Recognition of Italian qualifications abroad

The procedures for the recognition of Italian titles and qualifications abroad and the required documentation to obtain such recognition depend on the specific rules and legislation of the country where such recognition is being sought.

No supranational or automatic recognition between different countries exists, therefore. Even in the case of bilateral or multilateral agreements referring to recognition, it will always be necessary to submit a recognition request or undergo an evaluation procedure in the foreign system.

This is also the case inside European Union countries, taking into account that this subject is devolved to the authority of each individual State.

In all recognition cases, the documentation to be presented is defined by the competent foreign authority. For this reason it is necessary to verify:

• in which office to make the request;
• which documents are necessary;
• the most appropriate recognition procedure.

Every country has specific offices for the purpose of examining requests of recognition of qualifications. It would be impossible in these pages to supply a complete list of all the competent authorities.

In some countries National academic recognition information centres exist. Anyone interested in gaining recognition abroad for his/her qualifications can contact the information centre of the country they intend to move to for study or work directly: in this way the necessary information on recognition opportunities and required procedures may be obtained.

The better-structured Information Centres can be found in the 55 countries adhering to the ENIC-NARIC networks: a list of these countries and the relative Information Centres can be found on this website: http://www.enic-naric.net/country-pages.aspx.

Also on the ENIC-NARIC website, information is provided on the authorities of every country in the world that foresee higher education and training, divided into UNESCO regions: Africa, Arab States, Asia and the Pacific, Europe and North America, Latin America and the Caribbean, Mediterranean Region.

It is useful to contact the diplomatic offices in Italy of the country where the request for recognition of qualification will be made with a view to verifying the specific national legislation and the foreign authority of reference dedicated to such procedures.

A helpful tool to best present the characteristics of each Italian higher education qualification is the Italian Qualifications Framework.

CIMEA has also activated an Italian qualification certification service - Credential Information Service – which answers the need to render Italian qualifications ever more comprehensible and recognizable within the international panorama.

All the necessary information to help in the comprehension of the characteristics of the Italian system can be found in the section of the CIMEA website dedicated to the Italian Higher Education system.