ANECA recognizes AQU evaluations: what changes for teaching and research staff in Catalan universities

Key data

Teaching and research staff employed by Catalan universities have had a new framework for evaluating their research activity since October 14, 2026. ANECA and AQU Catalunya have formalized an agreement — published in the BOE on October 23, 2026 — by which ANECA recognizes the evaluations conducted by AQU on this group, with full validity for assigning salary supplements for research merits.

The agreement is based on the Organic Law 2/2023 (LOSU), which distributes competencies between the State and autonomous communities regarding the evaluation of university teaching staff. Catalonia, with AQU as its own university quality agency, now assumes exclusive responsibility for evaluating research activity of employed teaching and research staff in its territory.

What does this regulation establish?

The agreement between ANECA and AQU Catalunya establishes three central elements:

• Mutual recognition of evaluations: ANECA recognizes as valid the research activity evaluations conducted by AQU Catalunya on teaching and research staff employed by Catalan universities. These evaluations have the same effect as those that ANECA itself would conduct.
• Salary validity: Recognized evaluations serve to assign salary supplements linked to research merits (equivalent to research six-year periods for civil servant teaching and research staff).
• End of direct ANECA-Catalan universities agreements: As a consequence of the agreement, ANECA will not enter into new direct agreements with Catalan universities to evaluate employed staff. AQU Catalunya assumes this role exclusively in Catalonia.

The result is a standardization of the six-year period system between civil servant and employed teaching and research staff in Catalonia: both groups are evaluated by the same regional agency (AQU), with state recognition through ANECA.

Economic and operational impact

The most direct impact is salary-related: positive evaluations by AQU Catalunya of the research activity of employed teaching and research staff translate into salary supplements. Until now, the validity of these evaluations for generating supplements depended on whether a current agreement existed between ANECA and the specific university. With the new framework, the path is unique and direct: AQU evaluates, ANECA recognizes, the university pays the supplement.

From an operational perspective, Catalan universities with employed teaching and research staff should note that:

• Research evaluation processes for employed teaching and research staff are now channeled exclusively through AQU Catalunya.
• They should not initiate or renew direct agreements with ANECA for this purpose.
• HR departments and academic management services must update their internal procedures to reflect this change in evaluation contact.

For employed teaching and research staff, the change is an opportunity for simplification: a single agency (AQU) manages their research evaluation in Catalonia, with state recognition guaranteed by the ANECA-AQU agreement.

Who does it affect?

• Employed teaching and research staff at Catalan universities: Contracted professors (lecturers, associate professors, contractual full professors and equivalent positions) who wish to obtain or renew salary supplements for research merits.
• HR and academic management teams at Catalan universities: Must adapt their evaluation procedures and supplement processing to the new channel (AQU instead of ANECA directly).
• University policy managers and vice-rectors for teaching staff: Must communicate the change internally and ensure that no direct agreements with ANECA are in force that could cause confusion.
• AQU Catalunya: Assumes a strengthened and exclusive role for research evaluation of employed teaching and research staff in Catalonia.
• ANECA: Cedes the direct evaluation role in Catalonia for employed teaching and research staff, maintaining its recognition function through the agreement.

Civil servant teaching and research staff at Catalan universities are not directly affected by this agreement: their research evaluation (six-year periods) already followed the state system.

Practical example

An associate professor contracted by the Universitat de Barcelona — employed teaching and research staff — requests evaluation of their research activity to obtain the corresponding salary supplement.

Before the agreement: The university had to have a current agreement with ANECA for that evaluation to have salary validity. If the agreement had expired or did not exist, the process was suspended.

After the agreement (from 14/10/2026): The professor submits their request directly to AQU Catalunya. AQU conducts the evaluation of their research activity. ANECA recognizes that evaluation by virtue of the agreement. The university pays the corresponding salary supplement. No additional agreement between the university and ANECA is necessary.

The process is more agile, with a single evaluation contact in Catalonia and without dependence on bilateral university-ANECA agreements.

What should universities and teaching and research staff do now?

1. Review current agreements with ANECA: Identify whether direct agreements exist between the university and ANECA for the evaluation of employed teaching and research staff. These will not be renewed; the channel becomes AQU.
2. Update internal HR procedures: Redirect the processes for requesting research evaluation of employed teaching and research staff to AQU Catalunya as the sole evaluation contact in Catalonia.
3. Communicate the change to employed teaching and research staff: Inform contracted professors that their requests for research evaluation must be processed through AQU, with full validity for salary supplements.
4. Verify the impact on payroll and supplements: Ensure that the salary supplement management system recognizes evaluations issued by AQU Catalunya as valid for payment purposes.
5. Consult with AQU Catalunya: To learn about the specific deadlines, requirements and procedures for requesting research evaluation under the new framework.

Official source

Consult complete regulation at official source

Notice: This article is purely informational in nature and does not constitute legal advice. For specific decisions, consult a qualified professional. Source: https://www.boe.es/diario_boe/txt.php?id=BOE-A-2026-22219