Engineering Council

From 1 January, 2021, the EU Directive on the Mutual Recognition of Qualifications no longer applies to the UK. UK professionals seeking recognition in EU/EEA countries are now treated as third country nationals and recognition is based on the applicable rules of each individual EU/EEA country. The scope of regulation and details of activities which may require registration can found in  the EU Single Market Regulated Professions Database. In many EU/EEA countries, registration is not compulsory in order to work as an engineer, although some areas of work may be restricted and there may be legislation on the use of professional titles. Rules concerning travel, visas and residency may have changed and the professionals providing services should check with the relevant government websites. 

No. From 1 January 2021, UK professionals seeking recognition in EU/EEA countries are now treated as third country nationals and recognition is based on the applicable rules of each individual EU/EEA country

Previous recognition decisions concerning UK professionals, that were made when the UK was a member of the EU, continue to be valid. This means that engineers who were awarded an EU/EEA professional title before 1 January 2021 are still entitled to use that title.

For applications for recognition that are in progress but were not concluded by 1 January 2021, EU regulators will take into consideration that the application was made when the UK was a member of the EU.

Degree programmes from UK universities that are accredited for the Engineering Council can be recognised under the Washington or Sydney Accord. To find out if your degree programme is accredited look it up on our Accredited Course Database.

No. The Dublin, Sydney and Washington Accords apply to accreditation within the jurisdiction of the signatory. In the case of the Engineering Council this means universities in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. If you studied in the jurisdiction of another Accord signatory, you should contact that signatory for further information.

The Dublin, Sydney and Washington Accords apply to accreditation within the jurisdiction of the signatory. In the case of the Engineering Council this means universities in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. If you studied in the jurisdiction of another Accord signatory you should contact that signatory for further information.

If you studied in the UK first check which Section your programme is accredited for. This will be Chartered Engineer (CEng) registration or Incorporated Engineer (IEng) registration. This is shown at the top right hand side of each programme entry in the Accredited Course Database.

• If your programme is a Bachelors started after 2001, and the Section is IEng, your degree programme is recognised under the Sydney Accord>.
• If your programme is an MEng started after 1989, and the Section is CEng, it is recognised under the Washington Accord.
• If your programme is a Bachelors started before 1999 (and after 1989) and the Section is CEng it is recognised under the Washington Accord>.
• If your programme is a Bachelors started in or after 1999 and the Section is CEng you will need to check the Public Notes at the bottom of the entry to see whether there is a further learning requirement.
• If further learning is indicated for your programme and you have also completed an accredited Masters level programme (eg an accredited MSc/EngD) started after 1989, the combination is recognised under the Washington Accord>.
• If you have completed a programme accredited as further learning but do not have a Bachelors degree accredited in the CEng Section, your combination of qualifications is not recognised under either Accord.

The Dublin, Sydney and Washington Accords apply to accreditation within the jurisdiction of the signatory. In the case of the Engineering Council this means universities in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. If you studied in the jurisdiction of another Accord signatory you should contact that signatory for further information.

If you studied in the UK and if the Section is CEng and your degree programme is a Bachelors started before 1999 (and after 1989) it is recognised under the Washington Accord.

• If the Section is CEng and your degree programme is a Bachelors started in or after 1999 you will need to check the Public Notes at the bottom of the entry to see whether there is a further learning requirement.
• An accredited Bachelors programme with a further learning requirement combined with a programme accredited as further learning (eg an accredited MSc/EngD) is recognised under the Washington Accord.

If you have studied a programme that is accredited as partially meeting the academic requirements for a particular level of registration then further learning is required to demonstrate your learning and understanding to the specified higher level. You may achieve this by way of a further formal qualification, sometime referred to as a top-up qualification, or by a range of other means such as private study, workplace projects or attending courses related to work. However, whatever means is chosen, it must be subject to rigorous and valid independent assessment.

From 1999 onwards the exemplifying academic level for CEng registration has been an accredited Bachelors with Honours in engineering plus further learning to Masters level, or an accredited integrated Masters (MEng) programme. Programmes already in accreditation at the time were required to introduce further learning from the next re-accreditation date, so further learning ‘from’ dates may vary between 1999 and 2003. 

The Accords do not recognise programmes that are accredited as partially meeting the education requirements for registration unless combined with an accredited programme of further learning to the appropriate level.  For example, UK Bachelors with Honours programmes accredited in the CEng section and requiring further learning can only be recognised under the Washington Accord if an accredited programme of further learning has also been completed.

Accreditation is carried out at programme level so it is not possible to accredit an individual person's degree. Degree programmes are accredited for specific intake years and cannot be accredited retrospectively. If you have a UK degree that is not on our Accredited Course Database it is not accredited and will not be recognised under any of the Accords.

No. If your degree was awarded by a UK university and it is not listed on our Accredited Course Database it is not recognised under the Washington or Sydney Accord.

Degrees that pre-date the Accord are not automatically recognised. However, Accord signatories may, at their own discretion, give exemption from some of their requirements to a holder of a UK degree accredited before 1989.

No. The Washington and Sydney Accords recognise the substantial equivalence of accredited engineering or engineering technology education programmes.

Since the Engineering Council examinations are not programmes themselves, they are not accredited by UK professional engineering institutions. They are accepted and used by UK professional engineering institutions as a means to demonstrate the underpinning knowledge and understanding requirements for registration. They are also accepted by the majority of Washington and Sydney Accord signatories as a recognised pathway to meeting the academic requirements. However, not all signatories accept them nor do they accept all combinations of subjects sat. You should contact the signatory you wish to apply to for further information.

No, programmes on the European Engineering Education Database (EEED, previously the FEANI INDEX) are not recognised under the Accords unless they are accredited by one of the Accord signatories that is also a member of FEANI (currently Engineering Council, Engineers Ireland). However, Accord signatories may, at their own discretion, recognise degrees on the FEANI EEED as equivalent academic qualifications. Please contact the signatory in whose jurisdiction you are seeking recognition for advice.

Programmes listed on the FEANI EEED are recognised by the Engineering Council for the purpose of registration as an Incorporated Engineer or Chartered Engineer. 

No, EUR-ACE® labelled programmes are not recognised under the Accords unless they are also accredited by/for an Accord signatory such as the Engineering Council or Engineers Ireland.  However, Accord signatories may, at their own discretion, recognise EUR-ACE® labelled programmes as equivalent academic qualifications.

EUR-ACE® labelled degrees are recognised by the Engineering Council for the purposes of registration as an Incorporated Engineer or Chartered Engineer.

If your degree is accredited for the Engineering Council you should state this and the relevant Accord in your Visa application.

If your client graduated from a UK university, please check our Accredited Course Database for the programme status (see Q3 in this section for details of how to identify the applicable Accord). You can then include the programme reference number in the Visa documentation. If your client completed and Engineering Technician programme, please refer to our Database of Technician Qualifications. If the programme is not listed it is not accredited or approved and will not be recognised under the Accords.

This should not normally be necessary. Please refer interested parties to the programme entry in our Accredited Course Database. If an agency or organisation requires confirmation on headed paper, they should contact us. Please note that there may be a charge for this service.

EngTech programmes are approved or recognised rather than being formally accredited. Any programme listed on the Database of Technician Qualifications is recognised under the Dublin Accord, providing the full programme profile has been successfully completed.

Where individuals were given exemption from one or more years of a programme, their intake year is the year they would have started, if they had joined at the beginning of the programme. Eg a person who was admitted to a programme in 2000 with direct entry to the second year, their start year would be 1999 for the purposes of determining recognition status of the programme.