Starting January 10, 2025, applicants for Type D visas, including students planning to study in Italy for more than 90 days, will be required to book individual fingerprinting appointments at Italian consulates. This change is expected to create additional administrative challenges for both consulates and students.
Melissa Torres, CEO of the Forum on Education Abroad, expressed concerns that this new rule would lead to higher costs and inconvenience for students, as many will need to travel to consulates and face long wait times for visa appointments. She also warned that this might deter students from committing to a full semester abroad.
Additionally, Jill Allen Murray, deputy executive director of public policy at NAFSA, pointed out that this policy change eliminates the option for “batch” processing, which many U.S. institutions had used to expedite visa processing for students. This change will increase the administrative burden on Italian consulates.
In the 2022-23 academic year, Italy became the top destination for U.S. students, attracting 15% of those studying abroad, a 37% increase from the previous year. However, U.S. stakeholders are concerned that this new policy could prompt students to choose other study abroad destinations and may encourage shorter-term study programs instead.