What if I told you, you could get residency in almost any country, essentially for free, just by taking some classes? Well you can. Most countries offer temporary residency or at least a long-term visa to people interested in studying in their country. Of course you will need to pay for your education (Unless you go to Germany or a few other places where it could be free), but you will find most universities to be far cheaper than ones in the United States and others.
This will give you all rights that a resident of that country would have. You can open a bank account, come and go as you please, and generally stay as long as you want as long as you remain enrolled. You can also use the medical system in that country, which as an American, it could be worth the trip just for that.
You also don’t have to enroll in a full load of classes to qualify. It is possible to obtain a student residency while taking just a single language class. If you’re interested in learning Spanish, why not take a class at a university in South America or Spain? You will learn the language far better being surrounded by local speakers you can converse with.
If you are actively enrolled in university somewhere already you can probably become an exchange student through a study abroad program at your school. This is an excellent opportunity to travel and start your journey abroad as you will have some structure and most likely a return flight ticket to your home country as well.
When I was still in university, I took a Chinese class in Shanghai as an exchange student through my university. There was class only a few days a week as I took a minimal course load. As a result, I was able to use the visa to travel all around the country. I visited 15 cities around China, including Beijing, Hong Kong, Macau, Chengdu, and many more over a single semester.
If you decide to go to school in Germany or another European country, you would be able to travel the entire European Union while you went to school. Germany also offers free local transportation to its students as well its free and excellent healthcare system. It could be possible to live in Germany and spend almost nothing on your education. Not a bad deal to consider, especially if you have any interest in potentially living in Europe now or in the future.
This is another interesting option to consider, particularly for younger individuals who don’t have a lot of money but have some flexibility. This is also a great way to integrate into a country that you may wish to work towards citizenship in. It will often be easier to find a job in-country once you have studied in the country.
If you enjoy your time abroad as a student and wish to continue your time there, it is generally pretty straightforward to transition into teaching a class instead. This is particularly true if you are visiting a country that does not speak English as their native language. If you have an interest in this, check out my post on Obtaining Residency in Most Any Country by Teaching Abroad. This could also be a shorter time requirement than you might imagine, as it is possible to work part-time and still obtain residency.
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