How to apply to a university in Azerbaijan: the official route

If you are an international student, or a parent helping one, the first practical question is where to apply and which channel is the official one. The short answer: foreign applicants apply online to their chosen institution through SIACAS (Study in Azerbaijan Centralized Admission Service), the electronic document-reception system at portal.edu.az, which is part of the Ministry of Science and Education’s education information system^1,2. The admission decision rests with the university, not the ministry³. Below we set out the documents the rules list, the usual steps and the dates we could verify.

Who does what

The ministry’s “Study in Azerbaijan” project dates from 2019, and its website, studyinazerbaijan.edu.az, is the official information source for foreign students⁷. Applications go through the “Electronic document reception” subsystem at portal.edu.az, which forwards each one to the chosen institution for assessment^1,2.

The ministry does not decide on admitting foreign students itself. Its FAQ for foreign applicants (undated) says that universities are autonomous in admitting foreigners and need no additional opinion from the ministry³. That makes the university’s international-admissions page your second essential source: it gives the dates, any payment due and any additional documents.

The core documents in the rules

Under clause 3.4 of the Rules approved by Decision No. 125, in the current consolidated text on e-qanun.az (amendments up to Decision No. 45 of 24 February 2025), the applicant fills in an electronic application in the “Electronic document reception” subsystem and attaches scanned copies of the following⁴:

1. The previous education document, showing subjects and grades, legalised or apostilled, with a notarised copy of it and of its Azerbaijani translation.
2. A health certificate confirming, among other things, that the applicant does not carry HIV or the hepatitis B or C virus.
3. A valid border-crossing (travel) document.
4. An exam certificate in the language of instruction, if the applicant has one.
5. Copies of awards, certificates, diplomas and similar documents, if any.

The application addressed to the head of the institution and the six 3×4 photos that earlier versions of the list required were repealed by Cabinet Decision No. 302 of 11 October 2021; once the application is registered in the system, the documents must be submitted to the institution⁴.

Universities add requirements of their own: the Azerbaijan State University of Economics (UNEC) asks for at least two recommendation letters⁸; ADA University asks for all attachments in English or with a notary-certified English translation⁵.

The order of steps, from application to arrival

1. Choose the programme and university, and read the university’s international-admissions page, as dates and requirements vary from one university to another^5,8.
2. Prepare documents: legalisation or apostille of the education document, then the notarised copy and Azerbaijani translation⁴.
3. Apply through SIACAS at portal.edu.az: create an account, choose the institution and speciality, then apply; the official portal says this is free of charge^1,2. A university may require steps of its own before this: ADA, for example, first asks for its own online application, then interviews shortlisted candidates online, and only then takes the portal application⁵.
4. University review: depending on the institution’s response, you may be asked for additional documents, an online or in-person interview, or a payment². The Azerbaijan Tourism and Management University (ATMU), for instance, interviews every foreign applicant and requires no entrance exam⁹.
5. Decision: a notification appears in your personal account on the portal once an initial decision has been made². UNEC sends an official invitation letter once an applicant has been found eligible⁸.
6. Visa and travel: UNEC tells students to arrive on an education visa¹⁰. The Azerbaijan University of Languages (ADU) tells applicants to contact its International Relations Office if the consulate requires an official invitation letter from the university⁶. ADA says that students who are not eligible for an e-visa may be able to obtain a visa on arrival at Baku airport with a special permission letter arranged through the university¹¹. These are statements by individual universities, not a general rule, so confirm your route with the Azerbaijani embassy or consulate and with the university. Our e-visa guide covers short visits, not study.
7. After arrival: ADU’s page for international students lists place-of-stay registration and a residence permit, which it says must be obtained from the State Migration Service⁶. The 2020 edition of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ guidelines for international students on its scholarship programme says that the relevant university offices help foreign students obtain a temporary residence permit¹². Confirm with the university and the State Migration Service which steps apply to you, and in what order. See our guide to place-of-stay registration.

Deadlines: what we could verify

The ministry’s page on the education of foreign students, an announcement issued for the start of the 2022/2023 academic year and last updated on 28 January 2026, says that universities have set 30 September as the final date for admitting foreign citizens, except for preparatory courses, so that students arrive on time¹. The page does not say whether the same date applies to later years. It is a cut-off for admission, not a common application deadline: each university sets its own application window, and some close earlier.

ADA University, for example, closed the first round of its 2026 undergraduate admissions cycle on 8 April 2026 and late applications on 1 July 2026⁵. ADU lists two application windows a year, 1 August to 10 September and 5 January to 15 February, without stating the year⁶. If you are starting now, you will usually be planning for the next cycle or a winter intake; ask the university to confirm its dates in writing, including the 30 September cut-off.

Language and recognition

For programmes taught in English, the Rules in force (consolidated text on e-qanun.az, amendments up to February 2025) exempt applicants who reach specified IELTS or TOEFL scores from the language check⁴; ask the university how it applies this to you. Universities set their own thresholds: ADA exempts applicants from its English for Academic and Professional Purposes programme (EAPP) if they submit at least one of its minimum scores, such as IELTS Academic 6.0 or TOEFL iBT 75; other tests are listed⁵.

On recognition, ask the university whether it requires recognition of your school-leaving certificate for admission. Formal recognition of foreign qualifications is a separate procedure: the ENIC-NARIC networks list the Education Quality Assurance Agency (TKTA) as Azerbaijan’s national information centre¹³. Under the rules approved by Presidential Decree No. 2306 of 18 August 2023, recognition of foreign qualifications related to higher education is carried out by that Agency, which is subordinate to the Ministry of Science and Education, and its decision is formalised in a recognition certificate¹⁴.

Scholarships are a separate route. The Heydar Aliyev International Education Grant programme, for example, awards 100 grants a year to citizens of eligible groups of countries and has its own procedure⁷.

If the intended subject is medicine, there are further checks, which we explain in Studying medicine in Azerbaijan: what to check before enrolling.

When this may not suit you

• The certificate is not ready. If it has not yet been issued, or cannot be legalised before the university’s application window closes, planning for the next cycle is usually better than submitting an incomplete file.
• You need a decision within days. Each university sets its own timetable, and no one outside it can shorten it.
• The student also holds Azerbaijani citizenship. The ministry’s FAQ says that such applicants may be admitted through the state exams like other citizens, so the route for foreign applicants may not apply³.
• Someone promises you a place. Admission is the university’s decision³, and no agent or coordinator can promise admission, a visa or residence.

Frequently asked questions