The consular office issues statements of equal value to educational qualifications, which are obtained in Bulgaria at schools and universities and which are recognized by the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Bulgaria.
With the statement of equal value to educational qualifications which are obtained in Bulgaria automatic recognition of the level of educational or professional qualification is not obtained in Italy.
For the recognition of the educational and professional qualification it’s necessary to first take a look at the information published on http://www.cimea.it/it/index.aspx – Information Centre on Academic Mobility and Equivalence
To obtain the statement of equal value of personal educational qualifications, which are obtained in Bulgaria, it’s necessary to present the following documents to the consular office:
• Form (downloadable here) which has to be completed in Italian or in English and which specifies the grounds for issuing the statement of equal value – work or study;
• Copy of the qualification bearing the “Apostille” stamp, translated into Italian and legalized by the Bulgarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs;
• Copy of the educational qualification Annex, if any, as an integral part of the qualification, bearing the “Apostille” stamp. Such copy has to be translated into Italian and legalized by the Bulgarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs;
• Copy of all pages of the apostilled, translated and legalized qualification, as well as the apostilled, translated and legalized Annex, if any;
• Copy of the ID of the person concerned – identity card or national passport;
• Certificate or other official document attesting the admission requirements to the course of study indicated in the relative qualification (e.g. admission scores, high school graduation results, entrance exam, professional qualification or experience);
• for baccalaureate and subsequent degrees a copy of all previous qualifications must be provided (for example, if a statement of equal value is required for a master’s degree, a copy of the higher school certificate must be provided; and a copy of the baccalaureate degree must be provided, if the master’s degree is not a single cycle programme);
• if for study purposes, a document certifying the continuation of studies at another level of education should be provided (confirmation of admission, tuition fee paid, etc.)
Additional Documentation
In the case of a high school diploma (diploma za sredno obrazovanie) which has been obtained before the 2003, a certificate from the School where the qualification has been obtained is required. Such certificate should specify, if not indicated in the qualification itself, the class achieved – 11th or 12th. The certificate must be presented in its original, without apostille, translation and legalization, and remains in the records of the consular office.
In the case of university degrees (diploma za visshe obrazovanie) or short-cycle degrees in higher education, the so-called “semi-higher” education (diploma za poluvisshe obrazovanie), obtained before the university reform (Law on Higher Education, DV №112 of 27.12.1995 and subsequent amendments and additions), a document issued by the respective University or Institute of higher education, or by the Ministry of Science and Education or by the National Information and Documentation Center is required. Such document should certify the correspondence to the academic degree of the higher education system in force (e.g. bachelor, master).
In the case of university degrees enabling the exercise of one of the professions included in the list of regulated professions in Bulgaria (see the list at: http://mail.nacid.bg/newdesign/qual/index.php?id=21), if for the purposes of recognition in Italy, additional documentation is required, certifying professional competence. For more information, contact the consular office by email: consolare.sofia@esteri.it
Depending on the degree and professional qualification, as well as the authorization to pursue a profession, conferred by the diploma, other documents may be requested on a case-by-case basis.
Example: in the case of a qualification enabling to the teaching profession, an official document must be provided, certifying the school subject that the applicant can teach, the ranks and grades of schools in which they can teach, the age range of the students.
Example: in the case of training that includes a basic and a maximum level, a certificate attesting the number of levels into which the profession is possibly articulated must be provided.
The application for a statement of equal value with the accompanying documentation requested must be provided to the consular office in person or through an authorized person with a simple letter of authorization, in which it must be indicated that a statement of equal value is requested, indicating its purpose (work or study) and to whom it will be presented in Italy (vedi modello di delega semplice). The signature in this letter should match the one on the ID, also a copy of the national ID of the authorized person should be attached.