerably.

Keeping the payments on track

Because payment goes into your Italian bank account, no money reaches you until the account exists — and its precondition is generally the codice fiscale and the residence application. So within the first week of arriving: obtain the codice fiscale, file the permesso di soggiorno application, and open a student account at a bank. The sooner those three are done, the lower the risk of the first instalment lagging. The university’s international office and the student associations (ESN) guide you through all of it.

Keeping the scholarship: academic progress

Extension into the second year — and uninterrupted payment generally — hangs on the academic-progress condition: completing your courses and credits on time. Take the course load seriously from the first term and never miss the exam calendar. If something unexpected intervenes (health, family), contact your institution early; solutions usually exist, but timely notice is the condition.

The hidden costs to watch

Count the invisible items too. The residence application carries fees of its own — the postal kit, the stamp duty, the electronic card. Health is covered, but some additional services can charge. The transport pass, textbooks and lab or materials costs vary by programme. Renting, the deposit usually runs to one or two months’ rent, payable up front. Listing these from the start makes the first months’ budget honest — and keeps the surprises away.

Savings and extra income

Student status opens many discount doors: transport, museums, software and cultural events all carry student rates. The DSU canteens (mensa) are very cheap, and a hall cuts accommodation costs substantially. Part-time work can be possible within the limits of your scholarship conditions and residence type — but the hours and permission rules depend on the permit, so verify with the official source. The aim is to support the scholarship with complementary savings and income; treating it as a single income covering everything is the riskier assumption.

Frequently asked questions