The first paper in the symposium is a joint German-Austrian contribution that discusses an innovative model for the accreditation of vocational learning in the transition to higher education, the Module Level Indicator. The paper consists of two main sections. Part 2 discusses the results of an Austrian case study and perspectives for applying the MLI in Austria In the second part of the paper the results of the Austrian case study, the accreditation practices at a University of Applied Sciences in Vienna, will be presented. Graduates of certain VET colleges can be exempted from the first year of the degree programme after an equivalence check of curricula is done by lecturers, teachers and directors from the VET colleges and the University of Applied Sciences. Individual exemptions from certain courses are based on assessing learning outcomes either from formal documents from other institutions or in an informal discussion with the relevant lecturer from the university of applied sciences. The analysis of the case study reveals that the existing practice is rather informal and exemptions from certain courses are individualised. The accreditation practice is to a certain extent based on trust in the students’ competences and co-operations on an institutional level and shows how permeability can be fostered on an institutional level within the existing organisational framework. There are no particular tools or instruments used for carrying out the equivalence check in this context. Therefore the perspectives for applying the MLI in the accreditation practices at Universities of Applied Sciences will also be discussed.