UK ENIC and Translations: Document Recognition for the United Kingdom
Fee figures: catalogue of 6 October 2026.
The United Kingdom has no office that must approve your school certificate before you apply to a university. Each university decides for itself whether your qualification is enough for its course, and at what grades. UK ENIC can tell you what your certificate compares to, for a fee, but its statement is not a condition of entry.
The university decides
UK courses usually state their requirements in A levels, but UCAS notes that many universities accept equivalent international qualifications, and most publish what they want from each country. If your country is not listed, ask the admissions office before you apply.
For the IB Diploma and the European Baccalaureate, universities set a required total and subject scores. For national certificates, such as the Abitur, the Spanish *bachillerato* or the Italian *diploma*, they compare your grades with A levels. Some certificates are not enough for direct entry to some courses, and the university then suggests a foundation year: see how to get into a UK university.
Sending your documents through UCAS
For 2027 entry UCAS lets every applicant upload documents to the education section of the application:
- official qualification certificates and transcripts
- English test certificates, such as IELTS, TOEFL or PTE
- an official English translation next to any certificate that is not in English
UCAS counts a translation as official if it is made by the body that awarded the qualification or by a recognised, qualified translator, with a signed confirmation of accuracy and the translator's credentials. Self-translations are not accepted. Files can be PDF, JPEG, PNG or Word, up to 5 MB each.
Uploads are optional and UCAS does not check or verify them. For most international qualifications, UCAS says you send your results to the university yourself, including final grades that arrive after you apply, so read every message from the admissions office.
UK ENIC: the Statement of Comparability
UK ENIC, run by Ecctis for the Department for Education and formerly called UK NARIC, compares foreign qualifications with the education systems of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
| Service | Price | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Statement of Comparability with e-Statement | £69.60 (about €83) | up to 15 working days |
| Fast Track | £223.20 (about €265) | 2 working days |
| Fast Track | £284.40 (about €338) | 1 working day |
The time starts once UK ENIC has all documents and payment. You upload clear colour photos of your final certificates, transcripts signed and dated by the school or awarding body, proof of identity and, if needed, translations.
When it is useful: when a university asks for it, when your qualification is unusual and a university is unsure what it is worth, or later for jobs. UCAS mentions it as an option, not a requirement. UK ENIC says the statement cannot be used as proof of English for the Home Office.
Translations for UK ENIC
UK ENIC accepts certified translations from professional translators. For some languages you can skip translation through its Translation Waiver Service:
- Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian and Spanish: free
- Catalan, German, Italian, Japanese, Polish, Romanian and Ukrainian: £49.20 (about €58) on top of the standard fee, or free with Fast Track
Translations for the Student visa
For a degree course at a university, the Home Office guidance says you do not need to send evidence of the qualifications used to get your offer: the university lists on your CAS the documents it relied on. The caseworker can still ask for them.
Any document you send with the visa application that is not in English or Welsh, such as a bank statement or a birth certificate, needs a certified translation from a professional translator or translation company that the Home Office can verify. It must include:
- confirmation that it is an accurate translation of the document
- the date of translation
- the full name and signature of the translator or an official of the translation company
- the translator's or company's contact details
If the Home Office needs to check the level of a foreign qualification, it uses the Qualification and Language Service, a separate Ecctis service. See sworn translations and student visa for the UK.
Apostille
Neither UCAS, UK ENIC nor the Home Office guidance for students asks for an apostille on school certificates. If a university asks for one, follow its instructions; see apostille and legalisation.
A realistic order of steps
- Find your country on each university's international entry requirements page.
- Order professional translations of your transcripts and certificates.
- Apply through UCAS and upload certificates, translations and English test results.
- Order a UK ENIC statement only if a university asks for it.
- Send final results to the university as soon as you have them.
Where to look next
- How to get into a university in the UK
- How much it costs to study in the UK
- Student visa for the UK
- Student housing in the UK
- All 17,679 programmes in the UK
Official sources
- UCAS: uploading documents to your application
- UCAS: entry requirements for international students
- UK ENIC: Statement of Comparability
- UK ENIC: Translation Waiver Service
- GOV.UK: Student and Child Student caseworker guidance
Always check current information on the official website of the university before you apply.