No. It is higher education at level 5; a bachelor is level 6, one full level above.

What is an HND called in France?

There is no HND in France. The closest qualification is the BTS, at the same level 5.

Can an HND get me onto a German master's programme?

Not on its own. You would normally need to reach level 6 first, through the top-up year or an equivalent degree.

What is a UK HND worth in France, Germany and Portugal?

An HND is level 5, one level below a bachelor. On the continent that puts it next to a BTS or a Techniker, not next to a degree.

short answer

A Higher National Diploma is level 5 in the British framework and level 5 in the European one, about 2 years of full-time study. Its closest peers are the French BTS, the German staatlich geprüfter Techniker and the Portuguese CTeSP. The optional top-up year is what turns an HND into a bachelor at level 6; without it, the degree title does not apply.

the mapping we use

HND

United Kingdom

RQF / EQF level 5confidence: documented

About 240 UK credits, roughly 120 ECTS; the HNC sits below at 4.

BTS

France

RNCP / EQF level 5confidence: comparable

The peer most often used in both directions.

staatlich geprüfte(r) Techniker/in

Germany

DQR / EQF level 5confidence: comparable

Same level; no automatic credit transfer into a Bachelor.

CTeSP

Portugal

QNQ / EQF level 5confidence: comparable

Portugal's short-cycle qualification, the nearest structural match.

This page compares framework levels. It is not a recognition decision: only the national body of the destination country can issue one.

what a recruiter should read into it

Since Brexit, UK articulation agreements no longer carry any European recognition weight of their own.
An HND plus the top-up year is a bachelor; an HND alone is not, and CVs often blur the two.
If the job description says bachelor and the CV says HND, that is a gap of one level, and worth naming rather than guessing.

questions people actually ask

Is an HND a degree?: No. It is higher education at level 5; a bachelor is level 6, one full level above.
What is an HND called in France?: There is no HND in France. The closest qualification is the BTS, at the same level 5.
Can an HND get me onto a German master's programme?: Not on its own. You would normally need to reach level 6 first, through the top-up year or an equivalent degree.

sources

The Europass qualification comparison tool on RQF and EQF levels, France Compétences, and the German framework (DQR).

What is a UK HND worth in France, Germany and Portugal?

the mapping we use

Now measure your own CV against a real job description

Measure a CV against a job description.

what a recruiter should read into it

questions people actually ask

other equivalences