Greek top court annuls three private university licenses, opposition demands repeal of Pirrarakis Law

Court annuls three private university licenses

On August 13, 2026, the Third Section of Greece's Council of State annulled the operating licenses and study programs of three non-state university branches connected to Keele University, University of York/CITY, and Anatolia. The ruling followed an appeal filed by Panagiotis Lazaratos, a professor of Administrative Law at the University of Athens Law School (EKPA), who challenged the regulatory framework under which the institutions were licensed. PASOK noted that two appeals had been filed, covering the licensing process and the study program approval procedure for each of the institutions.

The decision comes after the Council of State's Plenary published decision 1918/2025 on October 24, 2025, which ruled that the Greek Constitution does not exclude the operation of foreign university branches in Greece under the conditions set by the institutional framework. Lazaratos told To Vima that the new ruling does not constitute a judicial assessment of academic quality.

“The Council of State cannot check the quality of the programs.”

He said the issue was the legal and regulatory framework on which quality control was based.

“In short, the rules of law on the basis of which the quality check was carried out were inadequate. That is as far as the Council of State could check, and that is what it did.”

Ministry insists framework is constitutional

The Ministry of Education, Religions and Sports issued a statement on August 13 insisting that the deficiencies identified by the court concern administrative procedure, not the constitutionality of law 5094/2024 (the Pirrarakis Law). The ministry listed three specific deficiencies: the need for further specification of program certification criteria by the National Authority for Higher Education (ΕΘΑΑΕ), an issue regarding the composition of a Special Evaluation Committee formed by ΕΘΑΑΕ, and the untimely issuance of a required certification act by ΕΟΠΠΕΠ regarding compliance with observations about building facilities.

The ministry also noted that the court rejected the ground of annulment concerning the lack of certification of study programs by the parent institution or the relevant certification body of the country where it is based. It pledged to take immediate action to ensure the academic year would not be lost for any student, and said the issues falling under the competence of ΕΘΑΑΕ and other relevant bodies would be addressed by them according to the current institutional framework.

Opposition demands government accountability

SYRIZA issued a statement calling for the repeal of the Pirrarakis Law, arguing that no rule of law is produced by it and no guarantee of studies is given to the country's youth. The party accused the Mitsotakis government of attempting to create faits accomplis against the public university, and positioned itself as the only political force calling for outright repeal rather than reform.

PASOK described the annulment as a "collapse of the Pirrarakis Law" and called on the government to take responsibility. The party said it had from the outset flagged gaps in the degree of participation of parent universities, problems with facilities, and deficiencies in study programs, and said it was awaiting the clean copy and publication of the decisions to comment on their content and reasoning.

The Hellenic Left Coalition (ΕΛ.Α.Σ.) accused New Democracy of "sloppiness that puts hundreds of students in jeopardy" and referenced its president, Alexis Tsipras, as committed to legality and necessary changes to the institutional framework for branches of international private universities in Greece.

Legal context and next steps

Lazaratos framed the October 2025 plenary decision as the starting point, not the end, of judicial scrutiny.

“From the moment the constitutionality of the institution was certified by the Council of State, that is the first step.”

The next step, he argued, is ensuring high standards during implementation.

“They must create study programs that will not be judged on the spot.”

PASOK warned that what will be revealed about the new licenses is "even worse" than what led to the annulments. The ministry said it expects the relevant bodies to act on the issues identified by the court, and reiterated its commitment to safeguarding students' rights and the continuity of their studies.