Lazio DiSCo Scholarship for Tunisian Students in Rome

Can a Tunisian student in Rome get a scholarship that pays for most of the year?

Yes. The Lazio DiSCo scholarship (borsa di studio) is open to international students, with a separate ranking for non-EU students. It covers universities in Rome and across Lazio (Cassino, Viterbo, Latina, Frosinone). An off-site student receives EUR 6,571.11 a year in cash, up to EUR 7,556.78 for the lowest family incomes, plus two free meals a day (2026/27 call), and can also ask for a place in a DiSCo residence.

This is part 4 of our study in Italy guide for Tunisian students. The 2026/27 call closed on 22 July 2026, so everything below prepares you for 2027/28. Dates marked “expected” come from the 2026/27 calendar and must be confirmed in the new call.

1. What does the DiSCo scholarship in Rome give you?

The DiSCo Lazio scholarship gives an off-site (fuori sede) student EUR 6,571.11 a year in cash, up to EUR 7,556.78 for the lowest family incomes, plus two free meals a day (2026/27 call). If you live abroad and at least half of your family lives abroad, DiSCo Lazio treats you as fuori sede automatically, without a rental contract (except for online courses). In the 2026/27 call, a fuori sede student gets:

• EUR 6,571.11 a year, rising to EUR 7,556.78 (115%) if your ISEE is up to EUR 14,169.94, and falling gradually to EUR 3,285.60 if it is EUR 18,893.25 or more.
• Two free meals a day in DiSCo canteens (valued at EUR 600).
• +20% for women enrolled in STEM courses.
• The option of a place in a DiSCo residence, requested in the same application. In Rome it cost about EUR 200-298 a month in 2026/27, deducted from the scholarship (EUR 700 from the first instalment). See DiSCo residences.

Tuition is a separate question that depends on your university. At Tor Vergata the flat fee for foreign students still applies to DiSCo winners, and at Sapienza students who pay the flat fee get no refund. Check with your university's student office.

2. Who is eligible for the DiSCo scholarship in Rome and Lazio?

A Tunisian student is eligible for the DiSCo Lazio scholarship when enrolled at a university in Lazio, without a degree of the same level, and within the family income and asset limits. In the 2026/27 call you had to meet all of these conditions:

• Be enrolled, by about 10 February, at a university in Lazio in a Bachelor, Master, single-cycle or PhD course (PhD only without another grant).
• Not already hold a degree of the same level, including one obtained abroad.
• Stay within the economic limits: ISEEUP up to EUR 28,339.88 and ISPEUP up to EUR 61,608.48 (2026/27 values, based on 2024 income and assets at 31 December 2024).

DiSCo Lazio ranks first-year students on economic data only: no grades, no merit test. Non-EU students have their own ranking, ordered from the lowest ISEEUP. Tunisia is not on the list of “particularly poor countries”, so your family's real figures are what count.

3. When do you apply for the DiSCo scholarship for 2027/28?

The DiSCo Lazio application for 2027/28 is expected to open around 10 June 2027 and close on 22 July 2027 at noon, Italian time, based on the 2026/27 calendar. The other DiSCo steps follow this expected order:

The DiSCo Lazio dates for 2025/26 and 2026/27 were identical, but only the 2027/28 call is binding.

4. How do you register and apply without SPID?

You apply for the DiSCo Lazio scholarship without SPID (the Italian digital identity) by creating DiSCo credentials with your passport, then submitting the online application on the DiSCo scholarship portal:

Step 1: create your account

Open the DiSCo registration page↗ (opens in a new tab) and fill in your personal data, your residence abroad, an email address and a phone number. Upload your passport as a PDF and choose a username and password.

Step 2: log in and fill in the application

Log in on the scholarship portal↗ (opens in a new tab) with your DiSCo credentials. When the call opens, fill in the application, add the housing request if you want a residence place, and submit before the deadline.

Step 3: identity check later

DiSCo Lazio checks your identity in person at the partner CAF when you sign the ISEEUP in Rome. You apply for the scholarship before enrolling, then must be enrolled by about 10 February. To choose a course, see how to apply to a university in Rome.

5. Which family documents do you need from Tunisia?

DiSCo Lazio needs official Tunisian documents on your family's composition, income, real estate, financial assets and rent, translated into Italian and apostilled. Collecting them is the slow part, so start while you wait for your acceptance letter (January to May). DiSCo uses these family documents to calculate your ISEEUP. The call asks for:

1. Family composition: name, surname and date of birth of each member.
2. Gross income of each member for year N-2 (2025 for the 2027/28 call). If a member had no income, a document must say so explicitly.
3. Real estate owned at 31 December, with the surface area in square metres.
4. Financial assets (bank accounts, savings) at 31 December, or a document stating there are none.
5. Rent paid for the family home, if the family rents.

Tunisian documents issued by the competent offices are enough. Have each one translated into Italian by a translator on the Italian Embassy's list↗ (opens in a new tab) or the Ministry of Justice list↗ (opens in a new tab), with the apostille on both the original and the translation. The full chain is explained in how to translate and apostille your Tunisian documents for Italy.

6. How do you get your ISEEUP at a partner CAF?

You get your ISEEUP by signing it at a DiSCo Lazio partner CAF after you arrive in Rome; the service is free and you bring your passport and your translated, apostilled family documents. The ISEEUP (also called ISEE parificato) is the economic indicator for students with income and assets abroad:

• Book an appointment at a CAF on the list of DiSCo partner CAFs↗ (opens in a new tab). The service is free.
• Bring your passport and your translated, apostilled family documents. The CAF also does the identity check.
• Sign the ISEEUP by about 10 December (expected for 2027; check the call).

An ISEEUP made at a CAF that is not a DiSCo partner means exclusion. Corrections made later are paid by you, so check your documents before the appointment. For the other first steps in Rome, see how to request your residence permit for study in Rome.

7. When is the DiSCo scholarship paid?

DiSCo Lazio pays a first-year Bachelor's student 20% of the scholarship by 10 November and 30% by 27 December, then the remaining 50% from October of the next year once 20 credits are earned (2026/27 call). Other students follow these instalments:

In my experience, DiSCo Lazio payments can arrive a few weeks late, but rarely more than a month late. If your ISEEUP is signed correctly after you arrive, the first payments follow. To receive the DiSCo payments you need an IBAN (Italian or SEPA account), added within 6 months of the award, and a PEC (certified email) or an elected domicile. See how to open a bank account in Italy as a student.

For the Italy student visa, a DiSCo grant counts as proof of financial means only once it is awarded, so plan your blocked account for the student visa without counting on the DiSCo scholarship.

8. How many credits do you need to keep the DiSCo scholarship?

First-year Bachelor's, single-cycle and Master's students must earn 20 credits by 10 August to keep the DiSCo Lazio scholarship (2026/27 call; PhD students are confirmed when admitted to the second year). If you reach the 20 credits only by 30 November, DiSCo Lazio cuts the scholarship by 50%. If you miss that too, the scholarship is revoked and you must pay back what you received. Later years have their own credit requirements in the call.