Reserving and renting

How to apply for a room

On this page, you will find information on the room reservation procedure of the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences (AUAS/HvA). After you have been admitted to a programme at the AUAS/HvA, you will receive an email with a link to the online application for student accommodation. You can expect this email mid-May when you plan to start your study at the AUAS/HvA in September and in the beginning of November when you will start in February  (If you have been admitted after May or November this email will follow as soon as possible).

AUAS/HvA housing fee and credit card

Students renting accommodation through the AUAS/HvA will be charged a fee. For one semester the AUAS/HvA fee is €265 - €315, for two semesters or a full year the AUAS/HvA fee is €450 - €525. This fee is non-refundable. This fee is required to cover the AUAS/HvA's expenses related to providing the housing service to international students. Applications can therefore only be submitted after paying the UvA fee by credit card. During the online application, you will automatically be informed about the payment procedure.

If you currently do not have a credit card,  it is necessary to acquire one in order to complete the payment (please note that the payment cannot be executed with a debit card). If you do not have a credit card, you may use the credit card of a relative or friend.  Please note that all AUAS/HvA fee payments will be made in US dollars corresponding to the Euro amount. Due to currency fluctuations, the amount might be slightly lower or higher.

We advise to submit your application as soon as possible. If you wait too long, we might not be able to offer you a room. We will do our utmost to provide all applicants with a room. Nonetheless, if the number of applications exceeds the number of rooms, your name and preference will be put on a waiting list. If we are not able to send you a room offer, we will refund the AUAS/HvA fee to you. It takes around three months to refund the fee back to your account. However, if you have received a room offer via the AUAS/HvA and decline it, the AUAS/HvA fee will not be refunded.

Room offer

After submitting your online housing application, your housing application will be sent to the housing corporation. You will receive a room offer from the housing corporation by email, once a room has been reserved for you. You can expect the room offer via email from either De Key or DUWO between 1 July  and 10 August when you are starting in September or between 1 December and 15 January when you are starting in February. Note that this important email could automatically be put in your spam/junk folder. You should confirm your acceptance of the room offer within 3 days of receiving it. If you do not respond within that time, your reservation will be cancelled. You will receive only one room offer and strict rules apply concerning cancellation.

Finalising your reservation

When accepting the room offer students will need to pay the following to the housing corporation: an administration fee of  €150 and a deposit which is one month’s rent for De Key and €150 for DUWO. Students renting a room with DUWO also have to pay the first month’s rent. Only after the housing corporation has received your first payment, your room reservation is confirmed. Payment details will be explained in the room offer. You will have to send a proof of payment of this bank transfer to the housing corporation.

AUAS/HvA fee, Administration costs and Deposit

To clarify the difference between these payments, please read the following information:

Why do I need to pay the AUAS/HvA fee?

As previously mentioned, Students renting accommodation through the AUAS/HvA will be charged a fee. This fee is required to cover the AUAS/HvA's expenses in providing the housing service to international students.

Why do I need to pay administration costs at the housing corporation De Key or DUWO?

Housing corporations De Key and DUWO require tenants to pay an administration fee when they make their first payment to confirm the room offer. De Key and DUWO provide short stay accommodation to international students. Renting out this type of accommodation requires a different service than is required for standard accommodation rented out to Dutch tenants. Short stay tenants rent accommodation for a relatively short period (average 8 months) therefore costs are much higher than for regular tenants who rent accommodation for a long period (average 10 year). The housing corporations also provide customized services that are tailored to the tenants’ needs. All communication and information is in English. The information and assistance provided by De Key and DUWO is very wide-ranging and covers the period both before/during and after the accommodation is rented out.

Why do I need to pay a deposit?

Tenants at the housing corporations De Key and DUWO are required to pay a deposit. This deposit is refunded at the end of your stay if you leave the room clean, tidy and without damages. Please read the information provided by the housing corporation regarding the amount charged for the deposit. 

Conditions for reserving and renting accommodation via the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences (AUAS/HvA)

Rental period

Please note that the rental periods for AUAS/HvA students are always fixed periods. In addition, we strongly advise you not to choose a one-semester period if your study programme has a duration of two semesters or more. If you choose only one semester, we cannot guarantee you an extension. If an extension is granted, you will have to pay the AUAS/HvA fee twice. It is not possible to get a reduction on rent payments for a late arrival or an early departure. It is not possible to end your contract before the end of a semester.
A limited amount of rooms is available beginning 1 August. If you choose this date and a room has been reserved for you, your contract will start on this date and you will have to pay the rent from this day forward.

Preferences

Although the housing corporations do their utmost to meet students' reservation preferences, they cannot guarantee that everyone's preferences will be met. It is not possible to apply for a specific location or to change rooms.

Mixed floors

Most international student rooms are situated in buildings or on floors with only international students. However, some are located on floors where the majority of tenants are Dutch. The benefits of living on a floor with Dutch students include the opportunity to make Dutch friends, to gain a first-hand introduction to Dutch student culture in Amsterdam and to improve your Dutch language skills.

Disabilities

If there are any special needs regarding your accommodation due to disabilities, please contact the international office at your AUAS/HvA school.

Staying longer than one year

The AUAS/HvA only provides accommodation for international students for a maximum period of one year. If you are planning on staying in Amsterdam for longer than a year, we strongly advise you to register at the Dutch student housing website www.studentenwoningweb.nl at the beginning of your stay. This website is operated jointly by the housing corporations De Key, Duwo and Ymere and it works on a waitinglist system. Register as soon as you arrive  so that you will have accumulated some waiting time by the time you need to look for housing for your second year. Registration costs €30. The website is in Dutch but provides English summaries of important information.
Registration at this website could provide you with a student room when the AUAS/HvA can no longer provide you with accommodation.