GPS and school competitions with a foreign qualification

Taking part in a school competition or updating the GPS rankings with a qualification obtained abroad requires recognition of the qualification in Italy, and for the ordinary route, that of the qualified teacher, there are two qualifications to be recognised, the degree through the academic route and the teaching qualification through the professional route, with two different authorities. Unlike other public competitions, for schools recognition must be applied for before the notice closes.

The premise that changes everything: the simplified procedure does not apply to schools

For other public competitions, since 2025, a person with a foreign qualification may take part on the qualification alone and apply for equivalence only if successful, within fifteen days of the ranking. This is the simplification of Article 38 of Legislative Decree 165 of 2001, reaffirmed by the so-called 2025 Public Administration Decree. This procedure does not apply to teaching staff. Law 15 of 2022 made this clear, excluding the regulated professions from Article 38, and teaching is one. The consequence is practical and heavy: for schools the foreign qualification must already be recognised, or the recognition application must already have been submitted, by the closing date of the notice or order. Those who wait until they have won before acting arrive too late.

The double recognition: degree and teaching qualification

For the ordinary route the notice requires, jointly, two qualifications, the degree consistent with the competition class and the teaching qualification for that class. They are two requirements of a different nature, the degree is the academic title, the teaching qualification is the professional qualification that allows one to teach. If obtained abroad they are recognised by two distinct routes, with two different authorities. Two important clarifications. The double recognition concerns qualifications that genuinely come from abroad, so if the degree is Italian and only the teaching qualification is foreign, only the latter is recognised, and vice versa. And it applies to the qualified-teacher route, that is the ordinary competition and the first band of the GPS, whereas the second band of the GPS is entered on the degree alone as the access qualification, and there the recognition needed is the academic recognition of the degree.

Academic recognition of the degree

The foreign qualification is made to count through academic recognition, within the competence of the Italian universities, which by their own decree declare the equipollenza or equivalence of the qualification under Law 148 of 2002, ratifying the Lisbon Convention, and Presidential Decree 189 of 2009. Here lies the most widespread error. Neither the Declaration of Value, nor the CIMEA comparability statement, nor the sworn translation in itself constitutes recognition. They are documents accompanying the case. The Declaration of Value is needed in any event, even for European Union qualifications, but the legal value of the degree is conferred only by the university’s decree.

Professional recognition of the teaching qualification

The teaching qualification is a professional qualification and is made to count through professional recognition, within the competence of the Ministry of Education and Merit, under Legislative Decree 206 of 2007, which transposes Directive 2005/36/EC, and for non-EU qualifications also Article 49 of Presidential Decree 394 of 1999. For teaching there is no automatic recognition, not even for European Union qualifications, and the Ministry carries out a comparative assessment of the course. Where substantial differences emerge it may impose compensation measures, an aptitude test or an adaptation period. The principle of correspondence applies, the qualification is recognisable only for the subject and level for which it qualifies in the country of origin, so a person qualified in mathematics cannot apply for recognition for another subject.

The documents for the teaching qualification change according to origin

For a teaching qualification obtained in the European Union the Declaration of Value is not required, but the certificate of conformity issued by the competent authority of the country of origin, certifying that teaching is a regulated profession, for which subject and school level the qualification qualifies and its level under Article 11 of the directive. For a teaching qualification obtained in a third country, the Declaration of Value of the Italian consular mission is required instead, together with the detailed documentation on syllabuses, hours of theory and of practical work, traineeship and final examination. This is the only substantial difference the law recognises between EU and non-EU qualifications for teaching, because the assessment on the merits remains in both cases.

The foreign qualification as access to the GPS

The assessment tables annexed to the order, for the current cycle Ministerial Order 27 of 2026, admit the foreign qualification as an access qualification to the rankings, provided it has been recognised in Italy. For nursery and primary school, table A/1 includes the teaching qualification obtained abroad, valid in the country of origin and recognised in Italy. For secondary school, table A/3 does the same for the competition class, and for support teaching table A/7 considers the recognised foreign specialisation.

Access qualifications and additional qualifications: who submits the application

Not all foreign qualifications follow the same route. Access qualifications, that is the teaching qualification, the support specialisation or the degree used as a requirement, require a recognition application submitted by the candidate, to the Ministry for the teaching qualification and to the university for the degree. Merely additional qualifications, those that give points in the ranking, such as a master’s or a second degree, do not require a prior individual application, because it is the regional school office that asks the Ministry of University for the assessment opinion. Distinguishing the two cases at the outset avoids the wrong procedure.

Provisional entry and the resolutive clause

If the qualifications are not yet recognised, admission is possible only provisionally, and only if the recognition applications were lodged by the deadline, with the details indicated on the platform. With this provisional status the candidate sits the tests or enters the ranking, and may enter fixed-term supply contracts, but with a resolutive clause, because in the event of refusal the contract is terminated and the entry cancelled. The regional school office verifies the requirements and may order exclusion at any stage of the procedure.

The routes of access to secondary school

For secondary school there are three alternative channels. The first, ordinary, a consistent degree plus the teaching qualification. The second, transitional, a consistent degree plus three years of service in State schools in the last five, provided for by Legislative Decree 59 of 2017 and implemented by Ministerial Decree 205 of 2023. The third, provisional, a consistent degree plus enrolment on the qualifying or specialisation courses to be completed by the deadline set in the notice. In every case the degree consistent with the competition class is the common, non-derogable requirement, and if foreign it must be recognised by the university.

Support teaching

For support teaching posts the requirement is not the subject teaching qualification but the support specialisation, in Italy under the Ministerial Decree of 30 September 2011, or a foreign one recognised by the Ministry as a professional qualification. The degree consistent with the underlying competition class remains necessary in any event. The specialisation replaces the subject teaching qualification, because it is an autonomous qualification directed at teaching pupils with disabilities. The subject of foreign support qualifications, following the Council of State judgment 6816 of 2026, is explored on the dedicated page.

Primary school

Primary school is the most closed segment. Access requires a specific qualification with qualifying effect, the degree in Primary Education Sciences or the teacher-training diploma obtained by the 2001/2002 school year, and no access by service alone is provided, unlike secondary school. Foreign qualifications must be recognised under the same rules, provisional admission only if the recognition application has been submitted within the deadline.

Documents, translations and compensation measures

All documents issued by foreign authorities must be officially translated into Italian, with a translation certified as conforming by the diplomatic mission or sworn before a judicial office, and legalised or bearing an Apostille under the Hague Convention of 1961. The absence of a translation or legalisation makes the document unusable. Where the Ministry finds substantial differences it may make recognition of the teaching qualification subject to a compensation measure, and only on passing it does it issue the decree. The procedures often take a long time, which is one more reason to act well in advance.

The deadlines

The deadlines are set by each order or notice. For the 2026/2028 cycle Order 27 of 2026 provided the window from 23 February to 16 March 2026, with online application only, and by the same date the recognition applications for foreign qualifications used as access also had to have been submitted. At each new update or notice the dates in force must be checked.

Legal references: Article 38 of Legislative Decree 165 of 2001 and Law 15 of 2022, Law 148 of 2002 and the Lisbon Convention, Presidential Decree 189 of 2009, Legislative Decree 206 of 2007 and Directive 2005/36/EC, Article 49 of Presidential Decree 394 of 1999, Legislative Decree 59 of 2017 and Ministerial Decree 205 of 2023, Ministerial Decree of 30 September 2011, Ministerial Order 27 of 2026.