Italy Fully Funded MAECI Scholarships 2026-2027 Open

Every year, the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MAECI) quietly opens a funding window that most international students never hear about until it is too late. For the 2026-2027 academic year, the Italian Government is once again offering fully funded scholarships to foreign nationals and Italian citizens living abroad who want to pursue higher education on Italian soil.

These Italian government MAECI 2026-2027 scholarship awards cover Master’s degrees, PhD programmes, AFAM (Fine Arts, Music and Dance) courses, supervised research projects, and intensive Italian language and culture programmes at public or legally recognized private institutions across Italy. Whether you are a postgraduate researcher from South Asia, an aspiring designer from West Africa, or a music student from Latin America, this is one of Europe’s most accessible government-backed study grants — and the clock is already ticking.

Three additional Italian scholarships, named the “Attanasio” awards in memory of Ambassador Luca Attanasio and his entourage, are specifically reserved for applicants from Morocco, Nigeria, and the Democratic Republic of Congo pursuing studies in international relations, development cooperation, and human rights law. Beyond that, the total number of scholarships varies by country and is published on the Study in Italy portal for each eligible nationality. The exact country-wise allocation is not disclosed in the call itself, so applicants should check the portal directly for the most current figures.

What the Italian Government Will Actually Pay For?

The financial structure of this Italian scholarship is straightforward, and it is designed to support students from their first month of arrival through the end of the academic year.

• Scholarship recipients for Master’s, PhD, AFAM, research, and “Costruiamo il futuro” programmes receive a total of 10,800 euros over nine months, disbursed in three instalments: 5,500 euros upon arrival and enrolment verification starting November 2026, then 2,300 euros from February 2027 after continued enrolment is confirmed, and a final 3,000 euros from June 2027 once satisfactory academic progress is demonstrated.
• Recipients of the three-month intensive Italian language and culture scholarship receive 3,600 euros in a single payment at the end of the funding period, after attendance and progress have been verified.
• All scholarship holders are covered by a MAECI-contracted collective health insurance policy for illness and accident expenses throughout the scholarship duration, though pre-existing conditions and dental care are excluded.
• Several Italian universities waive tuition and enrolment fees for MAECI scholarship holders under their own autonomy regulations, though applicants must verify this directly with their chosen institution since fee exemption is not automatic and regional fees always remain the student’s responsibility.
• The scholarship is incompatible with any other Italian government or public institution grant, but it can run alongside Erasmus, Erasmus+, and programmes funded by international organisations, provided the study activity takes place on Italian territory.

Who Can Actually Apply — Eligibility Stripped Down to What Matters

The eligibility rules for this Italian government scholarship are specific, and missing even one requirement will disqualify your application outright. Here is what you need to meet before you start filling in forms.

• You must be a citizen of one of the eligible countries listed on the Study in Italy portal, and you can only apply through one country’s selection process regardless of how many citizenships you hold.
• Dual citizens holding both Italian and foreign nationality must apply through the foreign country’s process and declare their foreign citizenship on the portal.
• Italian citizens living abroad (IRE) may only apply if they hold exclusively Italian citizenship and are resident in one of twenty designated countries including Argentina, Australia, Brazil, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, and others.
• For Master’s and AFAM programmes, applicants must be 28 or younger by March 27, 2026, meaning they must have been born on or after March 27, 1997. PhD candidates get a ceiling of 30, and research project applicants can be up to 40.
• Master’s and AFAM applicants studying in Italian-taught programmes need at least B2 proficiency in Italian (CEFR), while those in English-taught programmes need B2 in English. PhD and research candidates have no language proficiency requirement from MAECI, though individual institutions may impose their own.
• You must not have previously obtained a degree from any Italian institution, public or private, and you must not have been enrolled in a secondary school in Italy.
• You cannot have held a MAECI research scholarship in any of the last five academic years (2021-2022 through 2025-2026).
• Enrolment must be in the first year of the chosen programme — mid-programme entry is not permitted, with the sole exception of renewal applicants continuing from last year.
• Employees of the Italian Public Administration and their first-degree descendants are excluded entirely.

From Registration to Interview — How the Application Actually Works

The entire process runs through a single online platform, and nothing submitted outside of it will count. Start by registering on the Study in Italy portal at studyinitaly.esteri.it using an email address you check daily, because every official communication will be sent there.

Once registered, complete your application by uploading a legible copy of your valid passport or identity document, your academic qualification certificate (or a declaration if you do not have it yet), your language proficiency certificate where required, and — for research applicants — your supervisor’s invitation letter along with your research project. PhD applicants should upload their admission letter if available, or a supervisor’s invitation letter as a placeholder.

After the portal closes, a committee at the relevant Italian diplomatic representation will conduct a comparative evaluation of all applications based on merit and eligibility. Candidates who clear this stage will be invited to an interview. Following interviews, a merit ranking will be published, and top-ranked applicants who indicated they needed to submit supplementary documents will have until July 1, 2026 to upload them. Winners then formally accept the scholarship and receive an official awarding letter that locks in their programme, institution, and funding dates.

The Deadline That Will Not Wait for You

All applications must be submitted through the Study in Italy portal for Italian government scholarship no later than 14:00 Italian time on March 26, 2026. That is not a soft deadline and there are no extensions — the portal will not accommodate last-minute traffic surges, and technical slowdowns on the final day will not be accepted as a valid excuse for missing the cutoff.

With just days remaining before the window shuts, applicants who are still gathering documents should prioritise submitting what they have now and flagging supplementary items for later upload where the portal allows it. The scholarship period for most programmes runs nine months from November 1, 2026 through July 31, 2027, and language course scholarships begin from January 1, 2027 with a September 30, 2027 end date.