How much does studying in Rome cost for a Tunisian student? The 2026/27 first-year budget

How much money do you need for your first year as a Tunisian student in Rome?

Short answer: about EUR 1,626.46 (about 5,476 TND) in fixed official costs for the first year at Sapienza in 2026/27, then rent on top. With a private single room, the year comes to EUR 7,626.46 – EUR 10,026.46 before food and personal spending.

This page adds up every fee our guides quote, from the visa in Tunis to the first year of university, using one example: a Bachelor's or Master's student at Sapienza in the lowest fee band, the flat fee for students from Tunisia. The blocked amount for the visa (EUR 10,179.85) is not in the total: it is your own money, released to you every month to live on.

1. How much does the first year in Rome cost for a Tunisian student?

The first year in Rome costs a Tunisian student about EUR 1,626.46 in fixed official fees, plus EUR 6,000 – EUR 8,400 for 12 months in a private room. Each line below is detailed in the next sections.

2. What do you pay in Tunisia before you leave?

Before you leave Tunisia, you pay the university application and the study visa: EUR 80, plus the 68.300 TND Almaviva service fee. The visa is paid in cash in dinars at the visa centre in Tunis, so the dinar amount follows the exchange rate.

Your documents add costs that have no fixed price: a Tunisian notary charges 10 or 20 TND per apostille, and sworn translators set their own rates. The Dichiarazione di Valore is free for study, while a CIMEA statement costs EUR 300 when your university asks for it. See who can translate your Tunisian documents into Italian and whether you need a DOV or a CIMEA statement.

3. What do you pay in your first weeks in Rome?

In your first weeks in Rome, the residence permit kit and a first Italian card cost EUR 121.46. You apply for the permesso di soggiorno at a post office within 8 working days of arrival: the revenue stamp is bought at a tobacconist, and the rest is paid at the post office.

The steps are in the arrival guide for students in Rome.

4. How much are university fees in the first year?

At Sapienza, the first year costs EUR 456 for a student from Tunisia in the lowest band: the flat fee, the Lazio regional tax and a revenue stamp. Private universities cost far more: LUMSA's yearly tuition is EUR 4,390, regional tax included.

Compare the five Rome universities in how to apply to university in Rome.

5. How much does a student pay for rent in Rome?

Rent is the largest cost: a standard private single room near a Rome university costs EUR 500 – EUR 700 a month in 2026, against EUR 200 – EUR 298 for a DiSCo residence place, which only DiSCo scholarship winners get.

A private lease must also be registered with the Agenzia delle Entrate (at least EUR 67, often split with the landlord). See student housing in Rome for the platforms and the scam checks.

6. Which yearly costs come on top: health, transport and bank?

Health, transport and a bank card add EUR 969 a year: EUR 700 for voluntary registration with the national health service, the ATAC annual pass and the Postepay yearly fee.

The EUR 700 health line is the upper case: private health insurance valid in Italy for the whole permit is accepted instead, and in my experience a policy taken in Tunisia through the bank that holds your study file replaced the SSN registration. SSN registration covers one calendar year, to 31 December: if you arrive in the autumn and stay with the SSN, a second payment is due for the new year. See the arrival guide.

7. Is the blocked amount for the visa a cost?

No: the EUR 10,179.85 blocked for the 2026/27 study visa is your own money. A Tunisian bank blocks it for a year and releases it at EUR 783.06 a month for 13 months, which is the Italian Embassy's own estimate of what a student needs to live on.

Food and personal spending are not in this budget because there is no official figure for them. The monthly release of the blocked amount is the benchmark to plan with. See how the blocked account works with a Tunisian bank.

8. How much money can you send from Tunisia?

Under Central Bank of Tunisia circular 2025-10, a student's study file allows a one-off installation allowance of 6,000 TND and up to 4,000 TND a month for living costs, through one Tunisian bank per academic year.

The three steps are in how your money reaches you in Italy.

9. How much of this can the DiSCo scholarship cover?

A DiSCo Lazio scholarship pays an out-of-town student EUR 6,571.11 a year in 2026/27, and up to EUR 7,556.78 for the lowest incomes, plus meals. That covers a large part of the first-year budget. A DiSCo residence place is then deducted from it.

Eligibility and the documents are in the Lazio DiSCo scholarship for Tunisian students.