Information for incoming scholarship holders

 

The scholarship full rate is paid only under the condition of your physical presence at the host institution in Slovakia specified in the Letter of Award. At the same time, the scholarship is awarded solely for the approved purpose of stay on the basis of the submitted application.

In case that due to extraordinary circumstances you are not able to implement your mobility physically in person in Slovakia, please inform us as soon as possible. At the same time, we recommend for you to get acquainted with the Guidelines for Awarding and Disbursement of Scholarships and Travel Grants effective from 22 October 2021, which in specific cases allow the implementation of virtual or combined mobility.

 

1. Scholarship payment

Documents required to be sent to SAIA, in order to start the scholarship payments:

  1. before the commencement of your scholarship stay:
    1. notary certified original hard copy of your diploma of the highest academic degree achieved, in case of documents issued in languages other than Slovak or English they shall be officially translated into either of these two languages – translation can also be certified by the same institution that issued the respective document,
    2. a signed Letter of Acceptance,
    3. in case of students and PhD students, a confirmation on studies valid for the academic year in which the scholarship stay will take place (confirmation issued by your home university/research organisation that you are a regular student/PhD student of the respective institution; confirmation should be issued not sooner than one month before September, or before February in case of scholarship stay which will take place in the summer semester), in case the document has been issued in a language other than Slovak or English it shall be officially translated into either of these two languages,
  1. immediately after the beginning of your stay:
    1. bank account details where your scholarship will be paid to (accepted are bank accounts registered in any of the SEPA countries – Single Euro Payments Area, www.ecb.europa.eu) – i.e. name, address and SWIFT/BIC code of a bank operating in SEPA system, and also a bank account number opened in the respective bank in the form of IBAN, bank account details are to be submitted in form of the enclosed “Notification of bank account details for scholarship payment”,
    2. original hard copy of a Confirmation on the beginning of your scholarship stay.
      • Note: The confirmation shall be issued by scholarship holder’s host institution and it must be issued on its official letter-head paper. The confirmation must contain: scholarship holder’s name and surname; the exact date of the beginning of his/her scholarship stay; name, surname, position and contact details of the person who issued the confirmation. The confirmation must be signed by the person who issued the confirmation (the signature must be original, not a copy or scan); the confirmation on the beginning of your scholarship stay shall be sent both by e-mail and by post/delivered in person to the address of the programme administrator. The electronic confirmation (scan) must be sent by the representative of the host institution.

Scholarships are paid in monthly payments, typically at the latest on the 7th day of the respective month to the scholarship holder’s bank account. Exceptions in regard to payment dates are specified below. SAIA is disbursing scholarships only to bank accounts registered in SEPA countries (Single Euro Payments Area, www.ecb.europa.eu). Please, note that the bank account should be also denominated in euro currency, because, if it will be denominated in other currency, exchange differences and fees related to scholarship transfer or currency exchange may occur, and the scholarship holder shall pay them.

You will receive the 1st scholarship payment after you deliver to SAIA in Bratislava documents required to start the scholarship payments, as specified above.

In case that the scholarship stay lasts longer than 6 months from the day of the beginning of the scholarship stay, the scholarship holder is obliged to deliver to SAIA in Bratislava a Scholarship stay interim report (report should be submitted after the completion of the 6th month of the stay). For this purpose, the scholarship holder shall use the template of “Structure of the scholarship stay final report”. University students must also submit an official Transcript of records or a Confirmation on completing their exams for the 1st semester of their study stay. The payment for the 7th month of the scholarship stay will be paid on the respective payment date as stated further bellow, only after the delivery of the above-mentioned documents related the completion of 6-month scholarship stay and after their acceptance by the programme administrator.

The last scholarship payment, i.e. payment for the last month of the scholarship stay, will be paid on the respective payment date as stated further bellow, only after the delivery of the following documents required for completion of the scholarship stay to SAIA in Bratislava and after their acceptance by the programme administrator:

  1. Scholarship stay final report. For this purpose, the scholarship holder shall use the Structure of the scholarship stay final report.
  2. Confirmation on the completion of the scholarship stay issued by scholarship holder’s host institution.
    • Note: The confirmation shall be issued on the official letter-head paper of the host institution. The confirmation shall contain: scholarship holder’s name and surname; the exact date of the completion of his/her scholarship stay; name, surname, position and contact details of the authorised person who issued the confirmation. The confirmation must be signed by the person who issued the confirmation (the signature must be original, not a copy or scan); the confirmation shall be sent both by e-mail and by post/delivered in person to the address of the programme administrator. The electronic confirmation (scan) shall be sent by the representative of the host institution.
  3. in case of scholarship holders in the category of stays of university students – official Transcript of records or a Confirmation on completing their exams for the whole study stay (to be attached as an Annex to the Scholarship stay final report).

In case that the programme administrator finds the Scholarship stay interim report or the Scholarship stay final report unsatisfactory (in regard to its content and/or formal criteria), or in case of missing annexes, the programme administrator will ask the scholarship holder in writing to complete the missing/unsatisfactory parts in the report and deliver it to SAIA in Bratislava within 15 working days from the day of such request.

Students and PhD students will receive a travel allowance together with their last scholarship payment, in case they have applied for it and in case they were awarded the travel allowance.

If the scholarship holder delivers his/her Scholarship stay final report later than 30 days from the completion of his/her scholarship stay, the scholarship holder loses the right for the last scholarship payment (i.e. payment for the last month of his/her scholarship stay) as well as for the travel allowance, in case it has been awarded, and in such case the programme administrator is not obliged to pay the rest of the financial contribution.

If scholarship stay lasts one month, you will receive your scholarship at the end of your scholarship stay, i.e. after delivery of documents required to start the scholarship payments, as specified above, and after delivery of the documentation required for completion of the scholarship stay, as specified above, to SAIA in Bratislava and after their acceptance by SAIA.

Deadlines for submission of documents and related payment dates:

The scholarship holder acknowledges that there are 2 cut-off dates for fulfilment of conditions set for the 1st scholarship payment connected with the beginning of the stay, the 7th scholarship payment for stays longer than 6 months and the last scholarship payment and travel allowance (if approved) in connection with the completion of stay. The required documents for the payment of the scholarship and travel allowance (if approved) must be delivered to SAIA in Bratislava by the 15th day of the month or the last day of the month. If the submitted documents meet all the conditions set by the programme and the programme administrator does not request additional documents, the corresponding amount of scholarship will be sent to the scholarship holder at the latest on the 10th working day after the cut-off date set for the submission of documents. In case a payment is due to be made in January, we inform you that such payment will be paid-out at the latest on the payment date valid for February.

 

2. Practical information

In preparation for your stay, you can get acquainted with interesting information about Slovakia, everyday life, and possibly learn a few Slovak words and phrases - you will find all of this on our information pages for foreigners – students and researchers:

Accommodation:

You can ask your host institution to assist you with arranging your accommodation or you can arrange it yourself. The rent shall be covered by your scholarship.

Health insurance:

Scholarship holders of the National Scholarship Programme, residing on the territory of Slovakia are entitled to full coverage within the public health insurance if they are awarded the scholarship for a period of more than one month.

More information here.

Nationals of the Member States of the European Union, the European Economic Area and Switzerland shall obtain the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) from a health insurance institution to which they are affiliated, before their arrival to Slovakia.

Visa, residence permit and stay notification:

  1. Nationals of the Member States of the European Union, the European Economic Area and Switzerland can enter Slovakia freely. If their scholarship stay lasts longer than 3 months, they shall register at the respective foreign police office – registration of right of residence of Union Citizen. The registration is officially considered as permanent residence in the Slovak Republic. After the completion of the scholarship stay, the scholarship holder shall cancel his/her residence in the Slovak Republic in writing at the respective foreign police office in Slovakia. Nationals of the Member States of the European Union, the European Economic Area and Switzerland, who will be not accommodated in an accommodation facility (dormitory, hotel, etc.), must fulfil the obligation to report the beginning of their stay at the respective foreign police office of the Slovak Republic within 10 working days from their arrival to Slovakia (§ 64 Art. 2 Act No. 404/2011 Coll.). When reporting the beginning of their arrival, scholarship holders may, at the same time, fulfil the obligation to apply for registration of residence of nationals of the Member States of the European Union, the European Economic Area and Switzerland, who will reside in Slovakia longer than 3 months (§ 66 Art. 1 of the same Act).
  1. Nationals of countries outside the European Union, the European Economic Area and Switzerland may need to apply for visa in connection with their arrival and stay in Slovakia. Please note that for scholarship holders of the National Scholarship Programme of the Slovak Republic it is not necessary to apply for temporary residence permit, instead national visa for the whole duration of the stay may be issued to simplify the procedures (national visa can be applied for in case of at least 3-month stay, while they can be granted for up to maximum 12 months). In connection to this, we recommend you to read carefully document “Procedures for SAIA, n. o. scholarship holders in relation to visas required for the arrival and stay in territory of the Slovak Republic during the scholarship stay”. Please note, when applying for a visa you are obliged to indicate the actual host institution that issued your letter of invitation/acceptance and at which you will actually conduct your scholarship stay, not SAIA, n. o.
  • In case of need, you can also apply for temporary residence permit in the territory of the Slovak Republic in the event that your national visa application (valid for the whole stay) is rejected, or in case you find the temporary residence permit more convenient for your personal circumstances. Further details on the necessary procedure can be found at www.euraxess.sk/en/main/info/living/guide-administrative-duties/. In case your visa application is denied, please inform the programme administrator about it. In case you apply for temporary residence permit, and if justified, you may be reimbursed for a medical examination based on which you receive the confirmation that you are not suffering from a disease threatening public health. In such a case the costs related to medical examination and issuing of this confirmation can be reimbursed up to the maximum of 250 € per scholarship holder, as part of the scholarship, after delivery of a photocopy of temporary residence permit and the original bill issued by the respective medical facility, as well as justification of the need of temporary residence permit. You are obliged to deliver those documents to SAIA in Bratislava within the deadline for submitting the Scholarship stay final report, if applicable.

For more information on administrative duties related to your stay in Slovakia, please, contact the respective Representation Office of the Slovak Republic (e.g. embassy) and check the websites of the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic (www.mzv.sk/web/en/consular_info) or the Ministry of Interior of the Slovak Republic (www.minv.sk/?residence-of-an-foreigner). Detailed information related to the arrival to and stay in Slovakia focused specifically on researchers, PhDs students, university teachers and their families can be found at EURAXESS Slovakia website (www.euraxess.sk).

 

3. Changes related to the date of the beginning and duration of scholarship stay

The scholarship holder is obliged to inform the programme administrator about the changes related to the date of the beginning of scholarship stay in Slovakia and about the changes related to the duration of scholarship stay in Slovakia (i.e. scholarship stay will be shorter; it is not possible to extend the scholarship stay).

  • Changes related to the date of the beginning of scholarship holder’s stay in Slovakia or the changes related to the duration of scholarship holder’s stay in Slovakia which do not exceed 15 days (included), do not need to be reported, however we strongly recommend you to inform the programme administrator (nsp-foreign@saia.sk/nsp-foreign2@saia.sk) about such change as soon as possible.
  • If the changes related to the date of the beginning of scholarship holder’s stay in Slovakia or the changes related to the duration of scholarship holder’s stay in Slovakia do not exceed 1 calendar month, the scholarship holder must deliver an original hard copy of an official request to SAIA in Bratislava – we strongly recommend to inform the programme administrator (nsp-foreign@saia.sk/nsp-foreign2@saia.sk) about intended changes in advance and to consult the official request and its requisites.
  • Changes related to the date of the beginning of scholarship holder´s stay in Slovakia or the duration of the scholarship holder´s stay in Slovakia over 1 calendar month must be requested in advance by an official request, while the required supporting materials must be attached to the request as follows:
  • acceptance/invitation letter from the inviting institution with the new date of the stay (original copy),
  • current study certificate valid for the new period of stay (in case of university/PhD students).
  • Postponement of the scholarship stay by more than 1 month is not claimable and is possible only in justified cases. The scholarship holder must explain his reasons in sufficient detail, and the programme administrator will assess the seriousness and necessity of postponing the scholarship stay based on the stated facts.
  • The scholarship stay can only be interrupted in exceptional cases (e. g. serious health issues or other force majeure situations) and they are subject to approval by the programme administrator on the basis of an official request delivered to SAIA in Bratislava in advance.

If necessary, while checking the provided information, the programme administrator may request additional documents confirming the implementation of the scholarship stay at the host institution in Slovakia (e.g. confirmation of accommodation, travel tickets, airline tickets), as well as proof of fulfilment of the purpose of the stay (e.g. attendance sheets, photo documentation, articles, email communication with the publisher). The scholarship holder is therefore obliged to archive documents related to the scholarship stay, cooperate in the verification of facts and deliver the required supplementary documents (if existing) to the programme administrator without delay. The programme administrator may request a personal meeting with the scholarship holder or visit the host institution as part of the verification process.

 

4. Commitments of the scholarship holder:

The scholarship holder undertakes to ensure that his/her declarations (especially in the Letter of Acceptance, but not exclusively) are true throughout the entire period of the scholarship stay. The declarations are deemed to be provided repeatedly by the scholarship holder each time the scholarship is paid to scholarship holder's bank account.

In the case of sooner completion of the scholarship stay, other than due to non-fulfilment of the respective obligations of the scholarship holder (e.g. in cases of long-term sick-leave or serious illness, serious family or personal issues), the programme administrator may, after considering all circumstances, decide that the scholarship holder will not be obliged to return the amount of the scholarship paid up to that moment, received and used in good faith.

Obligation of confidentiality:

The scholarship holder is obliged to maintain confidentiality about any information related to technical, administrative, organizational and other facts and procedures that constitute the know-how of the programme administrator. The scholarship holder acknowledges and accepts that the violation of the confidentiality obligation establishes the programme administrator's right to compensation for the relevant damage.

 

5. Personal data protection:

The “Terms and Conditions of Personal Data Processing done by SAIA, n. o.” apply for data protection and processing. The scholarship holder agrees with personal data processing in accordance with these Terms and Conditions (or with their future amendments published on the respective webpage in line with “General Terms and Conditions for Using Websites and Portals Administered by SAIA, n. o.” published on the same website). The conditions for the processing of personal data are set by SAIA, n. o., in accordance with applicable law.

To enable a faster communication, the scholarship holder agrees, by accepting the scholarship, to the use of e-mail communication by the programme administrator without any restriction, unless the scholarship holder informs the programme administrator differently in writing by registered regular mail. By accepting the scholarship, the scholarship holder also confirms that he/she is aware of the fact that the transmission of data via the Internet (especially via e-mail) may bear security risks and that a full protection against access by third parties to transmitted data cannot be guaranteed. The programme administrator cannot be responsible for damages caused by such security risks.

 

More information:

Programme administrator (category university teacher/researcher): Ondrej ARADSKÝ, nsp-foreign@saia.sk, tel.: +421-2-5930 4733 (direct line)

Programme administrator (category university student/PhD student): Silvia LIPOVSKÁ, nsp-foreign2@saia.sk, tel.: +421-2-5930 4736 (direct line)

Programme financial manager (issues related to the scholarship payments, reporting the beginning/completion of the scholarship stay, etc.): Lenka STAŠINIAKOVÁ, lenka.stasiniakova@saia.sk, tel.: +421-2-5930 47563 (direct line)


SAIA, n. o.
Sasinkova 10
812 20 Bratislava 1
Slovak Republic

tel: +421-2-5930 4700, +421-2-5930 4711

fax: +421-2-5930 4701

www.scholarships.sk, www.saia.sk