Legal Basis

Interstate study accreditation treaty

On 8 December 2016, the Standing Conference of the Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs (KMK) agreed on the “State Treaty on the Organization of a Joint Accreditation System for Quality Assurance in Studies and Teaching at German Higher Education Institutions (Interstate Study Accreditation Treaty)“, which was signed by all 16 Minister Presidents, ratified by all state parliaments and entered into force on 1 January 2018. The interstate study accreditation treaty sets out the binding objectives of accreditation as well as the tasks, responsibilities and powers of the central stakeholders. It also specifies the criteria for accreditation and regulates the cornerstones of the accreditation procedure.

Accreditation Council Act

The “Law on the German Accreditation Council (Accreditation Council Law)“, together with the interstate study accreditation treaty, forms the legal framework of the accreditation system. It contains regulations on the tasks, responsibilities and powers of the central actors which correspond to those in the interstate study accreditation treaty.

Specimen decree (MRVO)

The specimen decree (MRVO) contains the accreditation criteria and rules of procedure. On December 7, 2017, the KMK adopted the MRVO for the interstate study accreditation treaty, which sets out the essential operational rules for accreditation.

Only the state ordinances on accreditation issued in all federal states on the basis of the RMVO are legally binding. These largely correspond to the MRVO. This means that the standards for the formal and academic criteria as well as the accreditation procedures for external quality assurance are almost identical in the Federal States.

Resolutions of the Accreditation Council can be found here.