reception booklet for incoming trainees
DESCRIPTION
Made by the iGIP Reception Coordinators of AIESEC in Hungary 2014TRANSCRIPT
1
2
Contents
About Hungary .......................................................................................................... 3
Budapest Public Transportation ........................................................................... 4
Living in Hungary ................................................................................................... 5
Major cities of Hungary ......................................................................................... 8
Usefull links, usefull words .................................................................................. 10
Good to know before arriving ................................................................................. 11
AIESEC trainee buddy program .......................................................................... 11
What to bring with you? ....................................................................................... 11
Can we help you? ..................................................................................................... 14
Legal Part .................................................................................................................. 16
European Economic Area residents ................................................................... 16
The method of getting paid .................................................................................. 18
Insurance ............................................................................................................... 18
Storytelling ............................................................................................................... 19
3
I.
About Hungary
Hungary is a lovely country in the heart of Europe
mostly famous of its fabulous wine, spicy cousin and beautiful women.
Also it is a European center of business where you can find top famous companies
such as TATA Consultancy or Nokia.
Due to its geographical location, it is a great travel junction.
You can easily reach most of the places in Europe by train, bus or plane.
Simply, whatever You are looking for, you can find in here!
For more detailed information please ask your Trainee Buddy!
Emergency Telephone Numbers
Police: 107
Firemen: 105
Ambulance: 104
General emergency: 112
4
Budapest Public Transportation
Budapest in general has
a very good transportation system and
you can reach any part of the city
with only a little walk.
The transportation is colour-coded.
Trams are yellow, trolleys red, buses blue and
the HÉV (suburban railway) is green.
The 4 metro lines are colour-coded as well,
but not according to the wagon.
The first and oldest underground (M1) is yellow. The
second (M2) is red, the third (M3) blue and
the newest one, the fourth (M4) green.
Transportation Maps: www.bkk.hu/en/maps/
The Timetables: www.bkk.hu/en/timetables/
If you observe it well, you will find that three metros all
cross or connect at one stop called
Deák Ferenc tér in the middle of the city.
If you get lost, just try to get back there,
and then you can find your way again.
The transportation usually works until around 11:30 pm
(23:30) in the evening. After that the night buses take over.
The night bus system is also well developed,
mostly going along the path of the main metro, tram and
bus lines.
If you don’t want to get lost at night (as it is quite easy),
one of the main stops for a lot of night buses is Blaha
Lujza tér. During the day, the red metro stops there. If
you get lost at night you should get back here to start over.
Here is a map that will show you the
night bus system:
www.bkk.hu/apps/docs/terkep/ejsz_se
matikus.pdf
5
Living in Hungary
Travelling Around Hungary
When you want to travel between cities in
Hungary, there are usually two ways:
trains and buses.
It is preferable to use the trains as they usually
take less time. You will also find the
international train schedule there.
For the train schedule
and ticket prices check:
www.mav-start.hu/english/index.php
If you decide to take a bus anywhere, go to:
www.volan.hu Unfortunately the domestic schedule is only in
Hungarian, but you will find the international
schedule here also.
Telephoning in Hungary
In Hungary, like in most other countries,
domestic calls are a bit different than international calls.
To call to Hungary you have to dial +36
then the network and then the number.
Money
Hungary is not in the Euro area yet,
so we still have our own currency,
which called the Hungarian Forint (HUF).
We have coins of 5, 10, 20, 50, 100 and 200 HUF and
paper money of 500, 1000, 2000, 5000, 10 000 and 20 000 HUF.
When you exchange money,
please do so at an official exchange place or bank!
Please do not change money on the streets or with taxi drivers.
You are bound to be fooled.
Banks
Banks in Hungary are usually open from Monday to Friday.
They usually open at 8:00 and close at various times.
On Monday they are usually open until 17:00-18:00 (5-6pm).
On Friday they close earlier around 15:00 (3pm).
Tuesday to Thursday they are usually open until 16:00 (4pm).
Make sure you check the times!
Some are open on Saturday mornings at the malls also, but the bank you will be using:
UniCredit is not open at all during the weekends.
Public Holidays
1st January: New Year’s Day
15th March: Anniversary of the start
of the 1848 Revolution
Easter Monday (and of course Sunday)
1st May: Labour’s Day
Whit Sunday and Monday
20th August: Feast of St Stephen,
Hungary’s first monarch
23rd October: Anniversary of the 1956
uprising
1st November: Eve of All Soul’s Day –
Day of the Dead
25 –26th December: Christmas and
Boxing Day
6
Living Expenses in Hungary
For your expenses, your scholarship from AIESEC should be enough,
but of course it is always good to have some spare money.
So as mentioned before do bring some of your savings along.
Generally, your monthly expenses for your flat should not cost
more than 10-20 000 HUF per month at most.
Electricity is usually around 7000 HUF, gas varies between
8000-12 000HUF (depending on how much you use the heating)
and water is usually included in the common expenses which is
around 5-6000 HUF.
Do not take this for granted though, each flat may have a
different construction, but this is what you will usually find.
As you will probably not live alone, these expenses will be divided by
2-3-4, depending on how many of you live in a flat. On top of these
will come the internet if you want it, plus anything else extra.
Don’t forget that you have to pay deposit for the first time when you
move in. It’s usually equal with 2 months of costs.
Work
As mentioned earlier, we will take you to work on your first day.
If not us then another trainee who works there,
but either way you will find your way ok.
There are a few things about the Hungarian work culture
that you may be interested in knowing.
You usually do not have to dress up formally for work.
People, in generally, unless they deal with clients, wear jeans and blazers or jackets.
Generally casual stuff. So don’t bring too many formal clothes with you.
One pair of formal trousers and one or two nice shirts and one, maximum two nice suits for the guys
is more than enough, just in case you have to go to some formal event.
Generally the work culture is not specified.
If you will work at a smaller company, you will probably find the atmosphere
more relaxed than at a multinational company.
Usually, unless the company really has a lot of internationals,
you will find the Hungarians have difficulty getting used to using English.
So do not be offended if you walk into room and people are still speaking in Hungarian.
We are not so international yet and people are still embarrassed to use foreign languages.
Major Events of the Year
New Year Opera Gala (1 Jan)
Budapest Spring Festival
(March – Apr)
Budapest Fringe Festival (end
of March – beginning of April)
Day of Music (21 June)
Sziget Festival (middle of
August)
Formula 1 Hungarian Grand
Prix (August)
Festivities on the Danube
Bank (before 20th August)
Debrecen Flower Festival (20
August)
20th of August: St. Stephan’s
day
Jewish Summer Festival (end
of Aug – beginning of Sept)
Budapest International Wine
Festival (beginning of Sept)
Budapest Autumn Festival
(Oct)
7
Time Zone
Hungary is on Central European time (CET): GMT + 1 hour.
Summer time (March to the middle of October): GMT + 2 hours.
Electricity
Hungary’s electricity network operates at 230 volts.
Plugs are the regular two pin continental types.
Climate
Winter is an average of about 0 degrees or -1 or -2 and
summers are between 28-35 degrees Celsius.
Nightlife
Nightlife in Budapest is really going on.
There is always something to do and always a lot of people going
around, even if it’s really cold outside. In the summer young people are
up until 4am and party all summer.
In Budapest you can see concerts almost every night
or cultural events going on most of the time. Clubs are usually not so
crowded on Sundays and Mondays, but the popular places are usually
packed from Wednesday until Saturday night.
There are a lot of pubs to drink at and a lot of clubs to party at almost all
the time. In the summer you will find outdoor spaces to be the most
popular, which are of course closed during the winter.
If you enjoy culture, there is always the Opera House that is absolutely
international in its performances and we have quite a few theatres. Most
are unfortunately Hungarian, but we have some English plays at the
National Theatre and the Merlin Theatre and also at Trafo Theatre. So if
you really want to find something, you definitely will.
Also, concerts are really all over the place. You will find all sorts of styles
everywhere. For more cultural things go to the Palace of Arts, for anything
else, just get on the net and surf!
What to visit in Budapest
The city is divided into two parts, the hilly side of Buda on the western
bank and the flat plain of Pest on the eastern bank of the river Danube.
These two parts of the city were once separate towns and were merged
together with Ancient Buda (Óbuda) only in 1873.
Places worth to visit
Szimpla Kert
Kuplung
Szoda
Akvárium
Holdudvar
Boat A38
ChaChaCha
Morrison’s 2
Szilvuplé
Soho London
Instant
Di Vino (Gozsdu Courtyard)
….and a lot more
Places to visit in Budapest
Buda Castle
Gellért Hill
Chain Bridge
Downtown
Parliament
Andrássy út
Opera House
Heroes’ Square
City Park
Széchényi Bath and Spa
Vajdahunyad Castle
More info:
http://www.budapestinfo.hu/
8
Major cities of Hungary
Győr The city is situated halfway between Budapest and Vienna,
at the junction of the Moson-Danube, Rába, Rábca and Marcal rivers.
In Roman times there was a significant settlement there called
Arrabona. The founder of the Hungarian state, King István I. declared
it a bishopric and a centre of bailiff.
Sopron A historical jewellery box and a gateway to the Austrian Alps.
This small, mainly commercial town is
called "Civitas Fidelissima" since the dwellers decided that
Sopron should belong to Hungary after the WW I.
The Fire Tower, the symbol of the city stands beside the castle wall and
bears the features of subsequent styles of architecture starting with the
Roman times built basement.
When you have seen all the nice museums in the narrow streets of the downtown
you can take a short excursion to Lake Fertő or go out to have delicious dinner in a private restaurant.
The surrounding mountains with the nice forests "Lővérek" give a good opportunity
for the lovers of the fresh air to bike or take a walk.
Veszprém One of the oldest towns of Hungary. sometimes it is called the town of queens,
as in the old times (some hundred years ago) Hungarian queens used to live here.
Veszprém can be found in between the picturesque Lake Balaton and the quiet Bakony hills.
One can reach both places from Veszprém within one hour.
There is a university in Veszprém, with a very rich cultural and social life.
Things that you must see, when in Veszprém, are the Castle, with a wonderful view of the old town,
and its museums with reminiscences of the past life of Hungarians in the Bakony hills and around Balaton.
Balaton is the largest lake in Central Europe,
and as Hungary does not have access to the real sea it is called the “Hungarian sea”.
It is one of the Hungarians’ favourite places to spend the summer holidays.
9
Eger Eger lies in the northern part of the country surrounded
by the mountains of the Bükk.
It is an old historical town. In 1552 Captain Dobó defended
the fortress of Eger from the Turkish army. It ended in a
great victory of the inhabitants, who are still proud of it.
Nowadays the town is famous for the historical monuments
– the Cathedral, the Fortress, the Turkish minaret –,
its spa and the wine.
We advise everyone to visit the wine cellars in the valley of "Szépasszonyvölgye" (Valley of Beautiful
Woman), where you can taste all the famous wines of Eger like the Bull's Blood or the Merlot.
The downtown of Eger has a special baroque atmosphere, where you can take romantic walks
or have some rest and drink in one of the local pubs.
Szeged The peaceful university town can be found on the once winding river Tisza, near the southern border.
It is famous for its fish restaurants and is also a favoured bird watching area due to the nearby lakes.
Not to mention the salami!
The summer festival with the open-air theatre and the accompanying sport events attract a lot of people.
One should be prepared for hot weather, but brisk showers help to bear it.
The town was completely destroyed by the flood of the river a century ago but it was rebuilt in a Parisian
style with the help of European capitals.
Miskolc Miskolc is an industrial centre on the north-eastern part of the country.
It has more than 200.000 inhabitants, and a lot of cultural, sport and other facilities.
The most important sights are the Tower Avas (which is the symbol of the city),
Greek Catholic Church (with Europe's most beautiful icon collection),
the theatre (this was the first one made of stone in the country) and the Castle of Diósgyőr,
which was built in the fourteenth century, when the residence of King Louis I. was here.
It is still in relatively good state of preservation.
In the summer concerts are held in the courtyard. Miskolc lies in a beautiful valley and the
surrounding Bükk Mountains give great opportunities to hike and have long walks.
Pécs Pécs is the fifth largest town of Hungary, it is in the south-west of the country.
It lays on the southern slopes of the Mecsek Mountains, in clear weather the Croatian hills
can be seen on the other side of the border.
Because of the exceptional situation of the town its weather has a Mediterranean character.
10
The cultural and scientific life (university, academy) is outstanding.
Recently the town went through several changes; there are many western investors, who see the
possibilities of the town's development in trade. During the summer the town is a tourist centre.
Pécs was awarded the European Capital of Culture title in 2010.
Debrecen It is mystical how this insignificant village became
one of the biggest cities of Hungary, centre of spiritual
and political movements after a few centuries –
although she has neither mountains nor rivers.
The town was the heart of the historical Hungary;
it is called "Calvinist Rome" and has been the capital
of the country two times - in critical times
when Hungary could be safely governed only from here.
The emblem of Debrecen is the Reformed Big Church,
which was probably built between 1291 and 1311 by local
landowners. From the towers you can see the beautiful
landscape of the town.
Useful links, useful words
Useful Web links and More Information
To find out more information about Hungary; its cities, its culture and general information – you may
wish to visit some of these web links.
www.gotohungary.com www.budapest.com www.hungary.com
Useful words
Here are some Hungarian words that you might find useful when you come here.
Perhaps it would be useful to learn some of them as you may not always find that people around you
speak English.
Hi/Hello/Bye Szia!
Good Morning! Jó reggelt!
Good Afternoon! Jó napot!
Good Evening! Jó estét!
Good Night! Jó éjszakát!
Good Bye! Viszontlátásra!
Thank you Köszönöm
Sorry Bocsánat
Excuse me! Elnézést!
Cheers Egészségedre
How are you? Hogy vagy?
Well, thank you! Köszönöm, jól!
Like shit! Szarul!
And you? És te?
One Egy
Two Kettő
Three Három
Stop/Station Megálló
Final Stop/Station Végállomás
Street Utca
Train Station Pályaudvar
Two beers please! Két sört kérek!
Where is the toilet? Hol van a WC?
11
II.
Good to know before arriving
AIESEC trainee buddy program You will have a so-called trainee buddy in the country, with the role to help you
in any cases regarding legal questions, accommodation, company problems or like that.
It is important to keep in touch with him/her,
and turn to us with any kind of problem you have.
She/he will pick you up at the airport or station, when necessary, help you to get a Hungarian
SIM card, advice you with accommodation search, help you to apply for residence permit
and if necessary to help you with your bank account.
On your first working day, the proper person from AIESEC will accompany you to the company.
What to bring with you? o Mobile phone: please make sure, that the phone you are going to bring, is unlocked/independent
(it accepts SIM cards from other providers). This is needed because you will need to buy a
Hungarian SIM card here, and it’s easier if you don’t have to buy a new phone as well.
o Passport sized photos: it is useful to bring some of these with you, because you may need them
for several things, like your monthly transportation pass, your residence permit application, etc.
o Money: It is always a big question, that how much money you should bring. You will have to pay for
a few things almost immediately, when you come (maybe for the hostel, and also for the first
month’s rent and deposit for the flat you will live in). Please consider that you won‘t receive your
scholarship for at least one month after your arrival, so you should multiply the amount of
scholarship you will be paid here by three. The first “month” is to be counted for the flat, as
mentioned before. The second one is for your living expenses in the first 1-2 months. The third is for
savings, if anything happens. Generally spoken, you should bring at least 700 Euros / 1000 dollars
to cover your stay until your first salary, and be prepared for any unpredictable cases.
o Copies of your school attendance certificate: when you arrive, we will need a copy of your
school attendance certificate in order to be able to transfer you your scholarship. You will also need
it in case you are applying for residence permit extension or anything like that.
o National things from your home country: you should bring with you some things to represent
your country. You are bound to bump into a global village or may be asked to do a presentation on
your country or anything like that. So bring some stuff please, that you would like to share.
o Other stuff: there are a few other things, that it is good to bring with you along like blanket,
pillows, kitchen utensils, and things like that. Otherwise you can buy them here, or in some cases,
“inherit” them from the trainee who lived in the same place before you.
12
International Student Identity Card (ISIC)
If you don't have it yet, we suggest you to apply and get ISIC, since it's
internationally recognized and lots of discounts are available with this
card in Hungary (e.g. local transportation). If you would like to apply
for this card, please read carefully this web
page: http://www.isic.org/issuers/ You can apply online or apply
personally in one of the places in Budapest which are listed on the
website. If you bring all the required documents, they will arrange it
for you on the spot.
To be eligible to get public transport discount you need to be EU citizen or study in the EU. But even though
you are not from EU, once you don't have written which university you study on your ISIC card or you have
there some general name like „University of Technology and Economics” for example so it is not
recognizable where the university is. Once the controller stops you, you just have to tell him that you study
at a university in the EU. He has the right to see your ISIC, but you are not bound to show any other
documents to the controller. So you do not have to show your passport, residence permit card or anything
else.
In case you have written the name of your university pretty clearly in your ISIC, so it seems to be clear that
you university is located outside the EU, our suggestion is to apply for new ISIC online, and there you can
fill up the form with a „general” university name. For example, instead of „University of Economics in
Toronto“ write just „University of Economics“ so you can tell the controller that it is located in the UK
(inside the EU). A new ISIC card will cost you some money, but keep in mind, that each month you will save
more money on public transportation ticket.
Money exchange
I do not suggest you to exchange money at the airport since there
is really bad exchange rate. We suggest you instead to take
money from ATM or just take the bus 200E, and at its final stop,
in the shopping mall you can exchange money with much better
rate. You can buy public transport ticket or pass at the airport by
paying with your card, but please check if you can use your card
abroad, and if it costs you any extra fees in your bank.
The approximate exchange rate is 1 EUR= 300 HUF, but please
check the current exchange rates.
Hungarian SIM card
To sign your internship fee contract with AIESEC and also to easily communicate in Hungary you will need
to buy Hungarian SIM card. You should do this with the help of your trainee buddy.
There are 3 main providers in Budapest: Telenor, T-Mobile and Vodafone.
Trainees are usually taking Vodafone, and we also suggest you to do that, since it has the best offer in the
city. We suggest you to choose the package „MAX M“.
With this package, if you pay 3000 HUF monthly (about 10 Euros), you can get free calls to all Vodafone
prepaid (most of the trainees here has also Vodafone), 100 minutes of free calls to other networks and 100
MB of internet (enough for Facebook usage and emails) In case you need more internet to watch movies or
listen to music for example, take the tariff package „MAX L” for 4000 HUF monthly.
Once you have SIM card, do not forget to send us your HUN phone number please.
13
Bank account information
You need to open Hungarian bank account to be able to receive your monthly stipend (salary) from the
company. You can open bank account at any Hungarian bank, where you want, but we suggest you to open
your bank account at UniCredit or Raifeissen bank. They have better offer for especially for TCS trainees, so
you will have discounted account, in case you will work for TCS.
To be able to get discount, you will have to approach Carolina Rezende (she is sitting in HR department, 3rd
floor in Science Park office building. She will give you to the necessary papers that confirm that you are TCS
trainee.
Most of the people are using UniCredit bank and they are quite satisfied with the services.
We send you an attachment in which you can find the days and hours, when the bank representatives are in
TCS, so the best is to open your bank account that time. You may need to call your trainee buddy in
connection with that, because at UniCredit, they do not speak the best English. You can ask Carolina, too,
for her advice if you should go to the lady or to some particular UniCredit in the city.
Once you will have it, do not forget to send us your bank account number please.
After you send us both of the numbers - phone as well as bank account - you are eligible to sign contract
with AIESEC and receive your monthly stipend = approximately between, you will be contacted he
Financial and Legal responsible from AIESEC. She/he will tell you where to go to sign your contract.
Once you sign your contract, you will get your first monthly scholarship (salary).
Please keep in mind, that without bank account you cannot sign your contract and without contract you
cannot get your scholarship (salary).
Otherwise you will be receiving your monthly stipend always around 25th of each month.
In case you have any questions before your arrival, do not hesitate to contact us.
14
III.
Can we help you? AIESEC as Reception
In this part we’d like to show you what you can expect
from AIESEC, from the Reception Teams, from your
Trainee Buddies in a bit different way.
WWhhoo aarree yyoouu?? We are the members of AIESEC in Hungary, we’re studying in the main universities Budapest. Some of us
are living in Budapest, some of us are here only on weekdays, some of us doing some extra work beside
school and volunteering, some of us focusing more on their studies.
IIff yyoouu’’rree ssoo bbuussyy,, wwhhyy aarree yyoouu wwoorrkkiinngg iinn AAIIEESSEECC?? Previous and our personal experiences showed that working for an international student organization helps
us to develop ourselves besides getting to know how to run a business. Also we’re very smart people, so
since we like to travel without leaving our country, that’s why we’re helping the incoming foreigner trainees
by becoming their Trainee Buddies.
OOkkaayy,, ssoo wwhhoo aarree tthhee TTrraaiinneeee BBuuddddiieess eexxaaccttllyy?? Trainee Buddies are those guys who would like to get to know other nationalities and improving their
English by being the “best friend – supporter” of the trainees. If you have any kind of questions, feel free to
approach them!
WWhheenn wwiill ll II mmeeeett mmyy BBuuddddyy?? You can meet your Buddy right at your arriving. Your Buddy will pick you up at the airport or railway
station where you arrive, and take you to your first staying place. On the way, the Buddy will help you get a
public transport ticket and help to make a new Hungarian phone card. If both of you’re still okay, you can
walk around the city.
FFoorr wwhhaatt ccaann II ““uussee”” mmyy BBuuddddyy?? As we already mentioned above, your Buddy will be a student, who is still studying. It means that your
Buddy will have other to-dos too, but s/he will try to spend as much time with you as s/he can. It means
that (for example) your Buddy will show you some websites where can you search for your final
accommodation, give you some hints (districts, prices, transportation, etc) and then you can start to search
there, because at least it will be your home, not the Buddy’s. If you find some seems-to-be good advertises,
send them to the Buddy, and for those that s/he says that it’s okay, you can see them in live. It’s more than
sure that your Buddy won’t be able to check all the flats with you, but s/he will surely go with you for
contract signing, to be sure that the landlord doesn’t want to cheat.
WWhhaatt iiff II ccaann’’ tt ffiinndd aa ffllaatt iinn aa ffeeww ddaayyss aafftteerr II aarrrriivvee?? WWhhaatt iiss ggooiinngg ttoo hhaappppeenn?? If you can’t find a flat in 3-4 days, well, it happens. But it’s also impossible to see all the available flats in
such a short period of time, so don’t give up, search for the flats, send the advertises to your Buddy for
checking, just don’t stop! If you’re still searching for accommodation for 2-3 weeks, ask your Buddy to help
you in the searching too, because it’s already too much time.
The most important thing to know about the accommodation issue is that AIESEC is not a real estate
agency, we don’t have already prepared flats waiting for you, AIESEC is just supporting you to find a flat.
15
OOkkaayy,, bbuutt iiff II nneeeedd ssoommee hheellpp iimmmmeeddiiaatteellyy aanndd yyoouu’’rree ssoo bbuussyy,, wwhhoomm sshhaallll II aasskk?? Anything happens, first approach your Buddy, because this is why s/he is for. So if you lost something, you
became ill or you just need a cheering hug, call your Buddy. You can think of that simple thing that your
Buddy will know you the best among the Hungarians, so if ask another person for help or someone from
your work, maybe they won’t be able to help you the needed way immediately.
WWhhaatt aabboouutt tthhee ooffffiicciiaall ppaappeerrss ffoorr mmyy VVIISSAA aanndd tthheenn ffoorr
mmyy rreessiiddeennccee ppeerrmmiitt?? We’ll help you to collect these papers, where to get them, how to
fill out, who’s signature is needed, etc, and (for example) we’ll go
with you to the Immigration Office when you apply for the
residence permit. Obviously, if you’ll need to get your student
certificate, we won’t be able to help, because it’s much easier
and quicker if you go for it.
So we’ll support you then too, just ask very clearly. ;)
CCaann yyoouu hheellpp mmee ffiinndd ootthheerr ttrraaiinneeeess lliikkee mmee?? We are organizing Welcome and Integration parties every first Friday of the month where you can meet the
other new and “old” trainees outside work. Also there’ll be lots of hanging out and sightseeing events so
don’t be afraid, you will find your perfect group. ;)
Let’s sum up everything!
We’re very glad that you are here and we are ready to help you in every case, but AIESEC, AIESEC’s
Reception Teams and the Trainee Buddies are not for being your second dads and moms, we’re just
supporting you with settling down in Hungary.
If you’ll need some help, feel free to ask us, just ask very clearly!
16
IV.
Legal Part
European Economic Area residents Hungary is part of the Schengen Area. This means, that if you are a citizen of a country,
which is part of the European Economic Area, or Switzerland, you do not need visa
or residence permit, regardless of the duration of your staying.
In this case, you may enter Hungary with a valid passport.
If your stay in Hungary will last MORE than 3 months
If you are a citizen of a country that does not need a visa to enter Hungary for less than 3
months, you are free to enter Hungary, even if you are coming for more than 3 months.
However, as the decision process for the visa approval takes up to 30 days, you have to apply for
a residence permit in the first 60 days of your stay.
Residence Permit application
Besides your patience and time you will need the following documents for Immigration office. Be prepared
that all the documents you want to keep (not to give originals to the immigration officer) you have to make
a copy of them.
Immigration Office Requirements (90 days VISA cases)
Filled Application form for other purposes (3 pages)
Declaration
School attendance certificate (in English)
Health insurance (in English)
Invitation Letter (AIESEC prepares it and give it to you, for this we need your final flat’s address)
Bank statement (It can be from any bank as long it is showing at least 100.000 HUF on the account)
Passport
ID photo
Flat property sheet (It costs 5 700 HUF, you ask for help from your Trainee Buddy)
Hard covered Accommodation Statement (you can pick up blank paper at MC office at Tompa utca
20, door bell 21. After fill it up + sign it + your landlord has to sign it too!)
Flat Contract (Signed by all the owners of your apartment + with your name on it)
To be able to apply you have to pay fee 18 000 HUF which you pay with revenue stamp (you can buy
this revenue stamp at post office)
Immigration Office Requirements (VISA cases)
1. You need to go to apply to immigration office in 30 days after arrival
2. You need to take with yourself:
Passport,
Hard cover accommodation statement
Signed contract with the company
Property sheet
17
VISA requirements:
When you are arriving as a citizen with VISA needed for entering the country, you have to apply for
D type of VISA and for VISA for other purpose (if there is no possibility to apply for other purpose that
sometimes happens as well, they have to apply for educational purpose).
When you are applying for the VISA in Hungarian embassy in your country, you have to present:
1. Passport
2. Invitation letter
3. Accommodation certificate and property sheet (the document in Hungarian we send in package from
Priscila)
4. Company endorsement letter
5. Flight ticket reservation copy
6. Health insurance contract = copy
7. Bank statement = showing how much money you have on your account (possible also for your father)
8. Student's certificate = in original language as well as in English = copy of the same one you send to me
by scan (if you make colourful copy it will look almost like original )
9. Filled application form for other purpose of stay
Documents provided by AIESEC Hungary
If you are applying for a visa or a residence permit, AIESEC Hungary will provide you the following
documents:
• Invitation letter: contains your data, the duration of your internship, the amount of scholarship you will
receive, and data on your future accommodation in Hungary
• Accommodation certificate: stating where you will live during your internship (a paper from a dormitory
or a private person)
• Property sheet: proves that the person providing the accommodation certificate is officially the owner
The procedure of the visa / permit application
Once you receive the documents from us, with the rest of the papers above, you will be able to apply for
your visa or residence permit. The duration of the decision process is maximum 30 days.
To Summarize: In the first page is explained what do you need for you residence permit if you don’t need
VISA for entering the country, and if you need a VISA for entering the country. In the second page, there is
explanation about VISA application in your country.
18
The method of getting paid
You may be wondering what this thing is about scholarship instead of salary and AIESEC transferring
money and school attendance certificates, etc. Well, the deal is the following:
The company you work at transfers your money to AIESEC and then AIESEC transfers it to your bank
account. We use this method because as a student abroad you can receive your salary as a scholarship from
AIESEC, and for that, the company saves the personal income taxes making this it more cost effective than
employing a Hungarian trainee.
The reason you need a school attendance certificate is because the law in Hungary states that those students
who come to Hungary through an international student organization for an internship don’t need a work
permit. For this though, we need to prove that you are a student. This also explains why it is not a student,
not a working visa/permit that you apply for, because according to this system you are neither studying not
working.
This is why it is called scholarship and not a salary as it is a scholarship that you receive from a non-profit
organization to cover your living expenses while you are developing yourself.
But, in order to make this all work, you need to prove that you are eventually a student by attaching a
student certificate to your visa/permit application and also when you fill your application for the
scholarship from AIESEC Hungary.
Insurance
You need to buy the insurance for the whole duration of your stay in Hungary – it is easier and usually also
cheaper to get the insurance in your home country. So please, make sure that you will make it before arrival.
TCS provide a small support to the interns from NON-EU countries. What happens is that in the 1st day of
the 10th month, we reimburse them with 30 000 HUF. If you are not staying for all the 12 months (it can
happen only if something happen in your own country and you need to leave earlier) then, you will not
receive the support from TCS.
19
V.
Storytelling
What can be more original then personal stories?
Here are some memories about the first few weeks from different trainees.
Hasan from Pakistan
“Well to start off I would say that living abroad isn't easy at all, especially if you’re
coming from a totally different country which in my case is Pakistan. In the
beginning I had no friends and nowhere to go alone. Also the food was not exactly
of my type as I always prefer spices. But I believe that everything gets better with
time. This place gave me a very warm welcome and the people here are so nice
that even when they don’t speak your language still they are willing to help you.
I’m a big fan of rain and cloudy weather so this was perfect place to be. So there
were some pros and cons but the motivation of work kept me going and here I am
living happily. Because I have friends, I have different culture to enjoy, I have
beautiful places to go and most importantly I’m independent.”
Rahul from India
“I came in August as a ‘kid’ not knowing what to expect. But the journey of growing
up has been fun and challenging of course. From new streets to people to
transportation everything unfamiliar. Looking for apartments, nothing came easy.
But was it worth to take the jump on the plane from India? HELL YEAH.
Living the life of an international intern has been the best decision I have ever taken,
maturing out alone in a foreign land. Learning something new every day whether in
office or at home or in a group of other interns from diverse backgrounds. Wow!
It has been just more than 3 months since I have come here and it has been the most
amazing journey I have undertaken in my life. I strongly recommend this to every
person looking for the cliché of a life changing experience.”
Karolyna from Poland
“So my first impression about this city wasn't so good, I mean my first
moments here were mostly in metro between work and home. But during the
first weekend I went with my new colleagues to the castle hill and walk around
the city... and then actually I start to slowly fell in love with this city. With
every week, month and ever new season I could notice how this city is amazing
and how is changing. So I can easily say that Budapest is lovely. Prices are
acceptable. With the flat I had some troubles, but just some, to find
accommodation you can use a lot of FB's groups and of course here is a lot of
nice people who will help you with that. About the people you can find here, I
would say that is a really big amount of foreigners so you won’t be alone here.
I would say that you can really discovering this city during a day and night!”