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OrientUP — Campo de Cartagena

Brazil: recognition as ESO and Bachillerato

Check equivalent school years, obtain your histórico escolar and avoid common apostille and translation errors with Brazilian documents.

Check the last school year you passed

The Spanish Ministry’s table and its Education Office’s Brazil guide, updated in November 2025, agree on the following levels. You must document complete, successfully passed years; equivalence is recognised by a Spanish decision.

  • Under the former system, the table places the first series of second-level education at ESO and the third series at Bachiller. If your programme uses other names, clarify them with the school and Spanish processing office.
  • Joining an ESO school year in Spain does not require recognition of previous studies. This guide concerns obtaining Spanish qualifications through recognition.

ESO qualification

Successful completion of 1.º ano de Ensino Médio. Completing 9.º ano de Ensino Fundamental alone does not reach the level listed for the ESO qualification.

Bachiller qualification

Completed Ensino Médio: year 3 and the diploma or official completion certificate. Also provide the corresponding histórico escolar transcript.

Sources and verification

Request the transcript and proof of completion

Documents must identify the institution and student, bear the academic authority’s signature, and state subjects, marks and academic years. Check all sides and attachments before requesting an apostille.

  • ESO, current system: transcripts for Ensino Fundamental years 7, 8 and 9 and Ensino Médio year 1, all successfully completed; add the compulsory education completion certificate if one exists.
  • Bachiller: transcripts for all three Ensino Médio years and the diploma or official completion certificate. If the diploma has not yet been issued, the official certificate must confirm completion of the required studies and examinations.
  • Include a signed application, identification —a passport is accepted, without requiring an NIE— and proof of payment if applying for Bachiller. Add your official Spanish record if you previously studied in Spain.
  • An authorised Spanish body verifies copies against originals. Certification of a copy by a Brazilian cartório does not replace this verification. Someone applying on your behalf must prove their authorisation.

Sources and verification

Apostille the original and the correct academic signature

Brazil uses Hague Apostilles for documents intended for Spain. Use an authorised cartório listed by the Conselho Nacional de Justiça. The Spanish Education Office identifies specific mistakes that lead to requests to correct the file.

  • Obtain original transcripts and the diploma or certificate signed by the school’s director or secretary. Ask the issuer to correct incomplete information or discrepancies first.
  • Request recognition of the academic signature and an apostille on the original document. Check that the apostille identifies the director or secretary who signed it.
  • Do not apostille a simple copy or substitute an apostille authenticating the cartório employee who certified a copy. The Spanish Education Office explicitly warns against this.
  • Keep the document and apostille attached. Then arrange translation and verified copies for the Spanish application; an apostille does not grant academic recognition.

Sources and verification

Obtain an official Spanish translation from Portuguese

Academic documents in Portuguese need an official Spanish translation. Compare the full cost of the two routes accepted by the Education Office, including another apostille where required.

  • In Spain: a sworn translator authorised or registered in Spain. Their translation does not need a Brazilian apostille. Give them the apostilled documents so stamps and annotations can be included.
  • In Brazil: a Brazilian sworn translator, followed by an apostille authenticating the translator’s signature on the translation. Apostilling the original diploma alone is insufficient: the translation requires its own authentication.

Sources and verification

Spanish fees and costs that vary by Brazilian state

There is no Spanish fee for ESO. The published national Bachiller fee is €49.76, code 079 and form 790. Check the current form. Translation, apostille and bank charges are additional.

  • Brazilian apostilles are charged per document. The CNJ refers to each state’s fee schedule, so there is no single nationwide price for all cartórios.
  • Ask for an itemised quote for signature recognition, each apostille, translation and delivery. If a Brazilian professional translates your documents, include the translation’s additional apostille.
  • If paying the Spanish fee from Brazil, request that all transfer charges are paid at origin and that the full euro amount reaches the recipient. In Spain, use the official form and keep proof of payment.

Sources and verification

Submit from Murcia or wherever you live

The national procedure in the main guide applies to residents of the Region of Murcia. The online portal lets you prepare the application, but completing or downloading it, or paying, does not register it. Ensure you obtain a submission receipt.

  • Submit the application, identification, apostilled academic documents, translations and proof of the fee where applicable through an accepted registry.
  • If using an in-person Spanish registry, bring originals to verify copies and check whether an appointment is needed. If applying from Brazil, consult the Spanish Education Office and consulates.
  • The conditional enrolment form allows you to request enrolment subject to its conditions while the application is processed. It guarantees neither a place nor approval of recognition.

Sources and verification

If your qualification came through ENCCEJA, ENEM or adult education

State how you actually obtained your certificate. The Spanish office may request examinations, results and previous records different from those of someone who completed three ordinary school years. Do not invent school years or treat a test score alone as a diploma.

  • Request the official completion certificate, results and available academic records from the certifying institution. Ask what your Spanish application needs before paying for all apostilles.
  • An old note in the Spanish country sheet says ENEM stopped awarding completion certification in 2017. Brazilian rules restored this role from the 2025 examination; consult Inep’s current regulations.
  • Holding a Brazilian certificate does not justify a promise of automatic Spanish recognition. Ask the competent office to assess any incomplete years, different programmes or incomplete documents.

Sources and verification

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