IB Diploma and University Admission in Italy: Recognition, Tests and Paperwork

Fee figures: catalogue of 6 October 2026.

For an IB student, Italy works differently from Germany or Spain. Italian universities do not convert your points into a ranking. For many degrees anyone with a valid school-leaving qualification can enrol, and where places are limited, an admission test decides. So the questions are: is the diploma accepted, which test applies, and which papers the university wants.

Is the IB Diploma accepted?

Yes. Italy has recognised the IB Diploma by law since 1986 (Law 738/1986). In practice universities handle it as a foreign school qualification, and the general conditions of the ministry's yearly procedures apply:

A final secondary qualification after at least twelve years of schooling. The full IB Diploma is one. Course results without the diploma are not.
Proof of the qualification. The ministry's procedures for 2026/27 and 2027/28 leave it to each university to decide whether it wants a statement from CIMEA, the Italian recognition centre, or a Declaration of Value from an Italian consulate, alongside the diploma. Universities are asked not to require the Declaration of Value from students who do not need a visa.

Because the choice is left to the university, read its call for applications before paying for any statement. The two documents are explained in Declaration of Value and CIMEA.

What decides admission

Free access degrees. You enrol. There is an initial knowledge check, and a weak result means extra coursework, not rejection.
Degrees with local limited places. The university runs a test, very often a TOLC, which can be taken online several times a year. Your IB score normally plays no part.
Degrees with national limited places. Medicine, Dentistry and Veterinary Medicine taught in Italian start with an open first semester followed by national exams. Medicine in English uses the IMAT test.

The tests are described in IMAT and TOLC. For an IB student the practical point is that test preparation matters more than the last points of the diploma.

If you need a visa

Applicants who need a study visa must pre-enrol on Universitaly, the ministry's portal, and it is the only channel. The university validates the request and the consulate then handles the visa. Two things from the current procedures:

Visa applications for 2026/27 must be submitted by 30 November 2026, and for 2027/28 by 31 October 2027. Universities can set earlier dates.
From 2026/27 a university can validate only as many pre-enrolment requests as it has places reserved for these applicants, so applying early matters.

EU citizens and residents apply on the same terms as Italians. More on the visa itself is in student visa for Italy.

Language

For Italian-taught degrees each university organises a test of Italian at level B2 or higher, with a list of exemptions, for example for holders of recognised certificates. See Italian language exams. Italy also has a large English-taught offer: our catalogue lists 233 bachelor's programmes taught in English.

Fees

Public university fees depend on family income and are low for many families. The details are in how much it costs to study in Italy.

Official sources

Universitaly: pre-enrolment and the ministry's yearly procedures for international students
CIMEA: Italian centre for the recognition of qualifications
CISIA: TOLC tests

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