CIMEA statements of comparability and verification

Clients who ask the firm for help with the recognition of a foreign qualification put the same question almost every day: can the CIMEA statement of comparability replace the Dichiarazione di valore? The two documents are distinct and, in most procedures, complementary. The CIMEA statement places the foreign qualification within the Italian system by level and type, the consular statement attests its authenticity and its legal value in the country of origin, and many Italian universities ask for both in order to complete their assessment, while others accept either. This page describes the CIMEA services, the statement of comparability, the statement of verification, the ARDI database and the Diplome platform, and where each stands in relation to the consular statement.

CIMEA and the statement of comparability

CIMEA, the Information Centre on Academic Mobility and Equivalence, is the Italian centre of the ENIC-NARIC network, the European network of national information centres on the recognition of qualifications. Through its comparability service it assesses foreign higher education qualifications and the school leaving qualifications that give access to higher education, and, where the assessment is positive, issues a statement of comparability for the qualification examined. Comparability consists in placing the foreign qualification at a level of the Bologna Process cycles and of the European Qualifications Framework, and in indicating the Italian qualification to which it is comparable by level, nature and field. The statement does not amount to the formal recognition of the qualification in the Italian system: it is an expert opinion, useful to the institutions that assess the qualification in the various recognition procedures, and it does not bind universities or authorities in their own assessment. It is nevertheless the document that Italian universities, the Department of the Civil Service and most Prefectures accept as an alternative or complement to the Dichiarazione di valore, and it can be requested online from anywhere.

The ARDI statement of correspondence

ARDI, the Automatic Recognition Database Italia, is a free service that CIMEA has added to its portal in line with the European principle of automatic recognition. It describes the main types of academic qualifications and of upper secondary school leaving qualifications of the countries party to the Lisbon Recognition Convention, gives a comparative opinion on their correspondence with Italian qualifications and adds evaluative notes on each type that take account of the features of the system of origin, so that the Italian institutions can identify any substantial differences in accordance with national and European practice. Any user can consult the database online and generate at once, without cost, a statement of correspondence for a qualification type, which indicates whether two qualifications can be regarded as corresponding in level, nature, academic, professional or research, and sector. The correspondence is established only between official qualifications issued by recognised institutions of the national system, it concerns the general type of qualification and not the individual case, it has no legal effect and does not amount to recognition. Each statement bears the date of generation, since the database is updated and extended over time, and the absence of a qualification from the database does not mean that it cannot be assessed through the individual comparability service.

The Diplome platform

Diplome is the CIMEA platform for comparability and verification, built on blockchain technology. The applicant registers, uploads the foreign qualification and the supporting documents, requests the assessment or the verification, follows the progress of the file and is notified when the statement is issued. Once issued, the statement of comparability or of verification is recorded on the blockchain and can be accessed, downloaded and shared with universities and employers from the platform in a certified form. The platform also stores the applicant’s educational documents and allows the statements to be used in support of applications for admission to higher education programmes, in Italy and abroad. The service is subject to a fee and to processing times that vary with the country of the qualification and the period of the year, both published on the platform, which is why the request should be made as soon as the need is known.

The statement of verification

The verification service confirms the authenticity of a foreign qualification, from higher education or from secondary school: that the qualification was in fact awarded to its holder by an institution officially recognised within the educational system of the country concerned. Where the verification is positive, CIMEA issues a statement of verification. To carry it out CIMEA consults national and institutional databases, asks the awarding institution for direct confirmation, consults the official certifications of the competent authorities of the country and, where needed, examines the original document, its legalisations and stamps, its format and its signatures. The statement of verification does not recognise the qualification and confers no legal value on it: it is supporting documentation for the institutions that assess the qualification, which it does not bind. The service is not available for every educational system, since it depends on the possibility of verifying with the institutions of each country, and the platform indicates the countries and the types of qualification covered. For non-EU qualifications the statement of verification is the part of the CIMEA service that most closely resembles the consular check behind the Dichiarazione di valore, and it is the reason why many authorities accept the two CIMEA statements together in its place.

Differences and convergences with the Dichiarazione di valore

The two documents differ in nature and purpose. The statement of comparability, issued by CIMEA, offers an analysis of the comparability of the foreign qualification with the Italian system, centred on academic equivalence: level, duration and field of the foreign qualification against the corresponding Italian ones. The Dichiarazione di valore, issued by the Italian diplomatic representations abroad, attests the authenticity of the qualification and its legal recognition in the country of origin, and gives the legal and institutional picture of the qualification, the awarding institution and its status. In the recognition procedure the first helps the Italian institution to read the academic value and position of the foreign qualification, the second confirms its legitimacy, which matters in procedures beyond the academic sphere, such as public competitions and registration with professional bodies. The two are complementary, since together they give a complete picture of the qualification, authentic and legally recognised on one side, academically comparable on the other, and that is why many universities ask for both for a complete assessment, while the pages on the position of EU citizens and on non-EU qualifications describe the cases in which one of them suffices.

What this means for applicants

For students and professionals who intend to study or work in Italy, understanding the function of each document and preparing both, where the procedure allows the time, shortens the recognition and removes most of the objections an authority can raise. The firm checks the rule of the specific university, ministry or Prefecture before advising which documents to request, prepares the Diplome file and the consular request in parallel where both are needed, and obtains the ARDI statement at once where the qualification type is covered, so that the client has a first document in hand while the others are in progress.

Frequently asked questions

Is the ARDI statement of correspondence enough for university enrolment?

Not usually. ARDI compares types of qualifications in general, not the individual document, and universities normally require the individual statement of comparability, the statement of verification or the consular statement. The ARDI statement is useful as a first orientation and as a supporting document.

Does the statement of comparability convert my grades into the Italian scale?

No. It concerns the level, nature and field of the qualification. The conversion of grades, where a procedure needs it, is made by the university or the administration according to its own tables, on the basis of the transcript and of the description of the grading system in the Dichiarazione di valore or in the Diploma Supplement.

Are the CIMEA statements valid outside Italy?

They are written for the Italian system and the Italian authorities. Other countries have their own ENIC-NARIC centres, which issue their own statements. A CIMEA statement can be shown abroad as information, but a foreign authority will apply its own procedure.

Can the firm request the CIMEA statements on my behalf?

Yes, with your authorisation. The firm prepares the file on the Diplome platform, uploads the documents in the required form, follows the procedure and, where the authority also requires the consular statement, requests the Dichiarazione di valore at the same time so that the two arrive together.