Studying in Belgium from Nigeria.

What are the steps to study in Belgium from Nigeria?

1. 1Secure an admission in a recognised institution of the Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles (university, haute école or higher arts school): for universities, the form opens in mid-February and must be lodged by 31 March at the latest.
2. 2Apply for the equivalence of the WASSCE or the SSCE with the Equivalence Service of the Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles, between mid-November and 15 July, enclosing proof of access to higher education in Nigeria (EUR 150).
3. 3Have the diplomas and the transcripts authenticated by the Federal Ministry of Education, then have all the documents legalised by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and finally by the Belgian Embassy in Abuja.
4. 4Lodge the long-stay visa application (type D, study purpose) on VisaOnWeb, then file it in person at TLScontact, in Abuja or in Lagos, with the proof of means of subsistence and the EUR 251 administrative fee already paid.
5. 5Plan the first-year budget: a registration fee of EUR 1,194 at the full rate, without the supplementary fee of EUR 4,175 from which Nigeria is exempt at university.

How do you get a WASSCE or an SSCE recognised in French-speaking Belgium?

The Nigerian secondary school leaving qualification is the WASSCE, issued by the West African Examinations Council, or the SSCE of the National Examinations Council. To enter a first year of higher education in French-speaking Belgium, it must be the subject of an equivalence issued by the Equivalence Service of the Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles. The Service publishes no condition specific to the WASSCE or the SSCE: no number of subjects, no minimum grades, no list of fields opened. Its sheet applicable to Nigeria does state, however, that for a school record obtained outside the European Union, the decision is likely to carry restrictions, that is, an equivalence that does not open every field of study, and it recommends enclosing any document proving that the applicant had access to higher education in Nigeria. These restrictions are lifted by passing the maturity examination of the DAES, the secondary school examination board of the Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles.

The file includes the diploma and the transcript as a certified true copy that has been legalised, proof of access to higher education, a copy of the identity document, a motivation letter written in French by the applicant themselves and the original proof of payment. Pay attention to the certifying authority: the Service accepts a true copy made by an officer of the municipal administration and refuses those made by the police, by the school, by a notary or by the Belgian embassy. As Nigeria appears on the list of countries eligible for official development assistance, the fees are EUR 150 instead of EUR 400, and are non-refundable. Filing opens around mid-November and closes on 15 July (from 15 November 2025 to 15 July 2026 for the 2026 start of the year; the 2027-2028 dates are to be confirmed on equivalences.cfwb.be), for an announced processing time of 4 to 12 weeks.

On the language side, a Nigerian applicant arrives with a qualification obtained in English. No decree imposes a level of French to enter a bachelor's programme, apart from teacher training courses, but each university may ask for proof, often at B2 level, when the qualification was not obtained in French: that is the case here, and this proof is prepared well in advance. At master's level, programmes taught in English do exist in Belgian institutions, and it is at that level that the offer is widest; the language of instruction is checked programme by programme, a language test then being required in the language of the course.

Where do you lodge your student visa application in Nigeria?

The Belgian Embassy in Abuja is the competent post, but it does not receive applications: all visa applications, short stay and long stay alike, go exclusively through TLScontact. There are two centres, one in Abuja (Central Business District) and the other in Lagos (Victoria Island). The application is first completed online on VisaOnWeb, printed and signed, then filed by appointment: the applicant must attend in person, their fingerprints are taken and they answer a questionnaire designed to check the consistency of their academic background and of their study project in Belgium. Tracking is done online and the passport is collected in person, by a representative holding a power of attorney, or by post.

The fees announced by TLScontact for a long-stay visa are EUR 250 for the visa (the federal amount in force since 1 July 2026), payable by card at the centre, to which are added EUR 36.30 in service fees, that is NGN 60,440, paid online. On top of that comes the Immigration Office administrative fee, to be transferred before filing. The embassy warns that processing a long-stay visa may take several months: the legal decision deadline is 90 days from the acknowledgement of receipt of a complete file, which means filing early and filing complete.

How do you legalise Nigerian documents for Belgium?

Nigeria is not party to the Hague Apostille Convention: no apostille is possible, the classic legalisation applies. The Belgian Embassy in Abuja describes the chain: diplomas and transcripts are first authenticated by the Federal Ministry of Education, then all the documents to be legalised, originals or certified true copies, are authenticated by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and finally legalised by the embassy. The embassy accepts the digital authentication of the Ministry of Education, the barcode placed on the first page, but requires the signature of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to appear on the originals. This last step is taken by appointment only, booked through the e-Appointment online service, on Wednesdays and Thursdays from 9 am to 11.45 am, at the federal rate of NGN 41,625 per document, that is EUR 25 since 1 August 2026. Payment is made by transfer after filing, processing takes at least seven working days and the documents are collected on a Wednesday or a Thursday before 3 pm. The legalisation receipt is then attached to the originals when the visa application is filed.

How much do studies in Belgium cost for a Nigerian student?

The registration fee at the universities of the Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles is EUR 1,194 at the full rate for 2026-2027 (a four-tier scale set by the decree of 5 June 2026, Moniteur belge of 24 June 2026: EUR 1,194, EUR 835, EUR 374 and EUR 0, the reduced rates being reserved for students who are residents or whose family works in Belgium). Students from outside the European Union who are not treated as residents must in principle add a supplementary fee of EUR 4,175 per year. Nigeria appears in annex 2 of ARES circular 2026-001 of 12 February 2026, the annex listing countries at the bottom of the human development index: the Nigerian student is exempt from it, while remaining liable for the registration fee, EUR 1,194 at the full rate. Watch the scope of this exemption: the circular applies only to universities. In a haute école or a higher arts school, the fee of EUR 4,175 remains due, which multiplies the budget by five depending on the type of institution.

On top of this enrolment budget come the official costs of the journey: EUR 200 in admission application fees (non-refundable, deducted from the registration fee by some universities but not by all), EUR 150 for the equivalence, EUR 250 for the visa and EUR 36.30 in service fees, EUR 251 in administrative fees, EUR 25 per legalised document, without counting the proof of means of subsistence. As for scholarships, the MASTER IN programme of Wallonie-Bruxelles International does not list Nigeria among its priority countries: funding is therefore built on family resources or on Nigerian schemes. The Nigerian community remains small in the universities of the Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles: 27 enrolled students according to the latest breakdown published by the Council of Rectors (CRef, 2021-2022), which makes it all the more useful to check the language of instruction of each programme before applying.

Why get support for this journey?

As with the many international students we support, the Nigerian applicant lodges their own admission application, equivalence and visa application, with their own contact details: that is what universities and the embassy alike expect. Our work takes place before and around that: turning an English-language background into a file that a French-speaking service can read, aligning the calendar on the Abuja legalisation rather than on the start of the academic year, and checking every document before it goes out.

• Identification of the programmes genuinely accessible with a WASSCE or an SSCE, in French as well as in English, and building of the admission application before 31 March
• Equivalence file prepared document by document, with the proof of access to Nigerian higher education, then followed through to the decision and to the possible lifting of restrictions
• Legalisation sequence planned for a single useful visit in Abuja, on the Wednesday and Thursday slots
• Full check of the visa file before the TLScontact appointment: means of subsistence, administrative fee, medical certificate, criminal record extract, insurance, consistency of the study project
• A single point of contact, in English and in French, from the first exchange until arrival in Belgium