Apply for recognition as a geriatric nursing assistant with a foreign professional qualification

If you can work as a geriatric care assistant in Germany without restriction, you need a state permit.

The profession of geriatric care assistant is regulated in many federal states in Germany. This means that you need a state permit to be able to work as a geriatric care assistant without any restrictions.

With this permit, you can use the job title and work in the profession without restriction.

The legal regulations and requirements of the profession differ from state to state. The profession is called differently in the individual federal states:

• "Altenpflegehelferin" or "Altenpflegehelfer" in Brandenburg, Hesse, Saarland, Schleswig-Holstein and Thuringia
• "state-approved geriatric care assistant" in Baden-Württemberg, Bremen, North Rhine-Westphalia and Saxony-Anhalt
• "state-certified geriatric care assistant" or "state-certified geriatric care assistant" in Rhineland-Palatinate
• "state-certified healthcare and nursing assistant" or "state-certified healthcare and nursing assistant" in Hamburg
• "State-certified nursing assistant" or "state-certified nursing assistant" in Bavaria
• "state-certified nursing assistant" or "state-certified nursing assistant" in Lower Saxony
• "Nursing and geriatric care assistant" or "nursing and geriatric care assistant" in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern

Even with a professional qualification from abroad, you can obtain permission to use the professional title from the competent body (an authority).

To do this, you must have your foreign professional qualification recognized. In the procedure, the competent authority compares your foreign professional qualification with the German professional qualification and checks the equivalence. Equivalence is an important prerequisite for obtaining a state permit.

In addition to the professional qualification, you must also meet other requirements. For example, you must be in good health and be able to speak German.

It is important where you completed your training. The procedure for professional qualifications from the European Union (EU), the European Economic Area (EEA) and Switzerland may be different from the procedure for professional qualifications from third countries. Third countries are all countries that do not belong to the EU, the EEA or Switzerland.

You can also submit the application from abroad.

Hessian State Office for Health and Care (HLfGP)

Please contact the Hessian State Office for Health and Care (HLfGP).

The responsible office will tell you which documents you need to submit.
Important documents are generally

• Proof of identity (for example your passport or identity card)
• If you have changed your name: Marriage certificate
• Curriculum vitae in tabular form and in German (list of your training courses and professional experience)
• Proof of your professional qualification (certificate, detailed overview of subjects and hours of theory and practice, diploma supplement)
• A certificate stating that you are authorized to work in the field of geriatric nursing in your country of training
• Proof of your professional experience in geriatric nursing assistance (e.g. certificates from employers)
• Proof of your other qualifications
  (e.g. further vocational training, courses, seminars)
• Certificate of registration or proof that you wish to work in the federal state where you are submitting the application
• For professional qualifications from the EU/EEA/Switzerland: a certificate from the competent authority in your country of training confirming the equivalence of your professional qualification in accordance with Directive 2005/36/EC ("certificate of conformity")
• A written declaration stating whether and to which authority you have already submitted an application for determination of equivalence. If available, also the notification received
• Proof of your German language skills
• Proof of your personal suitability:
  • Official certificate of good conduct from a German authority. Another name for the official certificate of good conduct is "Führungszeugnis Belegart O".
    In Germany, you can obtain the certificate of good conduct from your local residents' registration office or citizens' registration office. As a rule, the official certificate of good conduct should be a maximum of 3 months old when it is presented.
    A certificate from an authority in your home country is also possible: for example, an extract from your criminal record, a Certificate of Good Standing
  • Possibly sufficient: A signed declaration that no legal criminal proceedings are pending against you and that you are not under investigation
• Proof of medical fitness: A medical certificate or a medical certificate. The certificate must not be more than 3 months old when you submit the application.

The responsible office will tell you which documents you must submit in the original or as a copy.

You must submit your documents in German. This often means that your documents must be translated. The translations must be done by translators who are publicly appointed or authorized.

Ask the responsible regional council for pre-printed applications / forms.

Ask the regional council for the specific requirements. In general, the following requirements apply:

• You have a professional qualification as a geriatric care assistant from abroad.
• You are in good health (health suitability). This means that you are mentally and physically healthy and can work in your profession.
• You are personally suitable for the job (personal suitability). This means: You are reliable and have no criminal record.
• You have sufficient knowledge of German. You must normally demonstrate language level B2 according to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages.

The legal basis is different in each federal state.
The relevant specialist laws apply (e.g. vocational school regulations, training and examination regulations for geriatric nursing assistance, Geriatric Nursing Assistance Act).
The regulations of the Professional Qualifications Assessment Acts (BQFG) or "Recognition Acts" of the federal states often also apply.
You can find all recognition laws here:

You have four weeks to appeal against the decision of the regional council.

The procedure may vary from state to state. In most federal states, the procedure is as follows:

Examination of equivalence

You submit an application for a permit to the competent authority. The application is called differently in each federal state.
The competent authority then checks whether you meet all the requirements. An important requirement is the professional qualification. The competent authority compares your professional qualification from abroad with the German professional qualification as a geriatric care assistant. The competent authority will check whether your professional qualification is equivalent. The professional qualification is equivalent if there are no significant differences between your foreign professional qualification and the German professional qualification.

Possible results of the examination

If your professional qualification is equivalent, your foreign professional qualification will be recognized. The authority can confirm the result in writing. You must still meet the other requirements and provide proof of your language skills. You will then receive permission to use the professional title.
If the competent authority identifies significant differences, you may be able to compensate for the differences through your professional experience. You must provide evidence of your professional experience.
However, your professional experience may not be sufficient. In this case, you will not be able to compensate for the main differences. The competent body will inform you in writing of the main differences and why you cannot compensate for them with your professional experience. However, the competent body will offer you a compensatory measure. If you successfully complete this measure, you can compensate for the main differences. Your professional qualification will then be recognized.

Compensatory measures

As a compensation measure, you can choose between an adaptation period and an aptitude test (for professional qualifications from the EU/EEA/Switzerland) or a knowledge test (for professional qualifications from third countries). The adaptation period is a practical post-qualification and can last the entire German training period for the profession (12 months). In the aptitude test, only the differences identified by the competent authority are tested. In the knowledge test, your knowledge in certain subjects and areas is tested. If you complete the adaptation period or pass the aptitude test or knowledge test (and meet all other requirements), you will receive permission to use the professional title.

Legal remedy

The competent authority will issue its decision in writing. You can take legal action against the decision of the competent authority. The decision will then be reviewed. Details can be found in the information on legal remedies at the end of the decision. We recommend that you first speak to the competent authority before taking legal action against the decision.

There are no deadlines to be observed.
Sometimes documents are missing for the procedure. The responsible office will inform you and specify deadlines. You must then submit the documents by the deadline.

The responsible office will confirm that your documents have arrived after a maximum of one month. The competent office will inform you if any documents are missing.
If the documents are complete, the procedure takes 3 months.
In individual cases, the procedure may be extended. For professional qualifications from the EU, the EEA or Switzerland, the procedure takes a maximum of 4 months.

The procedure costs money. The responsible office will inform you of the costs. The costs generally depend on the time and effort required for processing.
The costs for the procedure are different in each federal state.
Additional costs may also be incurred (e.g. for translations, certifications or compensation measures). These costs vary from state to state.

• Freedom to provide services
  As a citizen of the EU, the EEA or Switzerland with a professional qualification from these countries, you do not need a state permit if you only want to work temporarily and occasionally as a service provider in Germany: You must notify the competent authority of your work before you start working for the first time. The competent authority will inform you in detail about the procedure.
  
• Notification of equivalence
  In the permit procedure, the competent authority compares your professional qualification from abroad with the German professional qualification (equivalence test / equivalence assessment). You may be able to apply for a separate decision (equivalence decision) for the result of the examination.
  
• Electronic application
  You can also submit your application electronically. You may be able to submit the application directly to the relevant office. In any case, you can submit the application to the Single Point of Contact. The Single Point of Contact will help you and forward the application to the competent body. However, it is often only possible to send documents if they were issued or recognized in the EU, the EEA or Switzerland.
  
• Procedure for late repatriates
  As a late repatriate, you can choose to go through the procedure according to the respective law of the federal state or according to the Federal Expellee Act. You can decide for yourself. Your responsible office will advise you on this.