School leavers from outside the EU apply to Portuguese bachelor's degrees through a special competition for international students. Decree-Law 36/2014 on international student status sets the rules, but each institution runs its own competition: you apply online directly to the university, with no central national portal. The university checks three things: your school-leaving qualification, your knowledge of the subjects it examines, and the language of instruction. Admission for September runs in phases from December or January through late summer, and applicants who need a visa should aim for the first phase. Our Portugal study overview is a good starting point before choosing a university.
| At a glance | Details |
|---|---|
| Main route | special competition for international students (concurso especial para estudantes internacionais) |
| Levels covered | bachelor's (licenciatura) and integrated master's; regular master's degrees follow separate institutional rules |
| Where to apply | directly to the university or faculty, online |
| School qualification | one that gives access to higher education in the country that issued it |
| Subject evidence | exams the university accepts: Portuguese entrance exams, foreign national exams on the CNAES list, the university's own tests |
| Windows in the past 2026/27 cycle | U.Porto 2 January – 22 July 2026 in three phases; University of Lisbon 2 January – 22 May; Coimbra 15 December 2025 – 14 August 2026 in four phases |
| Application fee | for example $57 (€50) at Coimbra and $79 (€70) at Nova SBE |
Which competition applies to you
International student status depends on nationality and residence history, not on where you went to school. According to DGES, the special competition covers applicants without Portuguese nationality unless one of these exceptions applies:
- nationality of another EU or EEA country (Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein were added by the 2025 amendment);
- being a family member of a Portuguese or EU citizen, whatever your own nationality;
- more than two years of continuous legal residence in Portugal on 1 January of the year of entry, either yourself or the parents you live with; time on a study residence permit counts only while attending secondary school in Portugal;
- equal-rights status under a treaty between Portugal and your country;
- entry through special regimes such as diplomatic families or elite athletes.
If an exception applies, you compete on the same terms as Portuguese students and pay their fee. If not, the special competition is your only route. International status lasts until the end of the degree even if you later obtain residence; it can be dropped only after acquiring Portuguese or other EU nationality, and then from the following academic year.
What the university assesses
The law requires every institution to check three conditions and set them out in its competition regulations.
Subject knowledge. Every Portuguese programme has set entrance exams (provas de ingresso), such as mathematics for engineering and economics or biology and chemistry for medicine. International applicants must show equivalent knowledge in those subjects, and the university chooses how: documents, written exams or occasionally an interview.
Language of instruction. Portuguese-taught programmes require a certificate or an internal test; English-taught ones require proof of English.
Programme prerequisites (pré-requisitos). Medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, nursing and several other health programmes ask for a medical declaration of fitness for the profession, and sports programmes test physical aptitude. Coimbra lets you confirm these within three months of arrival, but if confirmation fails the enrolment is cancelled and the first payment is not refunded.
Each university sets its own number of places and ranking method per programme. Coimbra, for instance, ranks applicants by the weighted sum of their entrance-exam grades.
Proving subject knowledge
Families from Russia most often ask whether the Unified State Exam (EGE) counts. Often it does, but the university decides.
Foreign national exams. The National Commission for Access to Higher Education (CNAES) publishes, by 31 May each year, a list of foreign final exams that can replace Portuguese entrance exams. In the 2026/27 list (Deliberation 619/2026 of 28 May 2026), Russia appears among the countries whose national school-leaving exams are accepted for the matching subject, and the Russian mathematics exam is listed by name for the mathematics entrance exams. Kazakhstan is not on the list. Exams taken from 2022 onwards stay valid for five years. The list binds the general national competition; in the special competition universities apply it through their own rules. Coimbra refers to it directly, so check each faculty's regulations elsewhere.
International qualifications. A-levels, the International Baccalaureate, Brazil's ENEM and China's Gaokao are accepted by many universities, including Coimbra.
The university's own exams. Coimbra runs subject qualification exams for international applicants, taken in Portuguese either in Coimbra or, when available, at Portuguese embassies and consulates. You need at least 10 out of 20 in each subject, or 14 for medicine and dentistry.
Business school requirements. Nova SBE assesses final school grades against a table for each education system, plus an English certificate. Applicants who miss direct entry can take the SUPERNOVA pre-university programme: $79 (€70) to apply, $570 (€500) on admission and a $3,410 (€3,000) enrolment payment before the programme starts.
Language certificates
Portuguese-taught programmes usually accept exams from the University of Lisbon's CAPLE system, DEPLE (B1) or DIPLE (B2), or a certificate from the university's own language centre. The University of Lisbon admits applicants at B1 and requires a year-long course if no certificate is presented; Coimbra requires B2, or B1 plus a compulsory language course; U.Porto requires independent-user level and may test it orally by video call. For English-taught programmes Nova SBE accepts, for example, TOEFL iBT 80 or Cambridge C1-level exams.
Application documents
Each university sets its own list, but the core is similar. Coimbra asks for:
- a copy of your passport;
- a declaration that you are eligible for the special competition and, where required, meet the programme prerequisites;
- a Portuguese certificate (DEPLE, DIPLE or a university certificate) or a B1 self-declaration;
- your school-leaving certificate, or proof that you are completing school, with grades;
- results of the exams the university accepts in place of its entrance exams.
Education documents and exam results must carry an apostille from the issuing country (Russia and Kazakhstan are parties to the Hague Convention) or be certified by a Portuguese consulate. A translation into Portuguese is needed unless the document is in Portuguese, English, French or Spanish. Nova SBE gives students still at school a conditional offer, with the final certificate due before the payment deadline.
Deadlines: the 2026/27 calendar and what to expect for 2027/28
| University | Phase 1 | Phase 2 | Later phases | Results and enrolment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of Porto | 2 January – 6 February 2026 | 9 February – 2 April | 2 June – 22 July | final results 13 March, 22 May and 4 September; FEUP, FMUP, FCUP, FADEUP, FEP and ICBAS set their own calendars |
| University of Lisbon | 2 January – 6 February 2026 | 6 April – 22 May | a third phase at each school's discretion | phase 1 results by 6 March; phase 2 selection by 12 June; all admissions closed by 30 September |
| University of Coimbra | 15 December 2025 – 26 January 2026 | 16 February – 15 April | 20 May – 20 July; extra phase 7–14 August | enrolment within about a week of each phase's results |
| Nova SBE (English-taught bachelor's) | autumn intake: 14 April – 16 June 2026 | spring intake: 10 November – 4 December 2026 | — | decision within eight weeks |
Universities publish the next year's dates well in advance; the University of Lisbon fixed its 2026/27 calendar by rector's order in 2025. Expect the first phase between December and February. Late phases leave little room on popular courses: in Coimbra's August 2026 extra phase, medicine had no places left and psychology and economics had one each.
A 12-month plan for a September 2027 start
- September–October 2026. Shortlist three to five programmes and note each one's entrance subjects, language and minimum grade. Our overview of universities in Portugal for international students helps with the shortlist.
- October–December 2026. Book a Portuguese (DEPLE or DIPLE) or English exam and prepare for national exams or the university's own tests.
- December 2026 – February 2027. Apply in the first phase with interim grades and a school letter where the university allows it.
- March–July 2027. Accept your place, make the first payment and send final results as soon as they are issued.
- Straight after admission. Prepare your national visa application, described in our guide to the Portugal student visa.
After an offer: confirming your place
You must confirm within the deadline set for each phase or the place passes to the next applicant. At Coimbra, confirmation means paying 25% of the annual fee, which is not refunded even if you withdraw. Nova SBE asks for a $850 (€750) enrolment payment deducted from tuition. Results can be challenged: U.Porto allows about two weeks after provisional results plus a separate appeal window after final results. The full cost picture is in the cost of studying in Portugal.
The national competition: when it applies
If you hold EU nationality or have lived legally in Portugal for more than two years, you apply through the DGES national competition, which works differently:
- your school qualification must be declared equivalent to Portuguese secondary education; a Portuguese secondary school or the Directorate-General for Education issues the certificate and converts your grade to a 0–200 scale;
- the comparison table for Russia is set by Ordinance (Portaria) 224/2006;
- foreign exams on the CNAES list replace Portuguese entrance exams;
- you apply on the DGES platform; without a Portuguese ID you need an internal number and an activation code from a higher-education access office (GAES).
Common mistakes
- Waiting for the last phase. Places are scarce, and there is too little time for a visa decision that can take up to 60 days.
- Assuming the school certificate replaces exams. It makes you eligible; subject knowledge is checked separately.
- Leaving apostilles too late. Applications without an apostille or consular certification may be rejected.
- Ignoring prerequisites. Medicine and other health programmes require a medical declaration, and enrolment is cancelled without it.
- Applying to a single programme. Even strong candidates should apply to two or three programmes or universities, since each runs its own competition.
FAQ
Yes. The law requires a qualification that gives access to higher education in your country, and an 11-year school certificate does. Universities do not ask for an extra school year, but they do check the entrance-exam subjects.
Russia is on the CNAES list for 2026/27, so EGE results in matching subjects, including mathematics, can replace Portuguese entrance exams. In the special competition the final decision rests with the university, so check the faculty's regulations.
For most public bachelor's degrees, yes: from B1 at the University of Lisbon to B2 at Coimbra. Without Portuguese, look at the English-taught economics and management programmes at ISEG (University of Lisbon), Nova SBE, Católica-Lisbon and U.Porto's School of Economics and Management.
There is no limit, as each university runs its own competition and charges its own fee. Rules inside a university vary, so check whether one application can list several programmes or each needs its own.
At least 12 months before the start of classes. Language certificates, apostilles and translations take several months, and first phases open in December or January.
You can apply in a later phase at the same university if places remain, or to another institution. At U.Porto, provisional results can be contested and final results appealed within set deadlines.
Sources
- DGES: special competition for international students
- Decree-Law 36/2014 (consolidated text) and Decree-Law 20/2025
- CNAES Deliberation 619/2026 on foreign exams, 28 May 2026
- DGES: applicants with foreign secondary education
- U.Porto: special call for international students 2026/27
- ULisboa: international student competition
- University of Coimbra: conditions, documents and 2026/27 calendar, UC qualification exams, other accepted exams
- CAPLE (University of Lisbon): Portuguese as a foreign language exams
- Nova SBE: admission rules for international bachelor's applicants, including SUPERNOVA
ECB rate of 29.09.2026: €1 = $1.1355. Rounding step: $1 below $100, otherwise $10. Facts checked on 29 September 2026.
A personal admission plan, checks against your chosen faculties' requirements, documents, phase-by-phase applications and support are provided under an agreement with StudyU. The university makes the admission decision. If you want to know which exams your chosen faculty will accept and which phase to target, send an application.
During the free initial consultation, we clarify your goal, profile, timing, and budget and identify the next realistic step.
Next steps
- Cost of Studying in Portugal for International Students: Tuition, Housing and a First-Year Budget
- Portugal Student Visa: The D4 Visa, Documents and Residence Permit
- Universities in Portugal for International Students: Which to Choose and What They Cost
- Studying in Portugal for international applicants
- Bachelor's Degrees in Portugal: Studying After School in Portuguese or English
- Master's Degrees in Portugal for International Students: English-Taught Programmes, Fees and Admission
