Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Italian Government Grants

Check providerPartialMerit-BasedBachelor'sMaster'sPhD

About the Scholarship

Italy's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation funds grants for foreign students and for Italian citizens living abroad, covering master's degrees, conservatory programmes in fine arts, music and dance, doctorates, research projects and Italian language courses.

The grant is a fixed sum rather than a full ride. A nine-month award pays EUR 10,800 in three instalments and comes with a collective health insurance policy. Tuition is the part to check carefully: some universities exempt grant holders and some do not, the ministry does not refund fees, and regional fees are always paid by the student.

Selection runs by citizenship, with a list of eligible countries published in each annual call, and an applicant may apply under one country only. A separate set of grants is reserved for Italian citizens resident in twenty designated countries.

Applications go through the Study in Italy portal, and the Italian diplomatic mission responsible for the applicant's country evaluates them, interviews a shortlist and publishes a ranking.

Eligibility verified on 19 September 2026 against the MAECI 2026–2027 eligible-country list.

The separate Italian-citizen residence rules are set out in the 2026–2027 call. The next call may revise the country list.

Undergraduate scope verified on 19 September 2026 against articles 1.2, 1.6, 2.4.2 and 3 of the 2026–2027 MAECI call. New first-cycle awards are for AFAM programmes; ordinary bachelor's awards are limited to eligible Costruiamo il futuro renewals.

The deferred PhD admission-letter option was verified on 19 September 2026 against articles 2.1 and 7.2 of the official 2026–2027 call. Applicants must declare the missing letter when applying; later upload is available only if expressly requested through the portal.

What It Covers

Living stipend
Health insurance

A grant of EUR 10,800 for a nine-month award, paid in three instalments, or EUR 3,600 for a three-month Italian language course, plus a collective health insurance policy for the length of the grant. Tuition is not guaranteed: some universities exempt grant holders, but fees are not refunded by the ministry and regional fees are always paid by the student.

Eligibility

Applicants need the qualification required for the chosen programme. For the 2026-2027 call, new undergraduate awards are limited to first-cycle Higher Education for Fine Arts, Music and Dance (AFAM) programmes. Ordinary bachelor's and single-cycle degree awards are available only as Costruiamo il futuro renewals for recipients of that scholarship in 2025-2026, continuing the same programme at the same institution. Doctoral applicants must upload their admission letter if available; a pre-admission letter is not accepted. Those awaiting admission may declare this on the Study in Italy portal and upload a supervisor's invitation letter instead, then provide the admission letter later if expressly requested under article 7.2. For the 2026-2027 call, requested supplementary documents were due by 14:00 Italian time on 1 July 2026. Research applicants need an invitation letter from a supervisor and a project. Language requirements are Italian at B2 for Italian-taught programmes and English at B2 for English-taught master's and conservatory programmes, and A2 Italian for language courses. New single-cycle degree awards, university master programmes and specialisation courses are excluded. Maximum 28 for master's, conservatory and language course applicants, 30 for doctoral applicants and 40 for research project applicants, measured at the call deadline. Renewal applicants, including the undergraduate Costruiamo il futuro renewal, are exempt from these age limits.

Eligible Countries

citizenship: Foreign citizens of the countries and territories in the 2026–2027 MAECI list. Applicants with multiple citizenships may apply under one eligible foreign citizenship only.

🇦🇫 Afghanistan🇦🇱 Albania🇦🇲 Armenia🇦🇴 Angola🇦🇷 Argentina🇦🇹 Austria🇦🇺 Australia🇦🇿 Azerbaijan🇧🇦 Bosnia & Herzegovina🇧🇩 Bangladesh🇧🇪 Belgium🇧🇫 Burkina Faso🇧🇬 Bulgaria🇧🇭 Bahrain🇧🇮 Burundi🇧🇯 Benin🇧🇴 Bolivia🇧🇷 Brazil🇧🇸 Bahamas🇧🇼 Botswana🇧🇾 Belarus🇨🇦 Canada🇨🇩 Congo - Kinshasa🇨🇫 Central African Republic🇨🇬 Congo - Brazzaville🇨🇭 Switzerland🇨🇮 Côte d’Ivoire🇨🇱 Chile🇨🇲 Cameroon🇨🇳 China🇨🇴 Colombia🇨🇷 Costa Rica🇨🇺 Cuba🇨🇻 Cape Verde🇨🇾 Cyprus🇨🇿 Czechia🇩🇪 Germany🇩🇯 Djibouti🇩🇴 Dominican Republic🇩🇿 Algeria🇪🇨 Ecuador🇪🇪 Estonia🇪🇬 Egypt🇪🇷 Eritrea🇪🇸 Spain🇪🇹 Ethiopia🇫🇷 France🇬🇦 Gabon🇬🇧 UK🇬🇪 Georgia🇬🇭 Ghana🇬🇲 The Gambia🇬🇳 Guinea🇬🇶 Equatorial Guinea🇬🇷 Greece🇬🇹 Guatemala🇬🇼 Guinea-Bissau🇭🇷 Croatia🇭🇺 Hungary🇮🇩 Indonesia🇮🇱 Israel🇮🇳 India🇮🇶 Iraq🇮🇷 Iran🇯🇴 Jordan🇯🇵 Japan🇰🇪 Kenya🇰🇬 Kyrgyzstan🇰🇭 Cambodia🇰🇲 Comoros🇰🇷 South Korea🇰🇼 Kuwait🇰🇿 Kazakhstan🇱🇦 Laos🇱🇧 Lebanon🇱🇰 Sri Lanka🇱🇷 Liberia🇱🇸 Lesotho🇱🇹 Lithuania🇱🇻 Latvia🇱🇾 Libya🇲🇦 Morocco🇲🇩 Moldova🇲🇪 Montenegro🇲🇬 Madagascar🇲🇰 North Macedonia🇲🇱 Mali🇲🇲 Myanmar🇲🇳 Mongolia🇲🇷 Mauritania🇲🇹 Malta🇲🇺 Mauritius🇲🇼 Malawi🇲🇽 Mexico🇲🇾 Malaysia🇲🇿 Mozambique🇳🇦 Namibia🇳🇪 Niger🇳🇬 Nigeria🇴🇲 Oman🇵🇦 Panama🇵🇪 Peru🇵🇭 Philippines🇵🇱 Poland🇵🇸 Palestinian Territories🇵🇹 Portugal🇵🇾 Paraguay🇷🇴 Romania🇷🇸 Serbia🇷🇺 Russia🇷🇼 Rwanda🇸🇨 Seychelles🇸🇩 Sudan🇸🇬 Singapore🇸🇮 Slovenia🇸🇰 Slovakia🇸🇱 Sierra Leone🇸🇲 San Marino🇸🇳 Senegal🇸🇴 Somalia🇸🇸 South Sudan🇸🇹 São Tomé & Príncipe🇸🇻 El Salvador🇸🇾 Syria🇸🇿 Eswatini🇹🇩 Chad🇹🇬 Togo🇹🇭 Thailand🇹🇯 Tajikistan🇹🇱 Timor-Leste🇹🇲 Turkmenistan🇹🇳 Tunisia🇹🇷 Turkey🇹🇼 Taiwan🇹🇿 Tanzania🇺🇦 Ukraine🇺🇬 Uganda🇺🇾 Uruguay🇺🇿 Uzbekistan🇻🇪 Venezuela🇻🇳 Vietnam🇽🇰 Kosovo🇾🇪 Yemen🇿🇦 South Africa🇿🇲 Zambia🇿🇼 Zimbabwe

residency: The IRE route is for holders of Italian citizenship only who reside in one of these 20 countries. Dual Italian/foreign citizens apply under an eligible foreign citizenship instead.

🇦🇷 Argentina🇦🇺 Australia🇧🇷 Brazil🇨🇱 Chile🇨🇴 Colombia🇩🇪 Germany🇪🇬 Egypt🇪🇸 Spain🇪🇹 Ethiopia🇫🇷 France🇬🇧 UK🇰🇪 Kenya🇱🇧 Lebanon🇲🇦 Morocco🇵🇪 Peru🇸🇳 Senegal🇹🇳 Tunisia🇺🇾 Uruguay🇻🇪 Venezuela🇿🇦 South Africa

How to Apply

Apply through the Study in Italy portal only. Applications are assessed by a committee at the Italian diplomatic mission responsible for your country, which interviews shortlisted candidates and publishes the ranking.

Application Routes and Dates

Study in Italy postgraduate portal application

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Master's, PhD

The 2027-2028 call has not been published. The 2026-2027 call closed at 14:00 Italian time on 26 March 2026, with supporting documents due by 1 July 2026 and the funding period running from 1 November 2026.

Study in Italy undergraduate AFAM application only

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Bachelor's

The 2027-2028 call has not been published. In the 2026-2027 call, new undergraduate awards were limited to first-cycle Fine Arts, Music and Dance (AFAM) programmes. The call closed on 26 March 2026.

Costruiamo il futuro undergraduate renewal only

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Bachelor's

The 2027-2028 call has not been published. The 2026-2027 call allowed ordinary bachelor's and single-cycle degree renewals only for 2025-2026 Costruiamo il futuro recipients continuing the same programme at the same institution. This is not a new undergraduate award. The call closed on 26 March 2026.