In this explorative study, the translation perspective from organisational studies is taken to analyse how national accreditation agencies interpret the so-called European Standards and Guidelines (ESG) and adjust these to the domestic context. Additionally, the study investigates how review panels make use of the ESG vocabulary in their review reports. The empirical materials stem from a variety of 17 higher education institutions in Croatia, Estonia, Finland and Portugal. The findings illustrate the translation processes (copying and modification) taking place and reveal that particularly national quality assurance frameworks often deviate from the ESG. Review panels stay fairly close to the domestic frameworks.