Since the beginning of what is often referred to as the refugee crisis in Europe, the recognition of qualifications held by refugees has become one of the tools for refugees’ integration into European societies. A survey published in 2016 showed that some 70 per cent of the States parties to the Council of Europe/UNESCO Convention on the Recognition of Qualifications concerning Higher Education in the European Region (Lisbon Recognition Convention; ETS 165) have not taken measures to implement Article VII of the Convention, which refers to the recognition of qualifications held by refugees, displaced persons and persons in a refugee-like situation that cannot be fully documented.

In 2017, the Council of Europe implemented a pilot project in Greece that successfully tested the European Qualifications Passport for Refugees, a methodology that makes it possible to assess qualifications held by refugees in cases where those qualifications cannot be fully documented and also provides a format for describing those qualifications, once assessed, that should facilitate the use of the assessment both within and beyond the refugee’s (first) host country. At its extraordinary meeting on 14 November 2017, the Lisbon Recognition Convention Committee adopted a Recommendation on the Recognition of Refugees’ Qualifications under the Lisbon Recognition Convention and its Explanatory Memorandum .

The assessment of qualifications held by refugees is based on a self-assessment questionnaire and a structured interview conducted by a team of two credentials evaluators from different ENICs (national information centre on recognition), at least one of whom has expert knowledge of the language and education system of the country from which the applicant claims to have his/her qualification. If the credentials evaluators, through the interview and using any available documentation, consider it likely the applicant has earned the qualification claimed, the qualification is described in a defined format called the European Qualifications Passport for Refugees (EQPR). The EQPR includes three sections: the assessment part, the explanatory part and advice on the way ahead. The assessment part of the document contains information describing the highest achieved qualification(s), subject field, other relevant qualifications, as well as work experience and language proficiency. The explanatory and advisory sections contain information about the status of the document and a short description of the project.

The EQPR should eliminate unnecessary and repeated further assessments of the same qualifications in other European countries if and when the EQPR holder moves. The EQPR does not constitute a formal recognition act, and it will not give access to study programmes or profession with specific requirements, such as most regulated profession (typically medical doctor, dentist, lawyer, engineer), but it does set out the attainment of the individual.

The EQPR was developed through a pilot project conducted by the Council of Europe in 2017, with the participation of Greece (Ministry and ENIC), Italy (ENIC), Norway (ENIC), and the United Kingdom (ENIC) as well as the UNHCR.

The second phase of the project runs from 2018 through 2020 and involves the original partners plus the ENICs of Armenia, Canada, France, Germany, and the Netherlands. Interviews have taken place in Greece, France, Italy, and the Netherlands and will also be conducted in Germany. Additional countries - including Belgium (Flemish community), Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Ireland and Spain – have shown interest in participating as observers in the evaluations.

Many of the applicants are interviewed online, and the development of a secure IT platform is an important part of the project.

By December 2019, 438 EQPR have been issued out of 525 interviews.

With a credible methodology now tested, the current focus is on upscaling the use of the EQPR. This is being done mainly through on-line interviews and the development of evaluators' capacity on the EQPR methodology including a creation of a pool of trained credential evaluators among the National Recognition Centres (ENICs/NARIC)s and to make the EQPR an integral part of recognition. Awareness raising is key and the project is reaching out to communities (including higher education institutions, employers, local authorities and NGOs) in order to facilitate refugees’ integration into their new host societies.

The European Qualifications Passport for Refugees was presented at the UNHCR's Global Forum for Refugees in Geneva in December 2019 as a best practice.

The EQPR makes effective access to assessment of refugees’ qualifications a reality so that refugees now and in the future can continue their studies and/or to find a job related to their education, giving hope to them and their families.