✅ Short answer: it is still required; the certificate hasn't been canceled.

🔻Detailed answer: After posts about this circulated on social media yesterday, questions increased. I want to explain this.

Presidential Decree No. PF-114 of July 19, 2025 introduced amendments to a number of documents, and some were completely repealed. For example, I wrote that this decree canceled the inclusion of schoolchildren's average grade for the last 6 years in the test score.

This decree also stipulates the removal of the fourth paragraph of clause 6 of Presidential Decree No. PQ-5117 dated May 19, 2021. This paragraph stated:

Starting from the 2022/2023 academic year, a procedure shall be introduced for the participation of individuals holding a national or equivalent international certificate in competitions for master's degree specialties and postgraduate education specialties at higher educational institutions. It is envisaged that at least a C1 level national certificate or an equivalent international certificate will be required for philological fields, and a B2 level national certificate or an equivalent international certificate for non-philological fields.

This clause has been removed, meaning it has lost its force. However, this doesn't mean that the certificates have been canceled. Simply put, this rule from 2021 itself was outdated. In 2024, a new rule for the level of foreign language proficiency was established for master's and doctoral programs.

Presidential Decree No. PF-81 of May 24, 2024, establishes the following new requirements:

4. It is established that national or international certificates proving foreign language proficiency are required for admission to master's degree specialties and postgraduate education specialties at the following levels:

for foreign language fields -

at least C1 level;

for humanities, biological and related sciences, mathematics and statistics, business and management, law, services, social and behavioral sciences, journalism and information, information and communication technologies -

at least B2 level;

for other fields of education and specialties in culture and sports -

at least B1 level.

As you can see, the new rules also allow for B1 level.

❗️CONCLUSION: The main reason for excluding the certificate clause from the 2021 decree was that these rules were outdated and no longer in effect. New rules for language proficiency levels for master's and doctoral programs were established by the 2024 decree and remain in force.