Recognition of foreign professional qualifications

Recognition of foreign professional qualifications

On 1 August 2013, the "Bavarian Act on the Assessment of the Equivalence of Foreign Professional Qualifications, BayBQFG" ("Recognition Act") in force.

Following the entry into force of the Federal BQFG in April 2012, the BayBQFG creates a right to the assessment of professional qualifications acquired abroad for professions regulated by state law in the Free State of Bavaria.

Who can apply to have their professional qualification recognised?

You can apply for a procedure to check the equivalence of your professional qualification in accordance with the Recognition Act (BQFG) if you have completed training or a foreign professional qualification abroad or have completed a course of study abroad and intend to work in Germany.

Access to the procedure may be organised differently in the individual specialist regulations of the regulated professions. An application can be submitted regardless of nationality and residence status. The procedure is not accessible to unskilled or semi-skilled persons who do not have a professional qualification from another country.

What are the requirements for applying for recognition?

You must have completed vocational training or a degree abroad. Recognition on the basis of professional experience alone is not possible.

The training completed abroad must be comparable to the corresponding domestic training (so-called reference occupation) and must be documented by a corresponding training certificate. Training courses, courses and certificates obtained in other ways are generally not to be recognised as full training.

Recognition is only possible for the specified reference occupation, but not for any other related occupation.

Where can the application for recognition be submitted?

Authorities in the respective countries are responsible for many regulated professions.

The offices responsible for the individual professions are listed on the federal recognition portal. A question system in the Recognition Finder guides those interested in recognition directly to the office responsible for them.

For which professions can an application be made?

In the recognition procedure, a distinction is made between regulated professions (e.g. doctor, health and nursing professional, teacher) and non-regulated professions (e.g. apprenticeships in the dual system such as mechatronics technician, baker).

The equivalence check has to be carried out for the regulated and the non-regulated professions a different process and therefore also different legal consequences.

For non-regulated professions, it is possible to apply and work directly on the labour market without a formal certificate of equivalence.

The certificate of equivalence places the holder on an equal legal footing with persons who hold a corresponding certificate. German professional qualification own.

What is the recognition procedure?

A distinction is made between a recognition procedure in accordance with the Federal Recognition Act and one in accordance with the recognition laws of the federal states.

Recognition procedure in accordance with the Federal Recognition Act:

This applies when a vocational qualification obtained abroad is compared with a German reference qualification based on federal law. In this respect, equivalence assessment procedures can be carried out for:

all initial and further training qualifications in the dual system (according to BQFG) and
all federally regulated professions (according to specialised professional laws).

The equivalence assessment is based on the currently valid German qualification.

Recognition procedure according to the recognition laws of the federal states:
Here, a professional qualification acquired abroad is compared with a German reference qualification based on state law. Depending on the federal state, the state recognition laws apply to different professions.

What does the recognition procedure cost?

The recognition procedure is generally subject to a fee. The amount of the fees is based on the fee regulations of the federal states and depends on the individual effort required to carry out the procedure.

You can find out the costs for your procedure from your recognition centre, which you can find in the Recognition finder can research.

The fee range for the recognition procedure is between 80 and 500 euros, but may vary from this range within a profession and between different competent authorities.

The costs (e.g. for fees, translation and notarisation) must always be borne by the applicant. The amount of the costs for the documents to be submitted depends on their scope.

Procedure of the recognition process

The competent authority uses the certificates and evidence submitted to check whether there are any significant differences in content between the professional qualification acquired abroad and the German professional qualification.

If there are significant differences between the professional qualifications, the competent body will check whether these are compensated for by other certificates of competence (e.g. further training, additional training, relevant certificates) or by proven relevant professional experience - both in Germany and abroad.

Documents required for the application

Curriculum vitae in tabular form
Proof of identity (identity card or passport)
Proof of the educational qualification obtained abroad (e.g. university diploma, vocational training certificate) in a certified translation
Proof of relevant professional experience (e.g. job reference, letter of recommendation)
Other certificates of competence (e.g. for further vocational training)
Declaration that no application for equivalence assessment under the BQFG has been submitted to date
Proof that the applicant intends to work in Germany (not applicable for EU/EEA/Swiss nationals and for persons residing in the EU/EEA/Switzerland)

The documents submitted must be translated by sworn translators and submitted to the competent authority in the original or as certified copies (www.justiz-dolmetscher.de) must be submitted.

As a rule, an apostille is not required. However, the competent authority may deviate from this and request an apostille. This will be clarified on a case-by-case basis with the competent inspection centre.

Adaptation measures and partial recognition

If the competent examination centre determines that there are significant differences between the foreign and German professional qualifications, these differences can be compensated for by participating in adaptation measures (adaptation course or examination).

In the area of regulated professions the relevant adaptation measures are prescribed by law, as equivalence in these professions is a prerequisite for practising the profession in Germany.

The costs for the adaptation measure must be borne by the applicants themselves.

If you have any further questions or need legal advice for your recognition procedure, please call us and we will help you.

Our team has many years of experience in enforcing claims in the context of a recognition procedure and can help you with your case.