The right to organise studies in the existing and new higher education institutions 

When applying for the right – both in case of initial and re-assessment of a study programme group – it will be assessed whether the quality of studies meets the requirements laid down for the relevant level of higher education, and whether resources and sustainability are adequate for the provision of studies. Assessment is conducted in six assessment areas; in case of a new HEI additional criteria will be included: 

1. Study programme; 
2. Learning and teaching,
3. Organisation of studies,
4. Academic staff,
5. Learning and teaching environment,
6. Financial resources,
7. Additional criteria for a new higher education institution. 

HAKA will form an expert panel for conducting the assessment. If foreign experts are included in the panel, HAKA will inform the HEI about the need to submit the application documents in English. Based on the analyses, the expert panel will determine for each assessment area, whether it: 1) conforms to the required standard, 2) partially conforms to the required standard, 3) does not conform to the required standard. 

Based on the assessment report, HAKA Quality Assessment Council for Higher Education makes a proposal to the Minister of Education and Research, whether to grant the higher education institution the right to organise studies in the relevant study programme group and level of higher education for 1) unspecified term, 2) for 1-3 years, or 3) not to grant the right. The decision regarding the right to organise studies will be made by the minister of education and research. 

The following legal acts regulate higher education provision in Estonia:  

• Higher Education Act: https://www.riigiteataja.ee/en/eli/522092025001/consolide

• Private Schools Act: https://www.riigiteataja.ee/en/eli/ee/501092025003/consolide/current

Initial and re-assessment of study programme groups is carried out in accordance with the regulation approved by HAKA Quality Assessment Council for Higher Education Guidelines for initial assessment and re-assessment in higher education. Appendix 1 to the Guidelines lists the information to be submitted with the application. 

The institution bears the cost of the assessment of the application. The fees of assessment and the calculation of the expenses forming their basis are established in the directive of the Director General of  the Education and Youth Board. As of 18.12.2025, the base rate is 9,393 Euros. 

For opening and operating a private higher education institution in Estonia (regardless of the type of HEI or form of study), the procedure is similar to what has been described above: an application must be submitted to the Ministry of Education and Research for obtaining the right to organise studies in one or more study programmes within the respective study programme group(s) and level of studies. 

There are no separate conditions for online higher education institutions in the Estonian legislation. The right to organise studies must be applied for the entire study programme group and level of studies, and the assessment is based on the assumption that the higher education institution (including fully online HEI) can also conduct studies on-site and has the appropriate infrastructure and human resources for this purpose. 

In order to open a new HEI and obtain the right to organises studies, the following steps need to be taken:  

1) Obtaining the status of an owner of the higher education institution  

First, it is necessary to create a legal entity (Private School Act § 2). This means that the owner of a private educational institution must be entered 1) in the commercial register as a public limited company or a private limited company, or 2) in the register of non-profit associations and foundations as a foundation or non-profit association. 

Since the existence of a legal entity is necessary to establish a private educational institution, it is not sufficient to open a branch of a foreign company in Estonia. 

When creating a legal entity, the capital requirements set for the owner must be taken into account (640,000 Euros for a university, 380,000 Euros for a professional higher education institution).  

The registration of the owner in the commercial register takes place in accordance with the provisions of the Commercial Code. 

  2) Applying for the right to organise studies  

The owner submits an application and documents to the Ministry of Education and Research to obtain the right to conduct studies at a specific higher education level and study programme group. The Ministry of Education and Research, together with HAKA, organises an assessment of the application and the attached data. As a rule, foreign experts are involved in the assessment, so it is recommended to submit documents in English in addition to Estonian. 

The owner of the HEI submits to the Ministry of Education and Science at least 9 months before the start of the academic year information on the study programmes to be opened, academic staff and their qualifications, the necessary infrastructure and sources of funding for studies, justifications for the need to open studies (including information on the target group and proposals from professional and specialist associations and boards), as well as the statutes/statutes of the private school, and the establishment agreement of the owner. 

The requirements for applying for the right are set out in § 9 of the Higher Education Act. According to § 9(3) of the Act, the Ministry of Education and Research involves the Estonian Quality Agency for Education (HAKA) in reviewing the application. A list specifying the data mentioned in § 9 of the Higher Education Act can be found in Appendix 1 of the document Guidelines for Initial Assessment and Re-Assessment in Higher Education. 

Please note that the following information is required for all teaching staff of each subject of each study programme: name of the academic staff member, year of birth, position, workload at the higher education institution, qualification, subject(s) taught and their volume, link to the English CV in the Estonian Science Information System (hereinafter ETIS) or elsewhere, overview of teaching or research work at foreign higher education institution(s) in the last 5 years.  

It is also important to note that the heads of Estonian educational institutions, including professional HEIs, their deputies and directors of studies must have the Estonian language proficiency at C1 level. These requirements arise from Section 9, point 6, of the Government of the Republic Regulation on the Requirements for the Proficiency and Use of the Estonian Language by Officials, Employees and Self-Employed Entrepreneurs: https://www.riigiteataja.ee/akt/110082021011. 

If the application meets the conditions, the Minister of Education and Research will confirm the right to organise studies, which means receiving an operating license.  

 3) Submitting data to EHIS 

Obtaining an operating permit provides the basis for entering an educational institution into the sub-register of educational institutions, guided by the provisions of the EHIS statutes. The educational institution that has received an operating permit submits the data via the state portal eesti.ee and receives access to the register from the controller of the register.  

The educational institution submits data on the study programmes to EHIS in accordance with the provisions of the EHIS statutes, and the Ministry of Education and Culture assesses the compliance of the programmes. 

 4) Declaring an educational institution as established 

A private educational institution is considered established from the date the first study programme of the institution is entered into EHIS. 

A private higher education institution can be either a university or a professional higher education institution. A university offers three levels of higher education and, in addition to the above process, a regular evaluation of research and development activities must be completed, which gives the right to apply for the right to study at a doctoral level. 

For additional information, please contact the Ministry of Education and Research.  

Main contact person: Ms Tiina Laidvee, Adviser, Higher Education Policy and Lifelong Learning Department, +372 735 0121, tiina.laidvee@hm.ee