Getting Your Diploma Certified and Translated for a Portuguese University

September 10, 2026 · The Editor, O Gravata Translations

"Getting my diploma certified" sounds like one step. In practice, for a Portuguese university, it's three separate steps that often get lumped together — and mixing them up is the single biggest source of confusion for international students.

The three separate things "diploma certification" actually means

1. Academic recognition / equivalence. This is the university (or, in some cases, DGES) confirming that your foreign degree is equivalent to a Portuguese one. Some universities handle this internally as part of the admissions review — they'll ask for your transcript and grading scale and issue an approval letter. Others route it through a formal DGES equivalence process. This varies by institution, so it's worth confirming directly which path your university uses rather than assuming.

2. Apostille. If your diploma and transcripts come from a country in the Hague Apostille Convention (which includes the US, UK, India, and most others), they need an apostille — not embassy legalization — from the relevant authority in the issuing country (in the US, typically the Secretary of State's office).

3. Certified Portuguese translation. This is separate from both of the above, and it's the one that catches people off guard. Some universities accept your documents in English for the admissions review itself, but still require a certified Portuguese translation for your official academic file once you're enrolled. Whether this applies to you depends entirely on the specific university's policy — it's not something you can assume either way.

Why the confusion happens

Universities' admissions pages tend to describe step 1 (academic recognition) clearly, because it's the step that determines whether you get in. Steps 2 and 3 are often buried in enrollment paperwork you only see after you've been accepted — which is exactly why students end up scrambling for a certified translation days before a registration deadline.

The fix is simple: when you're accepted, ask your university's Serviços Académicos (academic services office) directly whether they require a certified Portuguese translation for enrollment, separate from whatever was needed for the admissions review. Don't infer the answer from the admissions page.

What "certified" means in Portugal

Portugal doesn't have a national registry of sworn translators. A translation is certified when it's done through one of these channels, under Article 38 of Lei 76-A/2006:

• A Portuguese lawyer, certifying under their Ordem dos Advogados registration
• A Portuguese notary
• A Portuguese consulate
• The Portuguese Chamber of Commerce

A translation certified in your home country — even by a well-credentialed translator — generally isn't accepted on its own, because it wasn't certified under Portuguese legal authority.

A practical order of operations

1. Get your diploma and transcript apostilled in your home country.
2. Send the apostilled documents (a clear scan works) for certified Portuguese translation.
3. Confirm with your university's academic services office whether they need this for enrollment, or only the equivalence/recognition step.
4. Keep both the apostilled original and the certified translation — universities and future employers may ask for either.

One detail worth checking

If the certification comes with a public registration number (common when it's done via a lawyer registered with the Ordem dos Advogados, checkable at oa.pt/atos), that can save you a round of back-and-forth if an administrative office is unfamiliar with the document or wants to double-check it independently.

Bottom line

Academic equivalence, apostille, and certified translation are three different requirements, evaluated by different offices, on different timelines. Treating them as one step — or assuming your admission approval already covers the translation — is the most common reason students end up doing this at the last minute.

This article is general information, not legal advice. Requirements vary by institution and by case — confirm with the office that will receive your documents.

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