Whether your foreign degree "counts" in France depends entirely on what you need it for. The two most common paths (general comparison versus regulated-profession recognition) are handled by completely different bodies, with different rules and different outcomes.
What ENIC-NARIC France actually does
The ENIC-NARIC France centre, run by France Éducation International, issues an attestation de comparabilité: a documented opinion stating that your foreign diploma's academic level is broadly comparable to a named reference French diploma. This is useful for job applications, further study, or simply having an official reference point an employer or institution can understand. What it is not: a legal equivalence, and it does not authorize you to practice a regulated profession, even if the comparison names an equivalent French professional diploma.
As of 2026, this attestation can no longer be used to support a French naturalization application (a rule change effective from decree n°2025-648, with naturalization-grounds requests refused since October 2025). If that was your reason for requesting one, confirm with a specialist which document you actually need instead.
The process, in practice
The application is entirely online through the France Éducation International portal, costs €120, and takes up to 4 months to process. Allow extra time if your original documents need translation or your home country's ministry needs to confirm the diploma's authenticity along the way.
How the application runs, step by step
The fee is paid in two parts. A first payment of €20 covers the check that your file is admissible. If it is, a second payment of €100 covers the assessment itself. The processing time counts from the payment, not from the day you opened the file.
- After pre-registration, an email with your file number arrives within 24 hours.
- Documents are uploaded on the platform only. Nothing can be sent by post. Each one is scanned separately, in colour, and must not exceed 2 MB.
- Once you confirm the submission, you can no longer change the file.
- The attestation is sent by email as a PDF. That PDF is the original. No paper copy is posted.
If your file is declared inadmissible, you can contest the decision in writing, with supporting documents, within 2 months of being notified.
Asylum seekers and refugees do not pay the fee. They attach proof of their status.
When no attestation is issued
Not every qualification can be assessed. The centre does not issue an attestation when:
- the diploma or the institution is not recognised by the authorities of the country that issued it;
- the training gives a skill but does not lead to a diploma;
- the document is a language test or a language diploma;
- the diploma gives access to a regulated profession.
In those cases you receive a letter saying that no attestation could be issued. A refund is sometimes possible, and the letter explains how.
Remember also who has the last word. Nobody is obliged to ask for the attestation. For studies, each French institution sets its own admission criteria and decides at enrolment. For a job in a non-regulated profession, the employer decides. To see whether a profession is regulated, the official service-public site points to the directory at guichet-qualifications.fr.
Regulated professions: a completely different process
If your profession is regulated in France, and more than 200 professions are, spanning legal and judicial roles (avocat, notaire), healthcare (médecin, pharmacien, chirurgien-dentiste), and technical/built-environment professions (expert-comptable, architecte, géomètre-expert), ENIC-NARIC does not handle your recognition at all. You apply directly to the relevant professional order, DREETS, chamber, or ministry, and the process is governed by EU Directive 2005/36/CE when it applies.
This matters because founders sometimes get an ENIC-NARIC comparability attestation, assume it clears them to practice, and only discover the gap when the professional order rejects their registration. If your profession involves a protected title, a required diploma, mandatory registration with a supervisory body, or a code of ethics (the hallmarks of a regulated profession in France), check with that profession's order directly before assuming any general comparison document is sufficient.
EU versus non-EU qualifications
Qualifications earned within the EU benefit from mutual recognition frameworks that make cross-border professional practice meaningfully smoother, particularly for regulated professions under the 2005/36/CE directive. Non-EU qualifications are assessed case by case, with no presumption of equivalence, which is exactly why the ENIC-NARIC comparison, imperfect as it is, remains the standard first step for non-EU-trained professionals trying to establish where they stand before applying anywhere else.