MoHESR Enhances Recognition Procedures For Foreign Higher Education Qualifications

The Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research (MoHESR) has introduced Ministerial Resolution No. (34) of 2025. This resolution focuses on recognising qualifications from foreign higher education institutions (HEIs). It mandates verifying the authenticity of qualifications and ensuring that the issuing HEI is legally established, licensed, and accredited by the relevant body in its home country.

Ahmad Ibrahim Alsaadi, Acting Assistant Undersecretary for the Higher Education Operations Sector and Director of the International Education Support and Scholarships Department at MoHESR, highlighted the alignment of this decision with the Ministry’s goals. The aim is to simplify the recognition process for foreign qualifications, reducing time, effort, and documentation while maintaining validity.

This initiative aligns with the Zero Government Bureaucracy programme and international best practices in education. The Ministry aims to create a seamless, flexible, proactive educational journey focused on excellence. The decision follows a successful pilot launch that significantly reduced requirements by over 70% compared to previous systems.

The pilot launch demonstrated remarkable improvements. Recognised qualifications increased from 5,780 to 12,180 compared to last year. Document requirements dropped from 14 to four, enhancing access to recognition data and reducing declined requests from 8.3% to 3.5%, according to pilot data.

Alsaadi stated, "The updated system seamlessly integrates with various local scholarship bodies to streamline the recognition of foreign qualifications, using two unified standards across all specialisations and universities. This enhances the graduate experience, simplifying certificates recognition for employment or continuation of postgraduate studies."

Providing an integrated student journey is a strategic priority for MoHESR. The Ministry is redesigning this journey comprehensively to ensure it meets students’ academic and career needs while supporting the Zero Government Bureaucracy programme.

Digital Transformation in Education

The Ministry is also enhancing its digital services from enrolment through graduation. This transformation aims to enable seamless entry into the labour market for graduates. By improving these services, MoHESR supports students throughout their educational journey.

This resolution represents a significant step towards improving educational processes in line with global standards. It ensures that students receive recognised qualifications efficiently while maintaining high standards of verification and accreditation.

With inputs from WAM