Application procedure exchange students

AUAS housing prioritises exchange students. However, not all exchange students that apply are guaranteed a room because of a shortage of housing in Amsterdam. Follow the steps below to see what the AUAS application process is.

This page is intended for exchange students. Are you an international Bachelor or Master student? Please see the housing applications procedure for Bachelor and Master students. You may also like to visit the page  finding housing on your own.

How to apply

1. Check your email for an invitation
2. Fill in the application form
3. Lottery
4. Pay the AUAS housing fee
5. Receive housing offer
6. Confirm your room

Step 1: Check your email for an invitation
 

A few days before 27 May 2025, you will receive an invitation email from myinfo@hva.nl with a link to start your housing application. This email will be sent to your AUAS email address, please check your spam folder. We recommend to add myinfo@hva.nl to your 'safe senders' list of your email account and to check your AUAS email even if you have set up a forwarding rule to your private email. Spring 2026 semester: Invitations will be sent out in the last week of October 2025.

You need to activate your AUAS-ID(opens in new window) before you can access the housing application form. 
Your AUAS-ID is a 5 to 7 letter code, sometimes followed by a number (please note that your AUAS-ID is not your student number). You will receive your AUAS-ID latest at the end of May in a separate email, together with your student number and personal AUAS email address, on the email address you provided in your exchange application. Please contact your international office if you have not received your AUAS-ID before 27 May 2025 (Spring 2026 semester: end of October).

Step 2: Fill in the application form
 

Click the link in the invitation email to take you to the online application form. The link will not work before the stated time and date. The application period is mentioned above ('When to apply'). If you apply during this time frame, the timing of your application does not affect its success in the lottery draw. Exchange students will receive a housing invitation for 1 or 2 semesters, depending on their exchange application.

At busy times, you may not be able to access the form directly, but will receive a queue number. This queue number is for accessing the form only and is not related to being successful or not in the housing lottery.

In the application form you will be asked to choose a monthly budget category. Base your choice on what you can afford, taking into account other housing costs and the cost of living in Amsterdam. Requesting a specific housing provider, location or building is not possible. 

Housing for students with a medical condition
If you have any special needs regarding your accommodation due to a disability, medical condition or chronic health condition, please contact us as soon as possible to discuss your housing options and to request a form which needs to be filled in by you and your treating medical professional. The deadline to submit your form to AUAS Housing for the Fall 2025 semester is 15 May 2025 the latest. The deadline for the Spring 2026 semester will be mid October 2025. Check our locations and room types page for details. If you do not contact AUAS Housing well in advance, it will be unfortunately difficult to meet your housing needs.

If you have already arrived in Amsterdam and decide during your stay to extend for another semester, we cannot extend any housing contracts or offer a new housing contract for another semester. In that case, you will need to find housing on your own.

Step 3: Lottery

Because we get more applications than we have places, we use a lottery draw. After submitting your housing application, you will participate in the lottery. After the draw, you will receive a random position on the waiting list. Unfortunately, we cannot provide you with your exact position on the waiting list. We will inform you about your chances of receiving an offer in the third week of June 2025 (Spring 2026 semester: end of November). 

If you have been selected for a room, you will proceed to step 4. If you were not selected for a room offer, we strongly advise you to start looking for housing on your own immediately.

Step 4: Pay the AUAS housing fee

If your lottery result is positive, you will be asked a few days later to pay the AUAS housing fee. After receiving this email with payment request, you will have 4 days to complete the payment via credit card or PayPal. Failing to complete this payment in time will result in the cancellation of your housing application. We therefore strongly recommend to check your student email and spam folder the upcoming days. Follow the instructions for paying the AUAS housing fee. You can pay in euros by credit card (Eurocard/Mastercard or Visa), PayPal or iDeal. Other payment methods are unfortunately not possible. Please note that the fee is non-refundable.

Step 5: Receive housing offer

A few days up to a few weeks after your payment of the AUAS housing fee, we will inform you by email (from myinfo@hva.nl) about a room offer.  You will receive an email on your AUAS-email address from one of our housing providers with instructions on how to book your room. Again, keep an eye on your spam folder as we work with different housing providers(opens in new window).

You must book your room as quickly as possible, within a given time frame of a few days. If you miss your offer, or are unhappy with it, you will not receive a second one. You will also lose your AUAS housing fee if you fail to respond to your offer in time. You will then need to find your own accommodation.

Exchange students staying until summer 2026:
All rental contracts are for the entire semester, until mid-August. It is not possible to shorten this contract. Room offers for some buildings will have an end date in June or July, not mid-August. Unfortunately it depends on the availability of rooms which specific end date you will be offered. If you get a room offer with an earlier end date in June or July, we recommend that you find a hostel for the remaining days of the semester. We understand that this is far from ideal, but at least you have secured (affordable) housing for almost the entire semester on a challenging housing market in Amsterdam.

Step 6: Confirm you room

Your room reservation is confirmed once you make your first payment to the housing provider. Your housing provider will instruct you on how to pay, along with providing you with your tenancy agreement and other steps.

Be prepared: This initial payment will include administration costs, the first month's rent, and often a deposit. It may therefore be a significant sum.

The first rental payment needs to be made by credit card (e.g. Visa or Eurocard/Mastercard). Other payment methods, including American Express, are not possible. After the first payment, you can pay your monthly rent by bank transfer. Your housing provider will provide you with details on how to do that.

Please note that:

• Room reservations are final. You cannot change rooms after you have made the reservation.
• If you cancel a reserved room we will assume you are no longer interested in AUAS student housing. You will not be offered another room and the AUAS housing fee will unfortunately not be refunded. Check our cancellation policy on this page.