New students

How do I apply for housing?

By paying the € 500 housing fee to Student and Educational Affairs. For further details please read through the Application procedure. If you are a short-stay guest working or studying at Leiden University for two months or less and wish to be placed on the waiting list for housing, you need not pay the € 500 housing deposit. Instead you should pay the waiting list fee of € 100. After you have accepted an offer of accommodation sent to you by the Housing Office you will be requested to pay the first month's rent and contract costs. You can deduct the € 100 from this payment. This rule does not apply to semester students and short-stay guests who will stay longer than two months.

Rent prices: what to expect at which price range?

  • € 300-350 per month: a shared room with shared facilities, outside the city centre

  • € 350-450 per month: a single room with shared facilities, outside the city centre

  • € 450-600 per month: a single room with shared facilities, inside the city centre

  • € 560 and up per month: a single apartment with your own facilities, in the city centre
     

This is an indication. It is possible that you will be offered something that doesn’t quite fit these guidelines.

When is the deadline for paying the housing deposit to Student and Educational Affairs (Admissions Office)?

For the Fall semester, your housing deposit has to be paid to the Admissions Office before the 1st of June.

For the Spring semester, your housing deposit has to be paid to the Admissions Office before the 15th of November.

How many offers do I get? What happens if I decline a housing offer?

With respect to your preferences we make you one offer. If this is declined due to valid reasons we can consider making you another offer. A second offer will be made after matching the rest of the waitinglist. This might result in accommodation that does not answer to your preferences. This second offer can not be declined without losing your place on the waitinglist and receiving a fine that is settled with the housing deposit.

Can I request another start date for my contract such as the 1st of September or the 1st of February?

You can request a different start date of your contract. However, there is only a very limited amount of rooms and apartments that will be available before or after the regular start date of the 16th of January/16th of August. This means that either your preferences might be difficult to live up to. Your price range/location preference might not be compatible with your request for an alternative startdate or the situation could arise that there simply are no rooms/apartments available with an alternative start date.

What does the contract fee of € 130 consist of?

The contract costs consist of:
 

  • cleaning costs to have your apartment cleaned and made ready for the next tenant at the end of your lease
  • administration costs
  • bank transfer costs for your rental payments.

If I apply for housing as an international student at Leiden University, is it possible to rent a double room or double apartment with my partner, who is not a student at Leiden University?

Please contact us at housing@leidenuniv.nl to discuss the possibilities.

 
Last Modified: 25-02-2013