Homologating a school certificate in Spain: ESO and Bachiller

Homologación of a school-leaving certificate in Spain: what it is and when you need it

Not every child needs their school certificate homologated in Spain. If a child is going into Primaria or any of the four ESO years (compulsory secondary education), no procedure is needed: the school admits them under the current enrolment rules, and no convalidación is carried out [2][3]. The procedure becomes mandatory when the child moves further on: to Bachillerato, Formación Profesional (FP) or university.

There is a single rule for the whole of Spain: Real Decreto 104/1988. It distinguishes two actions. Homologación recognises a completed foreign level as equivalent to a Spanish qualification, Graduado en ESO or Bachiller, for academic purposes. Convalidación recognises completed courses so that the student can continue studying in the Spanish system [1]. The decision is made by the Ministerio de Educación, Formación Profesional y Deportes, and the result is issued as a document called a credencial [1].

A university degree is recognised under a different rule and by a different ministry: for a degree, read degree homologation in Spain.

Which procedure your child needs

The easiest approach is to start from where the child will study in Spain. The fee is paid with modelo 790, código 079; the amounts below come from the ministry’s document for 2026 and are worth checking before you pay [6].

Which Spanish level your certificate corresponds to is determined by the ministry using the equivalence tables for the country or, where there is no table, based on the content and length of studies, precedents and reciprocity [1]. In Spain, ESO lasts four years, from age 12 to 16, followed by two years of Bachillerato. We have not found a public official table for Russia, Ukraine, Belarus and Kazakhstan, so we do not claim that a certificate after 9 grades is always recognised as Graduado en ESO and one after 11 grades as Bachiller. Check your country’s table on the ministry’s website before paying the fee and ordering a translation.

Homologación of the certificate step by step

1. Documents. The school certificate or certificate of completion, the transcript with subjects, grades and years of study, and the child’s passport [2]. For Graduado en ESO the ministry asks for grades for the four years corresponding to ESO; for Bachiller, for the years corresponding to Bachillerato [7].
2. Apostille on the certificate and transcript in the issuing country; documents from the EU are exempt [2][7]. In detail: apostille on diplomas and certificates.
3. Official translation into Spanish, including the apostille [2]. The ministry refers to a translator recognised by the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs [6]; the Alta Inspección also accepts a translation made through a Spanish consulate or the diplomatic mission of the country of origin [7]. The procedure is covered in the route card sworn translation.
4. Fee tasa 790-079, if there is one for your level [6].
5. The application is completed on the ministry’s sede electrónica [6]. It is filed online or at a registro: the Orden de 1988 names the Alta Inspección de Educación at the Delegaciones del Gobierno, other official registries and, abroad, consulates and Consejerías de Educación [2]. In Barcelona this is the Alta Inspección de Educación en Cataluña, by cita previa [7].
6. Volante para inscripción condicional: a copy of the application stamped by the registry, on the basis of which a school, college or university admits the student conditionally [1][2].
7. Requerimiento: 10 days to correct deficiencies, or three months if a document has to be obtained abroad or lacks an apostille [1].
8. Credencial with the decision and the nota media [1][4].

A checklist with tick boxes and fields for printing is in the route card for school certificate homologation.

Timeframes: how to be ready for the start of the school year

The ministry decides within three months, but the period runs from the moment the file is complete [1]. If the apostille or translation had to be sorted out later, the three months start later. That is why it is worth applying in spring, not in August.

The volante bridges the gap between application and decision. It is valid for six months from the date of the registry stamp and, if the child has been enrolled with it, until the end of the school year. If the delay is not your fault, a new volante is issued [2]. The volante states which studies you intend to enrol in [3].

In Catalonia there is one more detail. Preinscripció for Batxillerat and FP takes place before many families manage to apply for homologation. For this case the Departament d'Educació provides a declaració responsable on the intention to homologate foreign documents (form A815): it is submitted at preinscripció, and the volante is brought at matrícula [9]. On enrolling in school during the year and on the Consorci d'Educació de Barcelona, read the route card on school.

School-leaving certificate and university admission: PAU and UNEDasiss

To enter a Spanish university you need a título de Bachiller or equivalent and a pass in the prueba de acceso a la universidad, the PAU (formerly EBAU, in some regions PEvAU) [5]. Exempt from the PAU are graduates of EU systems and of countries with reciprocity agreements, as well as holders of the European and International Baccalaureate: they do not even need homologación [5]. Russia, Ukraine, Belarus and Kazakhstan are not in this group, so a child with a certificate from these countries needs homologación al título de Bachiller and the PAU.

The admission score is made up of 60% of the Bachillerato nota media and 40% of the PAU mark, with a pass minimum of 5 [5]. The nota media for a homologated certificate is stated in the credencial: it is calculated using the conversion scale for foreign grades approved by the Resolución de 3 de julio de 2024 [4]. This means school grades weigh more than the exam, and the translation of the transcript must be accurate.

UNEDasiss, UNED’s service for international applicants, runs the PAU for students from other education systems: a compulsory part with general subjects and a subject from the chosen track (modalidad), then optional specific subjects to raise the admission score [8]. It is best to register for the PAU once the homologación application has already been filed. Whether the organiser and the specific university accept a volante instead of a credencial, check in their rules for the current year.

School-leaving certificate and Formación Profesional

For FP grado medio you need the Graduado en ESO qualification or a pass in the prueba de acceso [11]. For grado superior the main route is the título de Bachiller. In both cases a foreign certificate only works after homologación or with a volante. If the child has foreign vocational education, the application should include the curriculum with hours per subject and details of work placements [2].

For teenagers who have not yet decided, FP grado medio often turns out to be the fastest route: homologación a Graduado en ESO is free of charge [6], and after grado superior you can enter university without the PAU [5].

Specifics for families from Russia, Ukraine, Belarus and Kazakhstan

Russia. The apostille on education documents is affixed by the executive authorities of the Russian region that certify education documents (Russian Government Resolution No. 1890 of 10.11.2023) [12]. If the family is already in Spain, you will need a representative acting under a proxy.

Ukraine. The apostille on the atestat and svidotstvo is affixed by the Ministry of Education and Science (MON) through the state enterprise “Information and Image Centre”, with appointments via an online account [10]. For beneficiaries of temporary protection, RD 104/1988 has a transitional provision: the procedure can be started with a declaración responsable instead of documents, but official documents will still be needed for the decision [1].

Belarus and Kazakhstan. Check on your country’s government portal which authority apostilles school documents. Do not put it off: an apostille from abroad is often the longest stage.

Common to all: the full name on the certificate, passport and translation must match in transliteration. A one-letter discrepancy leads to a requerimiento and costs weeks. If the child is moving with parents on a residence permit, the procedure for their documents is described in the article child’s residence permit in Spain.

Common mistakes

• Applying for convalidación for a child going into ESO and waiting for an answer, even though the school can enrol them straight away.
• Putting the apostille only on the certificate and sending the transcript with grades without one.
• Assuming that “11 grades” automatically means Bachiller and not checking the equivalence table.
• Applying in August and missing preinscripció or PAU registration.
• Missing a requerimiento: 10 days, and the application is archived.
• Confusing school certificate homologation with university degree homologation: these are different procedures and different ministries.

How we can help

We help families link school certificate homologation with the other steps of the move: the child’s residence permit, school enrolment and preinscripció deadlines. We will advise which procedure to consider, check the document set before the apostille and translation, and help with the application. The decision is made by the ministry, and we do not promise it. The first 15 minutes of a consultation are free, a full 45-minute consultation costs €121, and fees and translations are paid separately. Book a consultation.

Frequently asked questions

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ReloVictory · Sources reviewed 02.10.2026 · Not a substitute for individual legal advice.