This article compares the national-level requirements for master degree provision in England, Denmark and Portugal following the implementation of the Bologna Process, and ponders upon the reconcilability of these requirements in cross-national initiatives (e.g. joint degrees). In all three countries, master degrees have to comply with the national qualification frameworks, which have been verified against the Framework for Qualifications of the European Higher Education Area. Other regulations apply, however. In Denmark and Portugal, higher education degrees are tightly regulated by legislation, while the "Academic Infrastructure" developed by the Quality Assurance Agency in the UK acts as a broad reference for degree design, giving English institutions a high degree of freedom. Findings reveal the existence of contradictory requirements which have arisen further to policy adaptations, made possible by the non-legally binding character of Bologna and its loose policy mechanisms. (Contains 1 table.)