Application Process

Start your journey ​
The Shi'i Intensive Course is open to scholars, professors, and students from all around the world. The program is designed for academics and professionals from various academic background, who are interested in expanding their understanding of Islam, Shiism, and Iran. Individuals from a wide range of academic and/or professional interests are welcome to apply.

Application Process

  1. Complete and submit online application form
  2. Please make sure the correct documents which are requested are attached in the form.
    *For Professors, Assistant Professors, Associate Professors and Lecturers* Please make sure your personnel picture follows the requirements mentioned here and your passport copy the requirements mentioned here
    *For students or those who have graduated and are not part of the abovementioned group* Please make sure your personnel picture is no more than 50 kb and your passport copy and other supporting documents are not more than 100 kb.
  3. An email will be sent to confirm the receipt of your application and you will be prompted to provide any remained information/document.
  4. If your application meets our requirements, you will be issued with a conditional offer of a place upon the course.
  5. In order to accept this offer, you will be required to provide a copy of your ticket which will count as your final acceptance in participation and we will then start the visa application process.
  6. If you wish to be allocated a place during our first allocation round, please ensure that your ticket is received no later than early registration deadline.
  7. As soon as we receive the ticket, you will be issued with an unconditional offer to participate in the Shi’a Intensive Course.
  8. Full payment will be received at your arrival in Iran in cash since transferring money to Iran is not possible.

Visa information

The University of Religions and Denominations helps in the visa application process for all confirmed applicants. As in every other country, visa process is subject to background checks by related authorities. The visa approval process can take up to eight weeks after applicants are notified of their successful application. However, please note that we cannot guarantee the exact length of the process, since this is totally outside of the University’s control or jurisdiction. Once the visa approvals arrived, candidates will be notified in due time to refer to Iranian diplomatic or consular representations in their countries in order to receive their visas.

Steps in Detail

There will be a formal application extracted from your application form to be sent to the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs which authorizes the consulate for visa issue.
The output will be an authorization letter which will be transmitted to the Iranian Consulate which you have indicated in the form. We will give you this letter’s reference code (Visa Authorization Code) with which you will be able to collect your visa. This code is only valid to the mentioned consulate and only for 3 months from the date of issue. However, you may request us to forward it to another consulate in case of emergency.
Having the reference code, you will refer to the consulate with your passport (which must be valid for the next 6 months), the completed visa application form (which can be picked from the consulate or be downloaded from their website), 2 new passport size photos, the visa fee (which depends on your nationality) and the authorization reference code, (Always check the needed documents with the consulate, as there may be differences from one consulate to another.) You may also be able to send the documents and receive the visa by mail. Contact the consulate for more details.
Let us know the feedback. Inform us if the visa collection process was straight forward or you faced problems. If there is any problem, we will remain with you for solving it until you receive the visa.

Alternative Options

Tourist visa

According to the regulations of the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, a Tourist visa is issued for foreign nationals who are interested to travel to Iran individually or with a group for the purpose of visiting Iran, or their friends and relatives. Depending to your nationality and the consulate which you refer, it is possible to submit your documents and receive a visa after some days without any reference from Iran. This visa is issued for a maximum stay of 30 days with option of extensions in Iran. The visa remains valid for a period of 3 months from the date of issue and you may ask for a visa extension from the Police Dep. of Foreign Affairs when you are in any Iranian major city.

Iran Visa on Arrival

Iran visa on arrival (VOA) refers to a special class of tourist visa which you can apply for and be granted at the major Iran’s gates of entry like international airports of Tehran (IKA), Mashhad and Kish. Some but not all nationals of all countries can apply and are likely to get that visa without much of hassle. Iran visa on arrival usually has a 30 days’ validity. By choosing the alternative options for getting visa you will have still our support for invitation letter or hotel reservation voucher if needed. Feel free to contact us for any questions, assistance or needed services.