Conditions when applying for SU for a study programme outside the EU/EEA

You can fulfil the condition of ties with Denmark if you have resided in Denmark for at least two years within the past 10 years prior to applying for state education support (SU), or if you fulfil one of the supplementary conditions

If you are:

  • a Danish citizen
  • an EU or EEA citizen who is a worker or a self-employed person in Denmark or
  • a family member of and lives/has lived with an EU or EEA citizen who is a worker or a self-employed person in Denmark

and you wish to study in a country outside the EU or EEA, you may receive SU for a study programme abroad if you fulfil a number of conditions. This means that Danish citizenship alone is not sufficient for receiving SU for a study programme abroad. As a Danish citizen you have natural ties, but we will assess whether your ties are sufficient for you to be eligible for SU for a study programme abroad.


You can fulfil the condition of being eligible for SU in two ways:

  • you have resided in Denmark for a continuous period of at least two years prior to the time of applying for SU.
  • you have exercised your right to free movement within the EU/EEA and you fulfil the conditions of ties at the same time (see below).

If you have sufficient ties as an EU or EEA citizen who is a worker or a self-employed person in Denmark or a family member of and live/have lived with an EU or EEA citizen who is a worker or a self-employed person in Denmark, you must also be found to have equal status with Danish citizens.

Condition of ties

You will be found to have sufficient ties with Denmark if you fulfil one of the conditions below or several of them in combination:

  1. You have resided continuously in Denmark for at least two years within the past 10 years prior to the time of application.
  2. You are a family member of an EU/EEA citizen who has residence in another EU/EEA country than Denmark and, at the same time, has been a worker or a self-employed person in Denmark for at least five years within the last seven years prior to the time of application and still is or has maintained status as a migrant worker or a self-employed person in Denmark according to EU law.
  3. You have attended school in Denmark for a considerable period of time.
  4. You have family members in Denmark other than the family members who support you, and you have had a close relationship with them for a considerable period of time up to the time of application.
  5. You have had considerable financial ties with Denmark for a considerable period of time.
  6. You have had work in Denmark of a certain scale and for a considerable period of time.
  7. You have significant ties with Denmark based on at least one of the conditions in items 3-6 above but without fulfilling the condition and you have considerable knowledge of Danish.

In order to fulfil condition 7 above, you must be close to fulfilling at least one of the conditions in items 3-6. Having considerable knowledge of Danish will not alone fulfil this condition.

You must be able to document the ties mentioned in items 1-7.

You must document your ties

When you apply for SU for a study programme abroad based on the condition of ties, it is important that you enclose documentation of your ties. Stating in your application that you have attended school in Denmark for nine years is not sufficient. You must document this e.g. by means of your school-leaving certificate or a written statement from the school which includes the period of time during which you were a pupil there.