Procedures for Granting Scholarships to Foreigners

Issued pursuant to
Section 83.¹ of the Law on Institutions of Higher Education

I. General Provisions

1. This Regulation prescribes the procedures by which a scholarship shall be granted to a foreigner (hereinafter - the scholarship) and administered, and also the criteria on the basis of which a foreigner may apply for the scholarship.

2. A foreigner may apply for the scholarship in accordance with the procedures laid down in this Regulation, if an international agreement has been entered into, within the scope of which granting of scholarships to the inhabitants of the relevant country for studies in institutions of higher education and colleges of Latvia (hereinafter - the institution of higher education) is provided, or if the foreigner is an inhabitant of such country that grants its own national scholarships to Latvian students. The Ministry of Education and Science (hereinafter - the Ministry) shall prepare and approve the list of the aforementioned countries and shall send it in writing to the State Education Development Agency (hereinafter - the Agency) each year by 1 November.

[11 February 2014; 6 December 2016 / Amendment to Paragraph shall come into force on 1 January 2017. See Paragraph 2 of Amendments]

II. Conditions for Granting the Scholarship

3. A foreigner may apply for the receipt of the scholarship for the study level specified in the international agreement. If the international agreement does not indicate the study level or if the foreigner is an inhabitant of such country that grants its own national scholarships to Latvian students, the foreigner may apply for the first level vocational higher education studies, the second level vocational higher education studies, bachelor's degree studies, master's degree studies or doctoral studies. A foreigner, who has completed at least one full academic year until the moment of the submission of documents for receiving the scholarship, may apply the for first level vocational higher education studies or bachelor's degree studies.

[11 February 2014]

4. The scholarship shall be granted for studies in the higher education programmes that are implemented in the official language of the country or another official language of the European Union.

5. Within the framework of one selection procedure, the scholarship shall be granted for not longer than one academic year and not more than for two consecutive terms. The scholarship for two academic years may be granted for studies in the master's degree programme of Latvian and Baltic philology, literature and culture or Latvian history. An agreement on granting the scholarship for one academic year shall be entered into with a student for a period of two academic years, while laying down that the scholarship shall also be granted in the second academic year, if the student will have successfully fulfilled his or her academic commitments.

[11 February 2014]

6. The Ministry shall, each year by 1 November, determine the amount of the scholarship for the next academic year - in the amount of at least EUR 498.01 per month for the first level vocational higher education studies, the second level vocational higher education studies, bachelor's degree studies and master's degree studies, and at least EUR 668.75 per month for doctoral studies.

[11 February 2014; 6 December 2016 / Amendment to Paragraph shall come into force on 1 January 2017. See Paragraph 2 of Amendments]

7. In accordance with the study plan the scholarship shall be granted to:

7.1. a student of first level vocational higher educational programme, second level vocational higher educational programme, bachelor's degree study programme or master's degree study programme - up to 10 months per year;

7.2. a doctoral candidate - up to 11 months per year;

7.3. a student of a master's degree study programme of Latvian and Baltic philology, literature and culture or Latvian history - up to two academic years by entering into an agreement for a period of two academic years on granting the scholarship for one academic year , while laying down that the scholarship shall also be granted in the second academic year, if the student will have successfully fulfilled his or her academic commitments.

[11 February 2014]

8. The scholarship shall not be granted for such month when the recipient of the scholarship studies at the institution of higher education for less than 15 calendar days.

III. Submission of Documents for Receiving the Scholarship

9. The Agency shall administer scholarships.

10. Every year by 31 January the Agency shall place on the website www.viaa.gov.lv and the Ministry shall place on the website www.izm.gov.lv the following information (in Latvian and English) regarding scholarships for the next academic year:

10.1. the list of the countries, inhabitants of which may apply for the scholarship;

10.2. the list of the documents to be submitted;

10.3. financial conditions;

10.4. information on the procedures for the submission of an application for the scholarship (hereinafter - the application), evaluation of the application and taking the decision on the granting of the scholarship;

10.5. the indication that the application may be submitted in the period between 1 February and 1 April.

[11 February 2014; 6 December 2016]

11. The Agency shall send the information referred to in Paragraph 10 of this Regulation to authorities of such countries which are responsible for the administration of foreign scholarships (hereinafter - the foreign authorities), inhabitants of which may apply for receiving the scholarship in accordance with to Paragraph 2 of this Regulation. The information shall be sent in the form of a letter of invitation. The Agency shall send copies of the letters of invitation to the diplomatic missions of the relevant foreign countries in Latvia and to the diplomatic missions of Latvia in the relevant foreign countries.

[6 December 2016]

12. By using the means of electronic identification of a person (created username with password), a foreigner shall electronically submit in the electronic system for submitting applications for scholarships (hereinafter - the system), the link whereof is published on the website of the Agency www.viaa.gov.lv, a completed online application form (Annex 1), appending the following documents thereto:

12.1. the curriculum vitae (CV);

12.2. the motivation letter (where also activities outside studies in Latvia or in another country related to the chosen field of studies shall be indicated, e.g., training at a professional organisation, participation in scientific conferences, international projects);

12.3. copies of secondary education diploma and annex thereto or higher education diploma and annex thereto, or a transcript of records (if studies are not completed yet);

12.4. copies of the recommendation letters of two members of the academic staff (signed in the period of the past six months from the day the application is submitted in the system);

12.5. a copy of the letter from the relevant institution of higher education of Latvia attesting to the possibility of the foreigner to study in the selected study programme and the fact that the relevant study programme is implemented in the official language of the country or in other official language of the European Union;

12.6. study plan for the period of the receipt of the scholarship;

12.7. a copy of a certificate or another document attesting to the language proficiency required for the studies;

12.8. a copy of a passport or identification card.

[6 December 2016]

13. Documents which are not in Latvian or English shall be supplemented with translation into one of the aforementioned languages approved according to the procedures of the relevant country.

14. [6 December 2016]

15. A foreigner shall submit the application and the documents appended thereto in the form of an electronic document in accordance with the requirements specified in the laws and regulations of the European Union governing the field of electronic documents.

[6 December 2016]

15.¹ The date and time on which the application has been submitted in the system shall be considered as the date and time of the submission of the application.

[6 December 2016]

15.² The date and time of the submission of the application shall be registered in the system at the moment when a foreigner has completed the actions referred to in Paragraph 12 of this Regulation and the action "submit" in the online regime in the system. A confirmation of the receipt of the application shall be sent by the system to the electronic mail address specified by the foreigner and the electronic mail address of the Agency scholarships@viaa.gov.lv. The confirmation shall contain the following information:

15.² 1. given name and surname of the foreigner;

15.² 2. registration number of the application;

15.² 3. date and time of the receipt of the application in the system.

[6 December 2016]

IV. Criteria for the Evaluation of Scholarships and the Procedures for Granting a Scholarship

16. The application shall be evaluated in accordance with the administrative evaluation criteria and quality evaluation criteria referred to in Annex 2 to this Regulation.

17. The Agency shall evaluate the conformity of the application with the administrative evaluation criteria with Yes or No (Yes - conforms, No - does not conform). If the application does not conform to any of the administrative evaluation criteria, the Agency shall take the decision on refusal to grant a scholarship. The decision of the Agency may be appealed to the Ministry within one month after entering into effect of the decision.

18. The conformity of the application to the quality evaluation criteria, by giving a definite number of points, shall be evaluated by the evaluation commission established by the Agency (hereinafter - the commission). The composition of the commission shall comprise two representatives of the Agency, two representatives of the Ministry and one representative delegated by the Student Union of Latvia. Where necessary, the Agency shall involve experts in the work of the commission.

[11 February 2014]

19. The commission shall take the decision to grant the scholarship or refuse to grant the scholarship, as well as shall create a reserve list in the order of priority. The decision of the Commission may be contested within one month after entering into effect of the decision, by submitting the relevant complaint to the Director of the Agency. The decision of the Director of the Agency may be appealed to a court.

20. The commission shall grant scholarships under the selection procedures in accordance with the number of points awarded that is not less than 11 points in compliance with the following conditions:

20.1. minimum mandatory amount of the aid specified in international agreements;

20.2. students from one country shall not be awarded with more than 10 per cent of the total amount of scholarship financing available for the respective year;

20.3. if two or more foreigners who qualify for the scholarship have equal number of points in the quality evaluation, the priority shall be given, first of all, to the students of doctoral studies and then of master's degree studies;

20.4. if the scholarship financing for studies is not distributed upon fulfilling the conditions referred to in Sub-paragraphs 20.1, 20.2, and 20.3 of this Regulation, the scholarship shall be granted to the foreigner who in the quality evaluation criteria had the next highest number of points, without taking into account the determined country quota;

20.5. the priority shall be given to applicants with the highest number of points included in the reserve list, without taking into account the determined country quota.

[11 February 2014]

20.¹ The commission shall give priority to applicants nominated by an authorised authority of the relevant country, if they have obtained the number of points specified in the introductory section of Paragraph 20 of this Regulation in compliance with Sub-paragraph 20.2 of this Regulation.

[11 February 2014]

21. The commission shall take the decision on refusal to grant the scholarship, if the financing allocated for this purpose in accordance with the law on the State budget for the current year is insufficient.

22. The Agency shall inform the applicant and the institution of the relevant foreign country of the decision of the commission. The Agency shall send the decision to the submitter of the application to the electronic mail address specified in his or her application for the receipt of the Latvian scholarship.

[11 February 2014]

23. The Agency shall, based on the decision of the commission on granting the scholarship, enter into a contract with the institution of higher education of Latvia on the provision of financing for the scholarship granted to the foreigner. The contract shall, inter alia, specify the subject-matter of the contract, procedures for the payment of the contractual sum, procedures for providing reports, the rights and obligations of the parties to the contract, also indicating that the institution of higher education shall, within 30 days after the end of the time period for the receipt of the scholarship, submit to the Agency a confirmation that the recipient of the scholarship has been studying in the chosen institution of higher education during the relevant time period and has received the scholarship.

24. The institution of higher education of Latvia shall enter into a contract with a foreigner regarding admission to the institution of higher education. The contract shall contain the procedures for the disbursement of the scholarship.

25. The Agency may revoke the decision on granting the scholarship, if the Agency or an institution of higher education finds that the scholarship recipient has provided false information for the receipt of the scholarship or gravely violates the internal regulations of the institution of higher education, or completely fails to fulfil his or her academic commitment.

[11 February 2014]

26. The Agency shall decide on the non-payment of the full amount of the scholarship in the respective study period, if the institution of higher education finds that the foreigner has acquired less than 80 per cent of the amount laid down in the approved study work plan or has not passed the selected study courses. The study plan shall be approved after receipt of the scholarship and it shall be approved jointly by the institution of higher education and the scholarship recipient.

[11 February 2014]

Prime Minister V. Dombrovskis

Acting for the Minister for Education and Science -
Minister for Economics D. Pavļuts

Annex 1
Cabinet Regulation No. 68
24 January 2012

[6 December 2016]

IESNIEGUMA VEIDLAPA
LATVIJAS VALSTS STIPENDIJAS SAŅEMŠANAI
20____./20____. akadēmiskajā gadā

APPLICATION FORM
FOR THE GOVERNMENT SCHOLARSHIP OF LATVIA
Academic Year 20____/20____

I. Personīgā informācija Personal Data
Vārds Name			Fotogrāfija Photo
Uzvārds Surname
Dzimšanas datums Date of birth
Dzimums Sex	S V F M	Pilsonība Nationality
Dzīvesvietas adrese Residential address
Tālrunis Phone			E-pasts E-mail
Persona, ar kuru var sazināties ārkārtas gadījumā, - vārds, uzvārds un adrese Name and address of the person to be notified in case of emergency
Tālrunis Phone			E-pasts E-mail

Vai plānojat Latvijā iegūt bakalaura, maģistra vai doktora grādu?/Do you intend to acquire a bachelor's, a master's or a doctoral degree in Latvia?

Nē/No

Jā/Yes

Iesniegumam pievienotā informācija (lūdzam atzīmēt)*:

The following documents need to be enclosed with the application form (please mark)*:

1.	Dzīvesgaitas apraksts Curriculum Vitae (CV)
2.	Motivācijas vēstule (norādītas arī aktivitātes ārpus studijām Latvijā vai savā valstī, kas saistītas ar izvēlēto studiju jomu, piemēram, prakse profesionālajās organizācijās, dalība zinātniskajās konferencēs, starptautiskajos projektos) Letter of motivation (including activities outside studies related to the study field in Latvia or in the home country, e. g. work in professional organisations, participation in scientific conferences, international projects)
3.	Vidējās izglītības dokumenta un tā pielikuma vai augstāko izglītību apliecinoša dokumenta un tā pielikuma, vai sekmju izraksta (ja studijas nav pabeigtas) kopija Photocopies of the upper secondary school leaving certificate and supplement, or diploma of higher education and supplement or a transcript of records of the last two study semesters (if studies are not completed)
4.	Divu akadēmiskā personāla rekomendācijas vēstuļu (parakstītas pēdējo sešu mēnešu laikā no dienas, kad iesniegums iesniegts sistēmā) kopijas Copies of two letters of recommendation from academic staff members, signed within the last six months of the upload of the application in the application system
5.	Latvijas augstākās izglītības institūcijas vēstules kopija, kas apstiprina ārzemnieka iespēju studēt izvēlētajā studiju programmā un to, ka attiecīgo studiju programmu īsteno valsts valodā vai citā Eiropas Savienības oficiālajā valodā A copy of a letter of the relevant Latvian higher education institution, confirming the foreigner's opportunity to study in the chosen study programme and informing about the language of instruction (Latvian or other EU official language)
6.	Studiju plāns stipendijas saņemšanas periodam Study plan for duration of the scholarship
7.	Sertifikāta vai cita dokumenta kopija, kurš apliecina studijām nepieciešamo valodas prasmi A copy of the certificate or other document certifying the language proficiency required for studies
8.	Pases vai personas apliecības kopija Copy of the ID (identification document) or passport

* Visai iesniegumam pievienotajai informācijai, kas nav latviešu vai angļu valodā, jābūt tulkotai latviešu vai angļu valodā.

Nepilnīgi aizpildīts iesniegums netiks izskatīts.

All documents, which are not in Latvian or English, shall be translated into Latvian or English.

Any incomplete applications will not be considered.

Apliecinu, ka iepriekš minētā informācija ir pilnīga un patiesa.

I certify that the information provided is complete and accurate.

Piekrītu savu personas datu apstrādei Latvijas Republikas normatīvajos aktos noteiktajā kārtībā un piešķiru Valsts izglītības attīstības aģentūrai tiesības saņemt personas datus par mani no augstākās izglītības institūcijām un publiskas personas iestādēm.

I agree to the procession of my personal data in accordance with the legislation of the Latvian Republic and grant the right to the State Education Development Agency to request data about me from the higher education institutions and institutions of a public person.

State Education Development Agency

Vaļņu iela 1

Rīga, LV-1050

LATVIA

E-mail: scholarships@viaa.gov.lv

Phone: +371 67814322

Annex 2
Cabinet Regulation No. 68
24 January 2012

[6 December 2016]

Scholarship Evaluation Criteria

1. Administrative evaluation

2. Quality evaluation

Notes.
1. *Score: 0 - none, 1-2 - weak, 3 - average, 4 - good, 5 - excellent.
2. ** Achievements are evaluated in accordance with the achievement evaluation system of each state by awarding:
2.1. five points, if the average achievement indicator of the foreigner is 91-100 per cent (where 100 per cent is the highest possible achievement indicator of a student);
2.2. four points, if the average achievement indicator of the foreigner is 81-90 per cent;
2.3. three points, if the average achievement indicator of the foreigner is 71-80 per cent;
2.4. two points, if the average achievement indicator of the foreigner is 61-70 per cent;
2.5. one point, if the average achievement indicator of the foreigner is 50-60 per cent.
3. *** Maximum score shall be received by the foreigner who has applied to any of the study programmes referred to Sub-paragraph 2.4 of Annex 2 to Cabinet Regulation No. 68 of 24 January 2012, Procedures for Granting Scholarships to Foreigners, (possible number of points - 5 (has applied) or 0 (has not applied)).

Translation © 2018 Valsts valodas centrs (State Language Centre)