Last updated: 30-Sep-2026. Salamanca, Spain
Update: Plain-language revision explaining how to recover academic records, when an additional assessment is proposed and what its report would establish.
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Problem: the authority assessing a foreign qualification needs to know which subjects the person completed, how long the programme lasted and the study workload. The transcript that normally provides this information is missing. First check whether the university, its successor or an archive can supply enough official evidence, in one document or several records considered together.
Solution: where the necessary information cannot be recovered from the usual official records, IBDED proposes an additional academic assessment procedure. Under defined rules, assessors would examine the other verified evidence of the person's studies. This is the subsidiary reconstruction and assessment procedure explained below.
Practical result: a report explains which parts of the person's studies have been established, what remains unverified and how those gaps affect recognition of the qualification. The responsible authority then gives a reasoned decision. It may require additional training or another compensatory step only where the qualification rules allow it. The report would not invent a transcript, and being admitted to assessment would not guarantee recognition.
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Royal Decree 889/2022 asks for two different kinds of evidence. Article 13(1)(c) concerns the diploma or a certificate showing that it was issued. Article 13(1)(d) concerns what the person studied: the programme's official duration in academic years, the subjects taken, the workload for each subject and applicable ECTS credits, among other required information. [1]
The decisive question is therefore not whether the applicant possesses a document called a “transcript”, but whether the required academic information is established through acceptable official evidence. Proof of graduation alone does not necessarily answer that question. An apostille cannot supply missing subjects, hours or credits.
The procedures also differ. Homologación concerns the effects specified for qualifications giving access to regulated professions; declaración de equivalencia concerns the relevant academic level and does not itself confer the professional effects reserved to homologación. Recognition of completed studies by a university is a further distinct procedure. The authority and substantive assessment must correspond to the application actually made. [1]
The person's legal status must be identified before applying the ordinary documentary rules. Article 30 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1347 requires equal treatment in existing qualification-recognition procedures for beneficiaries of international protection and facilitation of full access where they cannot provide documentary evidence. It also addresses access to assessment, validation and recognition of prior learning and experience. The Regulation applies from 12 June 2026. These provisions concern recognised international protection within their scope; they do not automatically recognise a degree or apply identically to every asylum applicant or ordinary residence holder. [2]
Temporary protection has a separate Spanish provision. The second transitional provision of Royal Decree 889/2022 permits a declaration to replace the specified documents for the purpose of starting the procedure, but does not remove the documentary evidence required for its final determination. It also contains specific rules on correction periods and the timing of fees. Temporary protection must not be treated as the same status as refugee or subsidiary protection. [1]
This proposal addresses cases in the ordinary procedure that remain unresolved because the required academic information cannot be obtained. It must not reduce the more favourable rights or procedures already available to protected persons. Faster processing, where available, shortens the wait; it does not prove what the person studied.
The existing supplement or transcript should first be examined against Article 13(1)(d). A differently titled academic certificate may be relevant if its contents establish the required information and it meets the applicable formal requirements. Conversely, an archive letter confirming attendance or graduation does not necessarily reproduce the programme's subjects and workload.
A duplicate or a certificate from a successor institution or archive may help, but it must contain the information that is missing. Check who is entitled to certify the records, whether they concern this applicant and which programme they cover. A closed university may have transferred its records. Check for a successor or archive before concluding that the records cannot be recovered.
Several official records may together provide the information normally found in a transcript. IBDED asks for guidance on assessing them together, rather than insisting on a single document merely because that is the usual format. This does not mean that any collection of partial records is sufficient. The authority must explain which required facts they prove and which are still missing. [1]
Direct confirmation from an issuer or archive may help verify a record or clarify its contents. It does not automatically replace a document required by Article 13 or remove the applicable authentication and translation conditions. The actual issuer must be identified before selecting the relevant authentication route. [1]
The same distinction applies to a historic curriculum. It may describe the programme offered to a cohort, but does not, without further evidence, prove that a particular person completed every subject in it. Evidence connecting the applicant to the programme and the completed studies remains necessary.