The legal value of a foreign qualification

In Italy a qualification has legal value when the State attaches legal effects to it: the right to enrol in the next cycle of studies, to sit a public competition, to register with a professional body, to hold a post for which that qualification is required. Legal value belongs only to qualifications awarded by institutions that the State has authorised to award them. A foreign qualification, however prestigious the institution that issued it, has no legal value in Italy until an Italian authority recognises it. Understanding this principle explains why recognition exists, why it is organised by purpose and why the status of the awarding institution is the first thing an Italian authority checks.

What legal value means

The Italian education system is built on State control of qualifications. Schools and universities, public or private, may award diplomas and degrees with legal value only if the State has authorised them to do so, after assessing the quality of their teaching, their facilities and the conformity of their programmes to national rules. A diploma awarded by an institution without that authorisation certifies attendance and perhaps learning, but produces no legal effects: it does not give access to further studies, to public competitions or to regulated professions. This holds for Italian institutions and, by the same logic, for foreign ones. The legal value of a qualification is therefore a guarantee that the knowledge and skills it certifies meet the standards of the national system, and it is the State, not the market or the reputation of the institution, that confers it.

Why a foreign qualification has none until recognised

A foreign degree is awarded under the rules of another State, which has assessed the institution and the programme according to its own standards. Italy has no way of knowing, without an assessment, whether those standards correspond to its own: whether the institution is officially recognised in its country, whether the qualification is an official one in that system, whether its level and content correspond to an Italian qualification. Recognition is the procedure by which an Italian authority carries out that assessment and, if the result is positive, extends to the foreign qualification the legal effects of the corresponding Italian one. Until then the foreign degree can be used wherever the law does not require legal value, for instance in private employment, but not where it does.

Accreditation and reputation are not the same thing

Many institutions of excellent reputation award qualifications that have no legal value in their own country, because they have not sought or obtained official recognition, or because the specific programme is not accredited. Business schools, private academies, online providers and professional institutes often fall in this category. Their certificates may be valuable on the labour market and still be incapable of recognition in Italy, because an Italian authority can only recognise what is official in the system of origin. This is the first check the firm makes at the consultation, before any document is translated: the status of the awarding institution and of the programme in its own country, verified on the official registers and, where needed, through the CIMEA verification service.

How legal value is obtained in Italy

Full legal value is conferred by academic recognition, equipollenza, decided by a university for degrees and doctorates and by the school offices for secondary diplomas, which issues the corresponding Italian title. For specific purposes the law provides lighter forms that do not confer legal value in general but allow the qualification to be used for that purpose: equivalence to continue studying, recognition for public competitions, professional recognition to practise a regulated profession. The Dichiarazione di valore and the CIMEA statement of comparability do not confer legal value either: they describe the qualification so that the Italian authority can decide. The page on the four routes sets out which procedure serves which purpose.

Frequently asked questions

My university is in the top rankings: is recognition still needed?

Yes. Rankings measure reputation and research output, not legal status in Italy. A degree from a world-famous university has no legal value in Italy until recognised, exactly like any other. The procedure is however usually straightforward, because the official status of the institution is beyond doubt.

Can I call myself “dottore” in Italy with a foreign degree?

The academic title dottore belongs to holders of an Italian degree or of a foreign degree recognised as equivalent. Before recognition the foreign title may be used in the form and language in which it was awarded, for instance BA or MSc, indicating the awarding institution.

Does an apostille give my degree legal value in Italy?

No. The apostille certifies that the signature and the seal on the document are genuine, which makes the document acceptable to Italian authorities. It says nothing about the value of the qualification. Legal value comes only from recognition.

How can I find out whether my institution is officially recognised?

Through the official register of higher education institutions of the country concerned, through the ENIC-NARIC network and, for Italy, through the CIMEA statement of verification, which confirms the authenticity of the qualification with the awarding institution. The firm carries out this check at the start of every file.