SUNEDU Degree Recognition: The Translation You Need

If you earned your university degree outside Peru and want it to be valid here — for work, for a professional registration, or for an immigration category that depends on your qualification — you go through SUNEDU, the Superintendencia Nacional de Educación Superior Universitaria.

This post explains exactly what SUNEDU does, what translation it accepts, and the order to do things in.

Reconocimiento, not revalidación

This distinction matters and is constantly confused:

• Reconocimiento (recognition) — SUNEDU recognizes a foreign degree or title as valid in Peru. This is the SUNEDU process.
• Revalidación (revalidation) — a different process, handled by Peruvian universities, not by SUNEDU.

If your goal is to have your foreign degree formally recognized so it can be used in Peru, you are looking for reconocimiento de grados y títulos extranjeros through SUNEDU. Do not assume SUNEDU "revalidates" your degree — it does not; it recognizes it.

Which translation does SUNEDU accept?

Here is the good news. SUNEDU is comparatively flexible on translations. For documents in a language other than Spanish, SUNEDU accepts a simple translation, and it also accepts an official, certified, or special translation done by:

• a Traductor Público Juramentado (TPJ),
• a translator colegiado with the Colegio de Traductores del Perú (CTP), or
• a professional holding a translation degree conferred a nombre de la Nación.

A CTP-certified translation is squarely within what SUNEDU accepts. While a simple translation is technically permitted, many applicants prefer a certified translation because it arrives with a cover sheet, the translator's colegiatura number, post-signature seals, and a sworn statement of accuracy — leaving less room for an evaluator to raise questions.

The apostille step comes first

Your foreign diploma generally must be apostilled if the issuing country is a party to the Hague Apostille Convention. If the issuing country is not a Hague member, the document is legalized through that country's foreign ministry, then the Peruvian consulate, then Peru's MRE.

Important: this apostille is obtained in the country that issued the diploma, not in Peru. Peru's MRE apostilles only Peruvian public documents. Translate the document after it is apostilled, and include the apostille in the translation.

How the application is submitted

SUNEDU's recognition application is submitted by email, with documents in PDF, generally one file per document and within the size limits SUNEDU specifies. Because the submission is digital, your certified translation should be delivered as a clean, legible PDF — which is how we provide it.

Always check the current SUNEDU procedure page before you submit, as document lists, email addresses, and file requirements are updated periodically.

Step-by-step

1. Obtain official copies of your degree (and transcript, if requested).
2. Apostille the degree in the country that issued it.
3. Get a CTP-certified Spanish translation of the apostilled degree.
4. Assemble the PDF set and submit to SUNEDU by email per their current instructions.

Simple vs. certified: why most people still choose certified

SUNEDU's flexibility on translations is genuinely good news, but it creates a decision point worth thinking through honestly. Yes, a simple translation is technically permitted. So why do many applicants still choose a certified one? Because a recognition file is evaluated, and an evaluator working through a foreign diploma and transcript has to trust that what they are reading matches the original. A CTP-certified translation arrives with a cover sheet, the translator's colegiatura number, post-signature seals, and a sworn statement of accuracy — built-in accountability that quietly answers the question "can I rely on this rendering?" before it is asked. A bare simple translation places that trust entirely on faith.

This is not a scare tactic or an upsell — a simple translation really is allowed, and we will not pretend otherwise. It is a judgment call about friction. For a single, short, unambiguous document where speed and cost dominate, simple may be fine. For a dense transcript with course titles, credits, and a foreign grading scale feeding an evaluation that matters to your career, the certification package tends to reduce back-and-forth. We offer certified because that is where the value is for the documents people actually send us; we explain the simple-translation allowance because accuracy matters more than a sale.

Frequently asked questions

Does SUNEDU recognize or revalidate my degree? Recognize (reconocimiento). Revalidación is a separate process via Peruvian universities. SUNEDU does not revalidate.

Is a simple translation really accepted? Yes — SUNEDU accepts a simple translation or an official/certified/special one (TPJ, CTP colegiado, or university-titled translator). Certified is the lower-friction choice for an evaluated file but not mandatory.

Where is the diploma apostilled? In the country that issued it, if a Hague member; otherwise legalized via that country's foreign ministry, the Peruvian consulate, and Peru's MRE. Not in Peru — Peru's MRE apostilles only Peruvian public documents.

How is the application submitted? By email, as PDF, generally one file per document within SUNEDU's stated size limits. Always check the current official procedure page before submitting.

Get your degree translated

For SUNEDU specifically, see /sunedu-translations and order at /order. A degree is one document; if you also translate transcripts and other records together, volume pricing applies ($130 each for three or more).

Related reading: Translating documents for SUNEDU, step by step, Academic transcript translation for Peru, and Apostille vs. legalization explained.