Scholarships in Italy for International Students (2027/28 Guide)

The main scholarships in Italy for international students are the regional right-to-study (DSU) scholarships, which offer money and often housing based on family income and merit, followed by university awards and fee waivers, Italian government (MAECI) programs, and funded PhD positions. Most require you to apply separately from your admission, often in summer, and many need an ISEE parificato.

This guide explains each type honestly – who can get it, what the official pages actually say, and when to apply for 2027/28. Where amounts or dates are not published yet, we say so.

Regional DSU scholarships (Diritto allo Studio)

Each Italian region has a right-to-study agency that runs an annual call for scholarships, residence places and canteen support. Calls are open to Italian and international students who meet economic and merit requirements. Examples include ER.GO for Emilia-Romagna (Bologna, Modena, Parma, Ferrara), EDISU Piemonte for Turin, and DSU Toscana for Florence, Pisa and Siena. Universitaly keeps a list of all regional agencies.

How the ISEE parificato works

Because your family's income and assets are abroad, you need an ISEE parificato. Universitaly says you request it from a CAAF (tax assistance centre) by asking for the ISEE certification for facilitated benefits for the right to university study. It is built from home-country income and property documents, which usually must be translated and legalised.

The No Tax Area

Separately, the national No Tax Area reduces or waives university fees for students from low-ISEE families at all universities and AFAM institutions. Ask your university's student office or a CAF how it applies to you.

Italian government scholarships (MAECI)

The Foreign Ministry offers scholarships to foreign students through the Study in Italy portal. When we checked in October 2026, the portal said the call for 2025/26 is closed and to check regularly for the next call. No 2027/28 call, deadline, amount or list of eligible countries was published there yet.

Invest Your Talent in Italy

Invest Your Talent in Italy is a MAECI program for English-taught master's and postgraduate courses in engineering and advanced technologies, architecture and design, and economics and management, with a mandatory internship in an Italian company. The 11th edition (2026/27) was open to citizens of 23 countries, including Bangladesh, Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Iran, Türkiye and Vietnam. Pakistan, Afghanistan and Nigeria were not on that list. The site says a new application opens in 2027 but gives no date yet.

University scholarships and fee waivers

Many universities offer their own awards, often tied to the international admission call. Examples from official calls:

Because many university awards are decided together with admission, the first application round is usually the best moment. Watch for the word 'scholarship' or 'fee waiver' in each call.

Fully funded PhD positions

PhDs are the most generous route. Universitaly lists the PhD scholarship at €16,243 per year, paid in 12 monthly instalments and subject to social-security deductions, open to Italian and international holders of a second-cycle degree. Some schools pay more or waive all fees:

• SISSA (Trieste): no tuition, every PhD student gets a fellowship; regional tax €120–160 a year.
• IUSS Pavia: no tuition; funded scholarship of €18,645.63 per year gross.
• Gran Sasso Science Institute and Scuola Superiore Meridionale: fees waived with funded positions.
• Large universities: Bologna, Padua, Politecnico di Torino and others publish several PhD calls per cycle; some reserve positions for foreign-degree holders, such as Macerata's 2026/27 call with one scholarship per PhD reserved for foreign degrees.

Calls for the 43rd cycle (2027/28) are mostly published in spring and summer 2027. For 2026/27, Bologna's first round closed on 30 March 2026 and Sapienza's on 17 June 2026.

Nationality-based fee exemptions: the hidden scholarship

For many students from lower-income countries, the biggest saving is not a named scholarship but a fee exemption written into the university's fee rules. Several public universities exempt citizens of particularly poor countries completely or charge only regional tax and stamp duty. Politecnico di Torino, for example, says Afghan citizens are exempt and pay only regional tax, stamp duty and insurance, and the University of Cagliari lists a full fee exemption with only €16 stamp duty plus regional tax.

These exemptions are usually automatic or need a simple declaration, while DSU scholarships need a full application. Check both. Our cost of studying in Italy guide lists more examples by university.

Students from Afghanistan and conflict areas

There is no Italy-wide scholarship reserved for Afghan students on the official pages we checked. What does exist is useful:

• Low or zero tuition for citizens of particularly poor countries at many public universities, Afghanistan included.
• Regional DSU calls open to all international students who can document family income, although building an ISEE parificato from Afghan documents can be hard – ask the regional agency early which documents it accepts.
• A MUR note of 3 July 2026 asking universities to offer language and academic support after admission to candidates from conflict areas.
• For refugees already in Italy, the CIMEA European Qualifications Passport for Refugees to prove qualifications without full documents.

Mistakes that cost students their scholarship

• Missing the regional DSU deadline because you were waiting for the visa – read your region's call as soon as it is published, since deadlines can fall before you arrive in Italy.
• Submitting incomplete or untranslated family income documents for the ISEE parificato.
• Counting on a DSU award to show funds at the visa appointment.
• Failing to earn the required credits in year one, which can cancel renewal of support.
• Paying agents who promise guaranteed scholarships – no official scheme guarantees one.

How to apply: a scholarship timeline

1. 1

   Now: collect family income documents

   Ask your family for income and property records and start translations and legalisation for the ISEE parificato.

2. 2

   During admission: apply in the first round

   Tick every scholarship option in university calls; some awards close with the first deadline.

3. 3

   Spring: watch MAECI and Invest Your Talent

   Check the official portals for the 2027/28 calls and their eligible countries.

4. 4

   Summer: submit the DSU application

   Regional calls are annual and each agency sets its own deadline. Read your region's call as soon as it appears.

5. 5

   Get the ISEE parificato from a CAAF

   You will need a codice fiscale, which can be requested at an Italian consulate before departure or at a tax office in Italy. Then confirm your DSU application and fee band with the university.

Honest expectations

Keep your eligibility each year. DSU and university awards usually require you to earn a minimum number of credits to renew support, and your residence permit itself requires passing at least one exam in year one and two in later years. Plan your exams early so you do not lose both.

Combine this with our cost of studying in Italy guide and track scholarship and admission deadlines for free on FindUniPath. More on the Italy hub.