Personal data: Foreign students and Belgian national number

Every student that enrols in a degree programme in higher education in Flanders is also registered in the Database Higher Education (DHE) of the Flemish government.  This registration normally happens using the Belgian national number of the student.  If no national number already exists, e.g. in the case of new foreign students, then a national number for foreigners (BIS) is created for the student and send back to the concerned higher education institution to be stored in the student database of the university or university college.

This national number can then be found in your personal data in your SisA self service. See FAQ item: Manual 2.0: Manage personal information 

The structure of the regular national registration number (rijksregisternummer in Dutch: RRN) is YYMMDD-nnn-cc:

• YY = the last two digits of your year of birth
• MM = the two digits of your month of birth
• DD = the two digits of your day of birth
• nnn = sequence (uneven for men, even for women)
• cc = verification number

For example, if you were born on May 6 1966, your RRN will begin with 660506.

In the case of a BIS number (a number created for foreigners) is the structure the same as the RRN, but the third and fourth number of the month of birth are being topped up with 40 when the sex is known on the moment the number is granted, and topped up with 20 if the sex is not known on the moment the number is granted. If you were born on May 6 1966, your BIS number will begin with 664506.

It could be that a student, because of the enrolment, first receives a BIS number but after registering for a residence permit receives a RRN.  Both numbers should then be linked by the city administration where you received your residence permit.

Please note that sometimes, BIS nummers are not (yet) recognised by companies (such as banks).

Always inform the registrar's office using this helpdesk if you think that your BIS or RRN which you see in your SisA self service is not correct.