Documents and Recognition for Turkey: Apostille and School Equivalence

Fee figures: catalogue of 6 October 2026.

For a foreign school diploma there are two layers. The university you apply to checks your documents against its admission criteria, and, if you finished school abroad, the education ministry (MEB) issues a certificate that your school education is equivalent to a Turkish high school. This guide explains both, using the MEB equivalence regulation and the pages of the Council of Higher Education (YÖK) and of TED University as a worked example, as read in October 2026.

Documents for the application

Requirements differ by university, so use the list on the page of the university you choose. TED University asks applicants for:

• the first page of the passport;
• the high school diploma, or, if you have not graduated, a certificate from the school that states the expected graduation date and expected graduation score;
• an official high school transcript with the grades of the courses taken;
• an official copy of the exam, diploma or test results the university accepts, for example the IB, SAT or TR-YÖS (see how to get into a university in Turkey);
• a photograph, and a letter from the funding institution if one pays for your studies.

Documents for registration

After admission the university asks for more. At TED University the list includes the diploma and the transcript with an apostille, with copies, the official exam result, a valid visa or residence permit, two biometric photographs and the tuition payment receipt. The university requires all documents to be in Turkish or English, with translations made by an official translation office.

An apostille is the certificate under the Hague Convention that confirms the signature and seal on a public document so that another country accepts it. You obtain it in the country where the document was issued, before you travel, from the authority named there for this purpose. If you hold IB, Cambridge, Matura or Baccalaureate documents, TED University says an apostille or an endorsement from the foreign and education ministries is mandatory. See apostille and legalisation of documents and sworn translation of documents.

The Turkish high school equivalence certificate

TED University states that anyone who finished high school abroad must hold a high school equivalence certificate to register at a university in Turkey. It describes the certificate as mandatory and a legal requirement for admission. It is issued by the education ministry, not by the university:

• You apply to a provincial or district education directorate in Turkey, or to an education counsellor or attaché at a Turkish embassy or consulate abroad.
• The university recommends applying while you are still at home. The application must be made in person by the student.
• If you are in Turkey without a student visa, TED University says you must obtain a residence permit before you can apply. If you came on a student visa, your passport is enough.

The regulation behind this is the MEB Equivalence Regulation of 9 July 2024 (Official Gazette no. 32597). For a graduate, it asks for the original diploma with an apostille or, where there is no apostille, a diploma confirmed by the education ministry, the foreign ministry or the embassy or consulate of the issuing country. Applications go through the e-Denklik system and the originals are shown at the equivalence centre. If the centre has no staff who read the language of the documents, the applicant brings notarised translations, or, for translations made abroad, translations certified by the consulate. The applicant must also show the passport pages that prove time spent in the country of schooling, or another document proving it.

Two limits in the regulation matter for applicants. The regulation does not give equivalence to documents obtained wholly or partly through distance learning. If a document is found to be forged or altered, no equivalence is issued and the case goes to the public prosecutor.

Degrees you already hold

If you already have a higher education degree, YÖK distinguishes between recognition and equivalence. The Diploma Equivalence Certificate is for people who want to practise a profession on the basis of their foreign degree, for graduates of health fields (compulsory), and for those who want to do a master's or doctorate in Turkey. The Graduation Recognition Certificate documents only that you graduated, without evaluating vocational achievements. Foreign nationals make a pre-application on the YÖK equivalence website, denklik.yok.gov.tr. Turkey has an ENIC-NARIC office within YÖK that has worked since 2003.

Timetable

1. Ask the university for its exact list before you order any documents.
2. Order transcripts and the diploma or school certificate, and get them apostilled in your home country.
3. Apply for the equivalence certificate through the education attaché in your country, if there is one, or in Turkey on arrival.
4. Have translations made by a Turkish or an officially recognised translator.

Official sources

• MEB Equivalence Regulation, Official Gazette 9 July 2024, articles 4 to 6 and the section on documents not covered
• Study in Türkiye: recognition and equivalence
• YÖK equivalence portal
• TED University: equivalency certificate
• TED University: required documents

Always check current information on the official website of the university before you apply.