Study in Poland from Iran
A practical, honest guide for Iranian students — visas, refusal rates, flights, costs and what life is really like. Backed by sources, not marketing.
Middle East / West Asia
2022/23 · GUS/NAWA
type D long-stay
2024 · proxy, see note
€220–600 (one-way est.)
Visas & entry
National long-stay (type D) study visa
- Processing time
- 2–4 weeks (15 days from fee payment; interview possible)
- Where to apply
- Embassy of Poland in Tehran (the only Polish mission in Iran)
- Proof of funds
- ≈ €2,500+ liquid for a 365-day visa plus tuition/rent; visa fee €135
Key documents
- acceptance letter
- proof of funds (bank statements)
- health insurance (≥ €30,000)
- accommodation
Source: gov.pl
Visa refusal — the honest picture
26% Visa refusal rate (2024)
Iran's overall Schengen short-stay refusal rate ~26% in 2024 (down from ~30.3% in 2023) — PROXY, not Poland-specific
Important: Iranian applicants face above-average scrutiny EU-wide; sanctions/banking issues complicate proof of funds and fee payment.
Source: home-affairs.ec.europa.eu
Getting there
Tehran (THR/IKA) → Warsaw (WAW)
- Typical price
- €220–600 (one-way est.)
- Flight time
- 8.5 (1 stop) h
- Airlines
- Turkish, Qatar, Pegasus, Air Arabia
No reliable nonstop; via Istanbul/Doha. Sanctions and banking restrictions can complicate booking/payment.
Prices vary — estimate from kiwi.com
What it's really like
The Iranian community is small and poorly documented — no large established diaspora, presence largely individual (students, professionals). Experience is shaped by Poland's broader coolness toward Middle-Eastern migrants, with research documenting a sharp gap between the welcome for Ukrainians and the treatment of Middle-Eastern/Muslim arrivals. Individual Iranians describe building visibility through activism and culture while navigating othering, bureaucracy and sanctions-related friction.
Community: ~392 Iranian students; no sizeable legacy diaspora — presence is dispersed and individual, mostly in major university cities.
Tips from students & forums
-
Plan proof-of-funds and the €135 fee around banking/sanctions constraints early — moving and showing money is the practical bottleneck for Iranian applicants.
gov.pl -
Be ready for a consular interview — for Iran the Tehran consul may invite applicants, unlike many other posts.
gov.pl -
Connect with Iranian-in-Poland social channels before arrival; the community is small and dispersed, so online networks substitute for a physical hub.
salamlab.pl
Good to know
- Tehran hosts the only Polish diplomatic mission in Iran; type-D decisions issue within 15 days of fee payment.
- Iran's Schengen-wide short-stay refusal rate fell to ~26% in 2024 from ~30.3% in 2023.
Frequently asked questions
Do Iranian students need a visa to study in Poland?
Iranian citizens need a Polish national long-stay (type D) study visa for programmes over 90 days. Typical processing: 2–4 weeks (15 days from fee payment; interview possible). Embassy of Poland in Tehran (the only Polish mission in Iran)
How many Iranian students are in Poland?
About 392 students from Iran were enrolled in Poland (2022/23, GUS/NAWA data).
How much does it cost to live in Poland as a student?
Roughly €630–1,210 a month for a student living alone in a one-bedroom flat, from Lodz (the cheapest of the 8 cities we track) to Warsaw (the most expensive); a university dormitory or shared flat usually brings that down to about €400–700. Estimate from Numbeo market data accessed 9 July 2026 — for a visa, rely on the sum the authorities specify.
English-taught programmes for Iranian students
All 951 degrees in the catalogue are open to Iranian applicants — these picks match what students from Iran most often look for. Tuition shown per year where the university publishes it.
Medicine & health programmes
Medical degrees taught fully in English — a popular route for Iranian students.
No English test listed
Programmes whose admissions pages named no English test when we captured them. That is not a university statement that a certificate is unnecessary — confirm the current rule before you apply.
Affordable programmes
The lowest rates published for English-taught studies in the catalogue. Each figure is a university-wide rate its programmes inherit, not this programme's own fee.
Universities behind these picks
Each profile has step-by-step application instructions, admissions contacts and every English-taught programme the university offers.
Where these programmes are taught
Browse the full catalogue by field of study, city, university or use the programme finder.
Ready to find your programme?
Compare Iranian-friendly, English-taught Bachelor's and Master's across Polish universities.
Last reviewed: 2026-08-13. Visa-refusal figures are Schengen short-stay proxies unless stated; Poland does not publish national (type D) study-visa refusal rates per country. Flight prices and monthly budgets are estimates from aggregators and study.gov.pl and change over time. Entries ranked 31+ are added for search coverage of countries Poland does not publish separate student counts for; their studentsInPoland.count is null by design unless a published figure exists (the Perspektywy/GUS "Studenci zagraniczni w Polsce 2023" report covers some).