Europass and European Digital Credentials explained

Europass is a European Union service that helps people present their skills and qualifications clearly — when learning and working in another country, but also at home. Its legal basis is Decision (EU) 2018/646 of the European Parliament and of the Council on a common framework for the provision of better services for skills and qualifications.

Europass includes a personal profile with a CV editor, information on learning and working in Europe, descriptions of qualifications and qualifications frameworks, and standardised documents such as the Diploma Supplement, the Certificate Supplement and Europass Mobility. The profile also has an area where users can store digital credentials.

According to the Commission, European Digital Credentials for Learning (EDC) are a multilingual format for electronically sealed digital representations of learning credentials. They can be awarded for formal education, training, online courses, volunteering and non-formal learning — as a diploma, micro-credential, certificate of participation or other learning record.

The difference from a scanned certificate is fundamental: a digital credential is itself an original, not a copy. It is tamper-evident because any change breaks the electronic seal. Anyone viewing a shared EDC sees its validity and authenticity verified instantly.

For credentials to be understood across languages, a shared vocabulary is needed. The European Learning Model (ELM) describes learning achievements, learning outcomes, credits, levels under the European Qualifications Framework, assessments and issuers in a uniform way. It builds on the W3C Verifiable Credentials data model and uses EU controlled vocabularies, for example for qualification levels and credits.

For issuers this means: describing credentials in a structured way under the ELM makes them readable for software across Europe. A receiving university can read credits and level automatically; an employer can see the learning outcomes in their own language.

According to the Commission, the tools are open to any institution, organisation or company wishing to issue digital credentials aligned with European standards. There are ready-to-use tools for creating, issuing and viewing, plus open-source options that larger organisations can integrate into their own systems.

An EDC requires an electronic seal of the issuing organisation under the eIDAS Regulation. A qualified seal is obtained from a qualified trust service provider. Without a seal a credential may follow the ELM format but is not a full European digital credential.

EDC does not stand alone. Because the European Learning Model is based on the W3C data model, EDC, Open Badges 3.0 and other Verifiable Credentials fit together in principle. The Council Recommendation on micro-credentials expressly refers to Europass and its standards for digital issuance.

With the European Digital Identity Wallet under Regulation (EU) 2024/1183, an infrastructure is emerging in which learning credentials can be kept alongside identity data. How Europass credentials and this wallet will work together is still evolving; issuers should follow the Commission's publications.

Europass is a transparency tool, not a recognition authority. A credential in Europass format proves origin and content but does not decide whether a university credits it or an employer considers it equivalent. Those decisions remain with the competent bodies under their own law.

Europass also does not replace national certificates. It complements them: with explanations such as the Diploma Supplement and Certificate Supplement, with a common data format and with tools that make sharing and verifying easier. Receiving an EDC gives you an additional, digitally verifiable record — not automatically a different qualification.