Compulsory Education in Europe : 2018/19.
Date: 2019-04-25
Institutions: European Education and Culture Executive Agency
Subjects: EU Member State, compulsory education, education policy, organisation of teaching

Compulsory Education

in Europe

2018/19

Eurydice – Facts and Figures

Education and 
Training

Compulsory  

Education  

in Europe  

2018/19 

Eurydice – Facts and Figures 

Education 
and Training 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
This  document  is  published  by  the  Education,  Audiovisual  and  Culture  Executive  Agency  (EACEA, 
Education and Youth Policy Analysis). 

Please cite this publication as: 

European  Commission/EACEA/Eurydice,  2018.  Compulsory  Education  in  Europe  –  2018/19. 
Eurydice Facts and Figures. Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union. 

ISBN 978-92-9492-811-5 

ISSN 2443-549X 

doi:10.2797/20126 

EC-AP-18-001-EN-N 

Text completed in September 2018. 

© Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency, 2018. 

Reproduction is authorized provided the source is acknowledged. 

Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency  
Education and Youth Policy Analysis 
Avenue du Bourget 1 (J-70 – Unit A7)  
BE-1049 Brussels 
Tel. +32 2 299 50 58 
Fax +32 2 292 19 71 
E-mail: eacea-eurydice@ec.europa.eu 
Website: http://ec.europa.eu/eurydice 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
COMPULSORY EDUCATION IN EUROPE – 2018/19 

This  publication  provide  concise  information  on  the  duration  of  compulsory  education/training  in 
43 European education systems covering 38 countries participating in the EU's Erasmus+ programme 
(28 Member States, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Switzerland, the former Yugoslav Republic of 
Macedonia, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Montenegro, Norway, Serbia and Turkey).  

Full-time compulsory education/training, as defined in this publication, refers to a period of full-time 
educational/training  attendance  required  of  all  students.  This  period  is  regulated  by  the  law  and 
usually determined by the students' age. In general, full-time compulsory education/training is provided 
in 
in  some  education  systems,  certain  compulsory 
education/training programmes can combine part-time school based and part-time workplace courses. 
In  such  cases,  students  are  evaluated  for  both  parts.  In  most  countries,  under  certain  conditions, 
compulsory education/training can be provided at home. 

institutions/schools.  However, 

formal 

Additional  compulsory  part-time  education/training  means  that  after  the  end  of  full-time 
compulsory education/training period and until a defined age the minimum formal requirement for all 
young people is to participate in part-time education/training.  

Starting  age  refers  to  the  official  age  at  which  students  start  compulsory  education/training.  The 
possibility of early entry to primary education is not taken into account nor are the specific admission 
conditions of pupils officially recognized with special educational needs. 

Leaving  age  refers  to  the  statutory  age  at  which  students  are  expected  to  complete  compulsory 
education/ training.  

In most European education systems, compulsory education/training starts at the beginning of primary 
education  (ISCED 1),  usually  at  the age  of  6.  In  16 education systems, attendance  at  last  year(s) of 
pre-primary  education,  usually  at  the  age  of  5,  is  already  compulsory.  Hungary  has  reported  the 
earliest school starting age referring to 3. By contrast, in Estonia, compulsory education starts at the 
age of 7.  

In most European education systems, full-time compulsory education/training lasts 9-10 years ending 
at  the  age  of  15-16.  In  Belgium,  Luxembourg,  Portugal,  the  United  Kingdom  (Northern  Ireland)  and 
Turkey, the duration of full-time compulsory education/training is 12 years, while in, Hungary and the 
Netherlands  13  years'  attendance  is  mandatory  for  all  students.  In  Germany,  the  duration  varies 
between  the  Länder.  It  is  12  years  in  the  majority  of  them  and  13  years  in  some.  In  the  former 
Yugoslav  Republic  of  Macedonia,  the  duration  varies  between  11  and  13  years  depending  on  the 
program followed during upper secondary education (see country notes). 

Compulsory  education/training  period  usually  covers  primary  and  lower  secondary  education  levels 
(ISCED 1  and  2)  and  corresponds  to  the  full-time  school  attendance.  In  Belgium,  Germany,  the 
Netherland,  Portugal,  the  former  Yugoslav  Republic  of  Macedonia  it  is  compulsory  to  stay  in 
education/training  until  age  of  18-19.  However,  in  these  countries,  between  ages  15-16  and  18-19, 
students  can  attend  compulsory  education/training  programmes  combining  part-time  school  based 
and  part-time  workplace  courses.  Only  programmes  where  students  are  evaluated  for  both  school 
based and workplace courses are considered as 'full-time compulsory education/training'. In Austria, 
Poland and the United Kingdom (England), after the official school leaving age, students still have to 
remain  in  education  or  training  until  their  18 birthday.  However,  the  full-time  attendance  is  not 
mandatory.  Students  can  fulfil  this  obligation  by  participating  in  either  full-time  education  or  training, 
work-based learning or part-time education or training. 

3 

 
 
C o m p u l s o r y   E d u c a t i o n   i n   E u r o p e   –   2 0 1 8 / 1 9  

Duration of compulsory education/training and student's age-groups, 2018/19 

Full-time education/training 

7 

14 

15 

Leaving age 
16 

17 

18 
18 
18 
18 

18 

19 

19 

Starting age 
5 

4 

3 

5 
5 

6 
5 

5 
5 
5 

5 
5 

5 

3 

4 

5 

4 

4 

4 

6 
6 
6 
6 

6 
6 
6 
6 

6 
6 
6 
6 
6 
6 

6 
6 
6 

6 
6 
6 
6 
6 
6 
6 
6 
6 

6 
6 
6 
6 
6 
6 
6 

7 

7 

7 

7 
7 

7 

7 
7 

15 

15 

15 

15 

15 
15 

15 

15 
15 

15 
15 

16 

16 

16 
16 
16 

16 
16 

16 

16 
16 
16 
16 
16 

16 
16 
16 
16 
16 
16 
16 

16 
16 

16 

BE fr 
BE de 
BE nl  
BG 
CZ 
DK 
DE (11 Länder) 
DE (5 Länder) 
EE 
IE 
EL 
ES 
FR 
HR 
IT 
CY 
LV 
LT 
LU 
HU 
MT 
NL 
AT 
PL  
PT 
RO 
SI 
SK  
FI 
SE  
UK-ENG 
UK-WLS 
UK-NIR 
UK-SCT 
AL  
BA 
CH  
IS 
LI 
ME 
NO 
RS 
(*) 
TR 

18 

18 

17 

Additional 
compulsory  
part-time  

Ending age 

na 
na 
na 
na 
na 
na 
na 
na 
na 
na 
na 
na 
na 
na 
na 
na 
na 
na 
na 
na 
na 
na 
18 
18 
na 
na 
na 
na 
na 
na 
18 
na 
na 
na 
na 
na 
na 
na 
na 
na 
na 
na 
na 
na 

Duration  
(in years) 
12 
12 
12 
11 
10 
10 
12 
13 
9 
10 
11 
10 
10 
9 
10 
10 
11 
10 
12 
13  
11 
13 
10 
9 
12 
11 
9 
10 
10 
10 
11 
11 
12 
11 
9 
9 
11 
10 
9 
9 
10 
9 
11-13 
12 

5y6m  6y6m 

14y6m 

6 
5y6m 

17-19 

17y6m 

kkkk 

ISCED 2011 level 0   kkkk 

ISCED 2011 level 1  na  Not applicable 

(*): The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (Provisional code). 

4 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
C o m p u l s o r y   E d u c a t i o n   i n   E u r o p e   –   2 0 1 8 / 1 9  

Explanatory notes 
In countries where compulsory education starts at pre-primary level (ISCED 0), the starting age of primary education (ISCED 1) 
is also indicated.  

The starting and leaving ages presented in this report are notional; early or late entry, grade retention or other interruptions to 
schooling are not taken into account. 

Country-specific notes 
Germany:  11 Länder:  Baden-Wuerttemberg,  Bayern,  Hamburg,  Hessen,  Mecklenburg-Vorpommern,  Niedersachsen, 
Rheinland-Pfalz, Saarland, Sachsen, Sachsen-Anhalt and Schleswig-Holstein. 
5 Länder: Berlin, Brandenburg, Bremen, Nordrhein-Westfalen and Thueringen. 
In Nordrhein-Westfalen, the duration of full-time compulsory education is nine years for the Gymnasium, and ten years for other 
general education schools. 
Greece:  Since  school  year  2018/19  and  according  to  Law  4521/2018,  compulsory  attendance  of  pre-primary  school 
(Nipiagogeio) lasts two years. The implementation of the measure will be progressive and in any case, it will take place within a 
three-year period. 
The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia: The leaving age for compulsory education may vary from 17 to 19 years and 
6 months  depending  on  the  type  of  programme.  The  lowest  leaving  age  (17)  applies  to  students  attending  the  two  years 
vocational programme strucno osposobuvanje while the ending age of 18 applies to those attending the three years vocational 
programme strucno obrazovanie za zanimanja. The highest leaving age of 19 years and 6 months applies to students attending 
general  secondary  education  (gimnazisko  obrazovanie)  or  a  four  years  programme  of  vocational  education  (chetirigodishno 
struchno obrazovanie). 

5 

 
Cyprus 

Latvia 

UK 

United Kingdom 

UK-ENG 

England 

Lithuania 

UK-WLS 

Wales 

Luxembourg 

UK-NIR 

Northern Ireland 

Hungary 

Malta 

Nederland 

Austria 

Poland 

Portugal 

Romania 

Slovenia 

Slovakia 

Finland 

UK-SCT 

Scotland 

AL 

BA 

CH 

IS 

LI 

ME  

NO  

RS 

(*) 

TR 

Albania 

Bosnia and Herzegovina  

Switzerland 

Iceland  

Liechtenstein  

Montenegro  

Norway  

Serbia  

The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia 
(provisional code) 

Turkey 

COUNTRY CODES  

BE 

Belgium 

BE fr 

Belgium – French Community 

BE de 

Belgium – German-speaking Community 

BE nl 

Belgium – Flemish Community 

BG 

CZ 

DK 

DE 

EE 

IE 

EL 

ES 

FR 

HR 

Bulgaria 

Czech Republic 

Denmark 

Germany 

Estonia 

Ireland 

Greece 

Spain 

France 

Croatia 

CY 

LV 

LT 

LU 

HU 

MT 

NL 

AT 

PL 

PT 

RO 

SI 

SK 

FI 

IT 

Italy 

SE 

Sweden 

6 

 
 
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 

EDUCATION, AUDIOVISUAL AND CULTURE  
EXECUTIVE AGENCY 

Education and Youth Policy Analysis 

Avenue du Bourget 1 (J-70 – Unit A7) 
B-1049 Brussels 
(http://ec.europa.eu/eurydice) 

Managing editor 

Arlette Delhaxhe 

Authors 

Agathina Sicurella 

Graphics and layout 

Patrice Brel  

Cover  

Virginia Giovannelli  

Production coordinator 

Gisèle De Lel  

7 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
C o m p u l s o r y   E d u c a t i o n   i n   E u r o p e   –   2 0 1 8 / 1 9  

EURYDICE NATIONAL UNITS 

ALBANIA 

Eurydice Unit  
European Integration and International Cooperation 
Department of Integration and Projects  
Ministry of Education and Sport 
Rruga e Durrësit, Nr. 23 
1001 Tiranë 

AUSTRIA 

Eurydice-Informationsstelle 
Bundesministerium für Bildung, Wissenschaft und 
Forschung  
Abt. Bildungsentwicklung und -monitoring 
Minoritenplatz 5 
1010 Wien 

BELGIUM 

Unité Eurydice de la Communauté française 
Ministère de la Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles 
Direction des relations internationales 
Boulevard Léopold II, 44 – Bureau 6A/008 
1080 Bruxelles 

Eurydice Vlaanderen 
Departement Onderwijs en Vorming/ 
Afdeling Strategische Beleidsondersteuning 
Koning Albert II-laan 15 
1210 Brussel 

Eurydice-Informationsstelle der Deutschsprachigen 
Gemeinschaft 
Ministerium der Deutschsprachigen Gemeinschaft 
Fachbereich Ausbildung und Unterrichtsorganisation 
Gospertstraße 1 
4700 Eupen  

BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA 

Ministry of Civil Affairs 
Education Sector 
Trg BiH 3 
71000 Sarajevo 

BULGARIA 

Eurydice Unit 
Human Resource Development Centre 
Education Research and Planning Unit 
15, Graf Ignatiev Str.  
1000 Sofia 

CROATIA 

Eurydice Unit  
Agency for Mobility and EU Programmes 
Frankopanska 26 
10000 Zagreb 

CYPRUS 

Eurydice Unit 
Ministry of Education and Culture 
Kimonos and Thoukydidou 
1434 Nicosia 

CZECH REPUBLIC 

Eurydice Unit 
Centre for International Cooperation in Education 
Dům zahraniční spolupráce 

Na Poříčí 1035/4 
110 00 Praha 1 

DENMARK 

Eurydice Unit 
Ministry of Higher Education and Science 
Danish Agency for Science and Higher Education  
Bredgade 40 
1260 København K 

ESTONIA 

Eurydice Unit 
Analysis Department 
Ministry of Education and Research 
Munga 18 
50088 Tartu 

FINLAND 

Eurydice Unit 
Finnish National Agency for Education 
P.O. Box 380 
00531 Helsinki 

FORMER YUGOSLAV REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA 

National Agency for European Educational Programmes 
and Mobility 
Porta Bunjakovec A2-1 
1000 Skopje 

FRANCE 

Unité française d’Eurydice  
Ministère de l'Éducation nationale (MEN)  
Ministère de l’Enseignement supérieur, de la Recherche et 
de l'Innovation (MESRI) 
Direction de l’évaluation, de la prospective et de la 
performance (DEPP) 
Mission aux relations européennes et internationales 
(MIREI) 
61-65, rue Dutot  
75732 Paris Cedex 15 

GERMANY 

Eurydice-Informationsstelle des Bundes 
Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt e. V. (DLR)  
Heinrich-Konen Str. 1  
53227 Bonn 

Eurydice-Informationsstelle der Länder im Sekretariat der 
Kultusministerkonferenz 
Taubenstraße 10 
10117 Bonn 

GREECE 

Eurydice Unit 
Directorate of European and International Affairs 
Ministry of Education, Research and Religious Affairs 
37 Andrea Papandreou Str. (Office 2172) 
15180 Maroussi (Attiki) 

HUNGARY 

Hungarian Eurydice Unit 
Educational Authority 
19-21 Maros utca (room 517) 
1122 Budapest 

8 

 
 
 
 
 
ICELAND 

Eurydice Unit 
The Directorate of Education 
Víkurhvarfi 3 
203 Kópavogur  

IRELAND 

Eurydice Unit 
Department of Education and Skills 
International Section 
Marlborough Street 
Dublin 1 – DO1 RC96 

ITALY 

Unità italiana di Eurydice 
Istituto Nazionale di Documentazione, Innovazione e 
Ricerca Educativa (INDIRE) 
Agenzia Erasmus+ 
Via C. Lombroso 6/15 
50134 Firenze 

LATVIA 

Eurydice Unit 
State Education Development Agency 
Vaļņu street 1 (5th floor) 
1050 Riga 

LIECHTENSTEIN 

Informationsstelle Eurydice 
Schulamt des Fürstentums Liechtenstein 
Austrasse 79 
Postfach 684 
9490 Vaduz 

LITHUANIA 

Eurydice Unit 
National Agency for School Evaluation of the Republic of 
Lithuania 
Geležinio Vilko Street 12  
03163 Vilnius 

LUXEMBOURG 

Unité nationale d'Eurydice  
ANEFORE ASBL  
eduPôle Walferdange 
Bâtiment 03 – étage 01 
Route de Diekirch 
7220 Walferdange 

MALTA 

Eurydice National Unit 
Directorate for Research, Lifelong Learning and 
Employability 
Ministry for Education and Employment 
Great Siege Road 
Floriana VLT 2000 

MONTENEGRO 

Eurydice Unit 
Vaka Djurovica bb 
81000 Podgorica  

A c k n o w l e d g e m e n t s  

NETHERLANDS 

Eurydice Nederland 
Ministerie van Onderwijs, Cultuur en Wetenschap  
Directie Internationaal Beleid  
Rijnstraat 50  
2500 BJ Den Haag  

NORWAY 

Eurydice Unit 
Ministry of Education and Research 
Kirkegata 18  
P.O. Box 8119 Dep. 
0032 Oslo 

POLAND 

Eurydice Unit 
Foundation for the Development of the Education System 
Aleje Jerozolimskie 142A 
00-551 Warsaw 

PORTUGAL 

Unidade Portuguesa da Rede Eurydice (UPRE) 
Ministério da Educação e Ciência 
Direção-Geral de Estatísticas da Educação e Ciência 
(DGEEC) 
Av. 24 de Julho, 134 
1399-054 Lisboa 

ROMANIA 

Eurydice Unit  
National Agency for Community Programmes in the Field 
of Education and Vocational Training 
Universitatea Politehnică București 
Biblioteca Centrală 
Splaiul Independenței, nr. 313 
Sector 6  
060042 București 

SERBIA 

Eurydice Unit Serbia 
Foundation Tempus 
Ruze Jovanovic 27a 
11000 Belgrade 

SLOVAKIA 

Eurydice Unit 
Slovak Academic Association for International Cooperation 
Krížkova 9 
811 04 Bratislava  

SLOVENIA 

Eurydice Unit 
Ministry of Education, Science and Sport 
Department of Educational Development and Quality 
Education Development Office 
Masarykova 16 
1000 Ljubljana 

SPAIN 

Eurydice España-REDIE 
Centro Nacional de Innovación e Investigación Educativa 
(CNIIE)  
Ministerio de Educación y Formación Profesional 
c/ Torrelaguna, 58 
28027 Madrid 

9 

C o m p u l s o r y   E d u c a t i o n   i n   E u r o p e   –   2 0 1 8 / 1 9  

SWEDEN 

TURKEY  

Eurydice Unit 
Universitets- och högskolerådet/ 
The Swedish Council for Higher Education 
Box 450 93 
104 30 Stockholm 

Eurydice Unit  
MEB, Strateji Geliştirme Başkanlığı (SGB) 
Eurydice Türkiye Birimi, Merkez Bina 4. Kat 
B-Blok Bakanlıklar 
06648 Ankara 

SWITZERLAND 

UNITED KINGDOM 

Eurydice Unit 
Swiss Conference of Cantonal Ministers of Education 
(EDK) 
Speichergasse 6 
3001 Bern 

Eurydice Unit for England, Wales and Northern Ireland 
Centre for Research Planning and Knowledge 
Management 
The Mere, Upton Park 
Slough, Berkshire, SL1 2DQ 

Eurydice Unit Scotland 
Learning Directorate 
Scottish Government 
2-C (North)  
Victoria Quay  
Edinburgh EH6 6QQ 

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Compulsory Education in Europe – 2018/19

This publication focuses on the duration of compulsory education/training in
Europe. It highlights the starting and leaving ages and distinguishes the notions of
full-time and part-time compulsory education/training. The information is available
for 43 European education systems covering 38 countries participating in the EU's
Erasmus+ programme.

The Eurydice network’s task is to understand and explain how Europe’s different
education systems are organised and how they work. The network provides
descriptions of national education systems, comparative studies devoted to specific
topics, indicators and statistics. All Eurydice publications are available free of charge
on the Eurydice website or in print upon request. Through its work, Eurydice aims to
promote
trust and mobility at European and
international
levels. The network consists of national units located in European
countries and is coordinated by the EU Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive
Agency. For more information about Eurydice, see http://ec.europa.eu/eurydice.

understanding, cooperation,

ISBN 978-92-9492-811-5
doi:10.2797/20126