Required Single Permit documents

Depending on your type of employment the required documents might slightly differ to obtain the single permit. Therefore the university’s HR Department will confirm which document are exactly need and which conditions are applicable for your situation. A list of documents that are required by the employee can however be found here. Documents created by the UGent as employer will be added to start the single permit application.

Documents for the first application

Passport

More information on the passport.

European ID Card or other residence card

If you are living in an EEA country, a copy of the European ID card must be provided.

If you live in another country that is not your home country (based on your nationality) a proof of valid stay must be uploaded. In most cases this is also an ID card.

Obtained diploma’s

More information on the obtained diploma’s.

Proof of good conduct

A NON-EEA national over 18 years of age who wants to stay in Belgium for more than three months must present a certificate of the absence of convictions for crimes or offenses under common law. Other representative names are a proof/certificate of good conduct and moral behavior or an extract from the juridical record. This type of document must be provided for the Single Permit application.

As a rule, this document should be:

• issued within 6 months immediately preceding the date of submission of the application,
• issued by the competent authority of the country of origin or consignment, and
• legalized, except:
  • when delivered by a authority form an EEA member state
  • when a bilateral or multilateral agreement simplifies or abolishes the formality of legalization (e.g., the Hague Convention of October 5, 1961, abolishing the requirement of legalization of foreign public documents, in favor of the simplified apostille procedure)
  • when delivered by one of the following countries: United States of America, Israel

The document must cover the previous year of stay in your country. If you have lived in multiple countries, an extract of each country will need to be obtained. A translation of the document in German, French, English or Dutch is required if it is issued in another language.

The fee that foreign authorities might charge is payable on your own account.

Medical certificate

As a general rule, anyone who wishes to stay for more than 90 days in Belgium must present a medical certificate attesting that they are not suffering from one of the diseases that may endanger public health listed in the appendix to the law of December 15, 1980.

NON – EEA nationals need to undergo a medical examination before a Single permit can be granted. The doctor will fill in the standard medical certificate; and the copy of this document must be added to the Single Permit application. This medical certificate will proof that you do not have an illness that can threaten public health.

In principle, you submit a medical certificate drawn up during the 6 months immediately preceding the submission of your application. If your procedural preparation was delayed for unforeseen conditions, you might therefore be requested to provide a new certificate if the validation date outrival the 6 months.

The document must be filled in mandatory in one of the official Belgian languages by the doctor : Dutch, French or German. If it is completed by your doctor in another language (for example English) the document will not be accepted by the Belgian authorities.

• The medical certificate
• Governmental website

Retribution payment

NON-EEA nationals who require a Single Permit to work and live in Belgium, must pay a retribution fee to the Belgian authorities. The payments to the Belgian government needs to be transferred by you to the account of the Ministry of Interior in Brussels.

• The amount paid must cover both the administrative fee and any bank charges.
• If the payment of the administrative costs is done in different stages, please add an additional overview or information sheet mentioning the data and amounts that were paid.
• If you also request a family reunion visa the payments have to be done separately.
• The university cannot intervene in the payment of retribution or act as third party to pay the retribution. It is however possible to ask another third party (living in Belgium or the EU zone) to pay the retribution.
• Additional consular fees might be requested to obtain the visa by the Belgian embassy in the home country.

The amounts for the administrative costs .

More information on the retribution can also be found on this website.

Documents for the renewal of the single permit

Proof of affiliation with a Belgian health insurance fund

A proof of affiliation must be presented to renew your single permit. It can be obtained by contacting the health insurance fund, explaining the purpose of the document. (= provide a proof of affiliation to request a new single permit).

With Helan and CM this document can be downloaded directly from the website or app. HZIV or other health insurance funds must be e-mailed. Make sure to request it on time as there is a delay in delivering documents with some health insurance funds. Also verify if you obtained the document for the mandatory health insurance; and not for an other insurance in your package plan such as hospitalization or dental insurance. The document cannot be older than 6 months.

A copy of the current Belgian ID card

A copy of the current Belgian ID card – front and back side – must be provided.

A copy of the current passport

This must be uploaded if the passport was renewed prior the first application.

Documents in case of secondment to UGent

Proof of social security in the home country

An employee who is employed in another  need certain insurances during the stay in Ghent. In some countries, the employer must foresee these; in other cases it is the employee who needs to check to obtain the required certificates for insurance.

An agreement on social security between countries will cover the employee for several social security topics; including health and sickness during the stay abroad. The agreements can be agreed multilateral (between the countries of the European Union; including Belgium) or bilateral (between two countries).

The possible certificates are:

• an A1 certificate : for movement between the EU member states (all nationalities) or EU/EEA nationals, following out the European coordination treaty 883/2004
• a Certificate of Coverage: in case of bilateral social security agreement with Belgium is concluded for persons with the nationality of one of those countries. The list of countries that have concluded a bilateral social security agreement with Belgian can be found here.

The delivered certificate must be valid for the period of stay in Belgium. In case of renewing your single permit, a new A1 or COC might be required.

Letter or contract on the secondment signed by the local employer

When you are executing research or an international education project at UGent and require a Single Permit as NON-EEA national, an official letter from your local employer or institution is required to confirm your secondment. If a letter is not possible or not sufficient for your employer, the University of Ghent agrees to sign official contracts on the secondment. This contract has to be provided before the application of the single permit, and needs to be check by our legal department on the information that is mentioned.

Employment contract with the local employer

A copy of the local employment contract can be uploaded for the Single permit application and to proof that a regular income will be earned. The contract or appointment letter (=in case of a tenured position) must be translated in English, French, German or Dutch. The local applicable law, income and function must be described in the contract.

Proof of income: salary or scholarship payment

Sufficient income to live in Belgium: When an researcher on secondment has his own funds for research in Belgium, it is important for the Belgian authorities that a sufficient income is proven to maintain a sufficient standard to live in Belgium. The conditions on the income can be found here.

Travel and health insurance

A travel insurance is required to cover for a safe travel to Belgium. A health insurance covering all risks for the employee (and family) members must be provided for the application of the Single Permit. An All-in insurance can also bought through Ghent University, covering the travel and health insurance before and after the travel, but also civil liability and more.

When renewing the single permit: Payslip of payment by the local employer

To renew your single permit, an overview of sufficient income from the last 12 months must be presented. This can only be done by regular salary payments and salary payslip.