Nostrification in Czechia: How to Get Your School Certificate and Degree Recognised

To enter a Czech university with a school certificate from Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Russia, Belarus or most other non-EU countries, you must show that it is equivalent to Czech secondary education completed with the maturita exam. There are two routes: general nostrification at a regional authority (krajský úřad; in Prague, the City Hall) for $140 (CZK 3,000), possibly with exams, or an assessment by the faculty within the admission procedure for up to $49 (CZK 1,055), valid for one faculty and one academic year only. A bachelor's or master's degree is recognised by a public university that runs a similar programme, also for CZK 3,000. There is no automatic recognition of recent certificates or degrees from these countries.

Russian citizens should check the visa question before paying for translations and nostrification: Czech embassies currently do not accept their student visa or residence applications (see our guide to the student visa and residence permit).

Which route do you need?

Nostrification confirms the level of education only. It does not replace entrance exams or a language certificate and does not give the right to practise a regulated profession.

Why there is no automatic recognition

Czechia recognises school certificates without a procedure only under equivalence agreements with Slovakia, Poland, Hungary and Slovenia (for higher education, also Germany).

For university degrees there is a historical exception. The 1972 protocol between Czechoslovakia and the USSR on equivalence of education documents remained in force for the successor states until the following dates:

For degrees issued before these dates, the Czech Ministry of Education (MŠMT) issues a free statement confirming equivalence on written request. This does not help recent school leavers.

General nostrification of a school certificate

Who decides. The education department of the regional authority for your place of stay in Czechia; in Prague, the City Hall. If you have no place of stay in Czechia yet, competence follows the place where you file. MŠMT only handles appeals. You can file through a representative with a written power of attorney while still living at home.

What to submit (MŠMT list):

• application (forms from the regional authorities);
• original certificate or an officially certified copy;
• evidence of the content and scope of your studies: transcript and a school statement listing subjects and hours;
• confirmation that the school belongs to the state education system, if not evident from the certificate;
• official Czech translation by a translator registered in the Czech list of court translators;
• authentication of signatures and stamps (see the table below);
• power of attorney if a representative files;
• proof of your place of stay in Czechia, if you have one;
• proof of payment of $140 (CZK 3,000).

How the region decides. It compares your studies with the relevant Czech curriculum and must match your education to a specific Czech field of study. Three outcomes are possible: full recognition with a nostrification clause; a nostrification exam if the content differs partly (or if you cannot document it), followed by recognition; or refusal if the content differs substantially or the exam is failed.

Timing. 30 days from a complete file (or from the exam), extendable by up to 30 days in complex cases. Appeals go to MŠMT via the regional authority within 15 days. The recognised certificate is valid in Czechia from the date the decision becomes final, and the law sets no expiry.

The nostrification exam

Rules are set by MŠMT Decree No. 12/2005:

• it checks whether your knowledge matches the aims and content of the Czech curriculum and may include a practical part;
• it is normally held in Czech; another language is possible only by agreement with the regional authority and if it does not defeat the purpose;
• the region chooses the school, the date and the content;
• a commission of at least three members decides by vote, and a record is kept.

Nobody can honestly tell you the number of subjects in advance. The region sets exams where your curriculum differs noticeably from the Czech one, so keep textbooks from subjects with few hours and learn the Czech terminology alongside the language.

What to request from your school before you leave

Under MŠMT rules an exam is ordered not only when curricula differ but also when the applicant cannot document the content and scope of studies. So, while still at home, ask your school for:

• the transcript with grades;
• a statement listing subjects by year with the number of hours for each, signed by the principal and stamped;
• for private schools, a copy of the licence or other proof that the school is part of the state system.

If you are still in your final year, there is nothing to nostrify yet. You can apply to universities anyway: faculties set their own deadline for proof of education, usually the enrolment date in summer. If your certificate arrives in June and you want to start in September of the same year, general nostrification with exams will very likely be too late; a faculty assessment (where offered) or a preparatory year is more realistic.

Faculty assessment during admission

Section 48(4) of the Higher Education Act allows a faculty to check a foreign certificate itself. Conditions:

• the certificate was issued by a school operating under the law of its country and gives access to bachelor's studies there;
• the faculty may ask for the subjects and hours, confirmation that the school was authorised, and confirmation that graduates may enter higher education in that country;
• if in doubt, the faculty can require general nostrification;
• the fee is at most 20% of the MŠMT base amount: up to $49 (CZK 1,055) in 2026/27.

At Charles University, for example, the documents are sent to the faculty by post (not e-mail), and you select this route in the online application. Translations into Czech or English must be made by a sworn translator (Czech or foreign) and bound to certified copies. The result is valid only for admission to that faculty in that academic year; after a negative assessment the faculty asks for general nostrification.

Authentication: apostille or certified copy?

Charles University publishes a table of authentication requirements by issuing country:

MŠMT's general rules for school certificates require authentication by the Czech embassy and the issuing country's foreign ministry "unless an international treaty provides otherwise". Confirm the requirement with the regional authority before you spend time on an apostille you may not need, or arrive without one you do need. Apostilles are issued only in the country that issued the document.

Recognition of a university degree

Who decides: a public university that offers a similar programme (private universities cannot); the Ministry of Defence for military education and the Ministry of the Interior for security services. You may not file the same application at several universities at once.

Documents: certified copies of the diploma and the transcript or diploma supplement, plus proof of any name change. MŠMT accepts documents in English and Slovak without translation; Charles University accepts translations into Czech or English.

Fee and timing: $140 (CZK 3,000) paid to the university; decision within 30 days, up to 60 in complex cases; appeal to MŠMT within 15 days via the university.

For master's admission the faculty can instead check your degree within the admission procedure (Section 48(5)). No recognition decision is issued; the faculty records the result in your admission file, so it cannot be used for employment.

Costs at a glance

Fees are not refunded if the application is refused.

Plan for a September 2027 start

This plan assumes you already hold your certificate (school class of 2026). If you finish school in 2027, general nostrification is unlikely to be completed by September of the same year; see the section on what to collect from your school.

A preparatory year in Czechia leaves time to complete nostrification on site; see Czech preparatory courses and our step-by-step guide to applying to Czech universities.

Common mistakes

• Waiting until the language course ends: a decision ordering an exam can arrive within the 30-day time limit, and the exam is held in Czech.
• Bringing a translation from home where the region requires a Czech court translator.
• Leaving without a statement of subjects and hours.
• Relying only on faculty assessments while applying to five universities.
• Confusing degree recognition with the right to practise medicine or teaching.
• Filing degree recognition at a university without a similar programme.

FAQ

Sources

• MŠMT: recognition of foreign secondary education, recognition of higher education, USSR protocol, 2026 fee base — checked 24.09.2026
• MŠMT Decree No. 12/2005 and Higher Education Act No. 111/1998 (Sections 48, 58) — checked 24.09.2026
• Charles University: recognition of foreign education, degree recognition, assessment within admission (PDF), authentication by country (PDF) — checked 24.09.2026
• Study in Czechia: how to apply — checked 24.09.2026
• Exchange rate: ECB, 23.09.2026, €1 = $1.1411 = CZK 24.383

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