The Finnish National Board of Education (FNBE) decides on the eligibility provided by foreign qualifications for civil service posts in Finland and functions as the National Academic Recognition Information Centre.

Recognition of qualifications refers to a decision on the types of eligibility that a foreign educational qualification provides for a job or a place of study. In Finland, decisions on recognition of qualifications are made by the following parties:

Professional recognition

• The Finnish National Board of Education decides on the eligibility conferred by foreign qualifications for civil service posts in Finland.
• Field-specific authorities decide on granting professional practice rights.
• Private sector employers generally assess the competence conferred by a foreign qualification themselves when deciding on employee recruitment.

Academic recognition

Higher education institutions and other educational institutions decide on:
• eligibility conferred by foreign qualifications for further studies
• recognition of studies completed abroad towards a qualification to be taken in Finland.

On request, the Finnish National Board of Education provides higher education institutions with advice on questions relating to academic recognition. In addition to higher education institutions, the Finnish National Board of Education caters for other authorities, educational institutions and individual citizens in Finland and abroad.