Rules of the recognition of qualifications for further studies

Treaty on mutual recognition with the Czech Republic

The Treaty between the Slovak Republic and the Czech Republic on the mutual recognition of the equivalence of educational qualifications issued in the Slovak Republic and the Czech Republic ("the Treaty") is the only bilateral agreement in the field of recognition of educational qualifications signed at the presidential level. The Agreements signed at presidential level take precedence over the national law in the provisions concerning rights and obligations. The Treaty has therefore completely removed the process of academic recognition. Holders of Czech educational documents can therefore use them in the Slovak Republic for all purposes, except for the exercise of a regulated profession, without a recognition process.

• Text of the Treaty between the Slovak Republic and the Czech Republic on the mutual recognition of the equivalence of educational documents issued in the Slovak Republic and the Czech Republic

The Treaty entered into force on 28 March 2015 in accordance with Article 14 and was published in the Collection of Laws of the Slovak Republic as Notification of the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic No. 60/2015 Coll. - Treaty between the Slovak Republic and the Czech Republic on the mutual recognition of the equivalence of educational qualifications issued in the Slovak Republic and the Czech Republic.
 
According to Article 1, the treaty applies to all graduates of Czech primary, secondary and higher education institutions and for all purposes, except for recognition for the pursuit of regulated professions (health professionals, teachers, regulated trades, etc.)

This means that for all purposes (except for the exercise of a regulated profession), a document of education issued by a Czech university or secondary school is valid in the Slovak Republic automatically, without recognition. In the case of mobility between the Czech and Slovak Republics, the applicant may apply to study at a Slovak or Czech school without having to undergo a process of recognition.

This has also simplified the recording of the degree into the identity document. A graduate can have his or her degree entered on the ID card or passport without recognition of the diploma. He or she can do so directly at the documents department of the District Police Headquarters, under the same conditions as graduates of Slovak higher education institutions.

At the same time, recognition of education cannot be required for the exercise of an unregulated profession, i.e. most professions on the labour market without a statutory qualification for the exercise of the profession.

Scope of the Treaty

In the case of documents acquired on the territory of the Czech Republic, we distinguish the following two periods of acquisition of documents:

• Czechoslovakia (ČSSR and ČSFR) - documents acquired before 31.12.1992 are automatically valid and are not subject to recognition in the successor states; and
• the independent Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic (since 1.1.1993).

The scope of the treaty applies to educational documents acquired on the territory of the independent Czech Republic or the Slovak Republic. The Treaty maintains continuity between the periods before and after the signing of the Treaty and will apply to all documents acquired under the title of the Czech Republic and on the territory of the Czech Republic, i.e. since 1993. 

 

 

 

 

Bilateral government level agreements on mutual recognition of qualifications

The Slovak Republic has concluded bilateral agreements on the mutual recognition of educational qualifications at governmental level with the following countries:

• Hungary
• Germany (the agreement applies to education documents issued after 13 December 2003)
• Croatia
• Poland (agreement of 2006) / (agreement of 2016)
• Romania
• Ukraine
• Russia (in force as from 1 July 2020, the agreement applies to educational qualifications whose exact titles are mentioned therein, regardless of the date of issue - it does not apply to older pre-Bologna 'Diploma' qualifications)
• China (the agreement applies to educational qualifications issued after 1 September 2020)

All qualificationsthat are part of the above bilateral government agreements have been included in the automatic recognition system as of 1.3.2025. Please use the recognition clause to prove the level of education attained. The clause, together with the education document to which it is linked, fully replaces the recognition of the degree of education under international agreements (Section 39 of Act No. 422/2015 Coll. on the Recognition of Education Documents and on the Recognition of Professional Qualifications and on Amendments and Additions to Certain Acts, as amended).

The clause applies only to the recognition of the degree of education attained. In the event that the qualification is submitted to a university for the purpose of recognition of a qualification in a specific study field, a reduced administrative fee (EUR 7) applies to the application for recognition of a document falling under one of the above-mentioned bilateral agreements.

Multilateral international agreements on recognition of qualifications

The Slovak Republic has acceded to the two most important conventions in the field of recognition of qualifications, which guarantee the holders of educational documents from the signatory states and reciprocally also the holders of Slovak educational documents the basic rights related to recognition for the continuation of studies, such as:

• the right to a fair assessment of qualifications within a reasonable time
• the right to recognition of the educational document, unless a substantial difference is demonstrated
• to be able to apply for access to higher education, for jobs in the labour market or to use an academic degree
• the right to appeal against the outcome of a recognition decision, and others

Lisbon Recognition Convention, 1997
(in force since 1999)

The Convention on the Recognition of Qualifications relating to Higher Education in the European Region was developed in cooperation between the Council of Europe and UNESCO and signed in Lisbon on 11 April 1997. It entered into force for the Slovak Republic on 21 June 1999 (Notification of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Slovak Republic No. 145/2000 Coll.) The Convention established the basis for the recognition of qualifications in the wider European region (or the European Higher Education Area), including the principles and institutes relating to the recognition of qualifications in the context of continuing studies. It also established a network of Academic Recognition Information Centres (ENICs).

A network of NARICs (National Academic Recognition Information Centres) had already existed within the European Union. Together they form the ENIC-NARIC network with a number of joint activities and initiatives. The ENIC-NARIC portal contains useful information on national higher education and academic recognition systems.

Further links related to the Lisbon Recognition Convention:

• General information on the Convention
• Text of the Convention SK / EN
• States of the Convention
• Contacts to the information centres under the Convention

Global Recognition Convention, 2019
(in force since 2023)

The UNESCO Global Convention on the Recognition of Qualifications related to Higher Education integrates regional conventions, including the Lisbon Recognition Convention, and extends the scope of the principles of the regional conventions to the global level. On 29 June 2022, the Slovak Republic became the sixteenth state in total to ratify this Convention. The Convention entered into force on 5 March 2023 (Notification of the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic No. 218/2023 Coll.) From that date, the rights and obligations in relation to the first twenty signatory States apply; for each additional State, the Convention enters into force three months after the deposit of the instruments of ratification. As this is a relatively new Convention, individual states are still in the process of ratification, an up-to-date list of signatory states is available below.

Links in relation to the Global Recognition Convention:

• General information on the Convention
• Text of the Convention SK / EN
• States Parties to the Convention
• Contacts of the information centres under the Convention (select first the region and then the country)

Topics:

Recognition statement National regulated professions database Supplementary examination for third country healthcare professionals Proportionality test for regulated professions