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Tool VI · Recognition

Will my degree be recognised abroad?

The short answer is: recognition should be the rule, and refusal the exception that has to be justified. The longer answer is in a convention signed in Lisbon in 1997.

Primary sourceLisbon Recognition Convention
Sources checked26 October 2026
Reading time3 min
Polish versionUznawalność →

In a nutshell

Recognition is the decision of a university or an authority to accept a qualification from another country – to let you start a master's, for example, or to count a semester you spent abroad.

In Europe the starting point is generous: a qualification from another country that signed the Lisbon Recognition Convention should be recognised. If the answer is no, the institution has to show what the substantial difference is. You have to provide good information about your degree; they have to justify a refusal.

Sources: [1] [3]

In short
1997The Convention was signed in Lisbon on 11 April.
1999It entered into force on 1 February.
→A refusal must be justified by a substantial difference.

The Lisbon Recognition Convention

The Convention on the Recognition of Qualifications concerning Higher Education in the European Region was drawn up jointly by the Council of Europe and UNESCO. It was signed in Lisbon on 11 April 1997 and entered into force on 1 February 1999.

It changed the question recognition authorities ask. Instead of looking for equivalence – is this degree the same as ours? – they look for comparability.

Sources: [1] [2] [3]

What the Convention says

  • Fair assessment (Article III.1): anyone with a qualification from a party can ask for it to be assessed, and the assessment must look at knowledge and skills, not at personal characteristics.
  • Information and burden of proof (Article III.3): the applicant supplies adequate information in good faith; if the application does not meet the requirements, it is for the assessing body to show this.
  • Access to higher education (Article IV.1): school-leaving qualifications that give access to higher education in one party are recognised in another, unless a substantial difference is shown.
  • Periods of study (Article V.1): study completed abroad is recognised towards a programme at home, unless it differs substantially from the part it replaces.
  • Degrees (Article VI.1): higher education qualifications are recognised unless a substantial difference can be shown.

Substantial differences are judged by comparing learning outcomes, not programme contents, and applicants have the right to appeal. Where full recognition is not possible, partial recognition is an option.

Sources: [1] [3]

Towards automatic recognition

At their conference in Bucharest in 2012, ministers said they were willing to work together towards the automatic recognition of comparable academic degrees. Achieving it across the EHEA, on the basis of the Bologna tools, has remained a goal of the Process since. In the Paris Communiqué of 2018, recognition practice in line with the Convention became one of the three key commitments of the EHEA.

Sources: [3] [4]

Where to ask

Each party to the Convention must have a national information centre (Article IX.2). These ENIC centres give reliable information about their own system and others, and advise on recognition. A parallel network of NARIC centres works in the European Union; together they form the ENIC-NARIC network.

Sources: [1] [6]

What this means for you

  • Applicants: prepare your diploma, the Diploma Supplement and your transcript – good information is your part of the deal. If refused, ask for the reasons in writing and use the appeal route.
  • Universities: compare learning outcomes, not course lists, and explain any substantial difference you find.
  • Everyone: when in doubt, the national ENIC-NARIC centre is the place to ask.

Sources: [1]

In Poland

The Convention was published in the Polish Journal of Laws (Dziennik Ustaw) in 2004, item 2339. The Polish ENIC-NARIC centre is NAWA, the Polish National Agency for Academic Exchange.

Sources: [5] [6]

Sources

  1. Council of Europe – Convention on the Recognition of Qualifications concerning Higher Education in the European Region (ETS No. 165), text
  2. Convention on the Recognition of Qualifications concerning Higher Education in the European Region (treaty record)
  3. EHEA – Recognition
  4. Paris Communiqué (2018), Appendix I – Support for the implementation of key commitments
  5. Dz.U. 2004 poz. 2339 – Polish publication of the Lisbon Recognition Convention
  6. NAWA – About ENIC-NARIC

Sources checked on 26 October 2026. Official documents are linked, not republished.