Apply for recognition as a midwife with a professional qualification that is automatically recognized

Would you like to work as a midwife in Germany? Then you need a state permit. To do this, you must have your foreign professional qualification recognized. Foreign professional qualifications can be automatically recognized under certain conditions.

The profession of midwife is regulated in Germany. This means that in order to work as a midwife in Germany, you need a state license. With this permit, you can use the professional title "midwife" and work in the profession.

You can also obtain a state permit from the competent authority in Germany if you have a professional qualification from abroad. In order to obtain the permit, you must have your foreign professional qualification recognized.

In the recognition procedure, the competent authority compares your professional qualification from abroad with the German professional qualification and checks its equivalence. In some cases, your professional qualification can be recognized automatically. This means that no equivalence check is carried out. It is assumed that the training is equivalent.

As a rule, your professional qualification is automatically recognized if you obtained your professional qualification in a country of the European Union (EU), the European Economic Area (EEA) or Switzerland. However, there may be exceptions to this rule. This depends on the country in which you completed your training and when.

There may be other cases in which your professional qualification is automatically recognized. The competent authority will inform you. If your professional qualification is not automatically recognized, other regulations apply.

You must also meet other requirements for the permit to be issued. Further requirements include, for example, sufficient German language skills and health suitability.
You can also apply for the procedure from abroad.

Hessian State Office for Health and Care

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

• Proof of identity (identity card or passport)
• Marriage certificate (if your name has changed due to marriage)
• Curriculum vitae
• Proof of your professional qualifications (e.g. certificates, professional certificate)
• Proof of training
• Proof of your relevant professional experience as a midwife
• Proof of other relevant knowledge for working as a midwife
• Perhaps: You come from a third country and do not yet live or work in the EU, EEA or Switzerland? Then you must provide proof: You want to work in the profession in Germany. Proof can be, for example, an application for an entry visa for employment, job applications, invitations to job interviews, a business concept or a location note from the Central Service Agency for Professional Recognition (ZSBA).

You only need to submit the following documents if your professional qualification originates from the EU or the EEA and was completed before a certain date (cut-off date). The competent authority will inform you:

• Certificate of conformity
  If no certificate of conformity is available:
  Proof of the content and duration of your training (for example, list of subjects and grades, study book, diploma supplement, transcript of records)
• Certificate: You must have worked continuously and legally as a midwife for at least 3 years during the last 5 years before the certificate is issued. In some cases, you only need to provide proof of 2 years. This depends on your training. The competent authority will inform you.
  

You usually hand in these documents later. The responsible office will inform you when you should submit the documents:

• Proof of your personal suitability: criminal record extract or certificate of good conduct from your country of origin. The certificate must not be older than 3 months at the time of application.
• Proof of your health suitability: Medical certificate. The certificate must not be older than 3 months at the time of application.
• Proof of your German language skills: Language certificate
  

The responsible office will let you know which documents you need to submit as a simple copy, a certified copy or the original.

• You have a professional qualification as a midwife, which is automatically recognized.
• You want to work as a midwife in Germany.
• Personal suitability: You are reliable to work as a midwife and have no criminal record.
• Health suitability: You are mentally and physically fit to work as a midwife.
• You have German language skills at the required level. This is normally language level B2 according to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR).

You can take legal action against the decision of the competent authority within a certain period of time (for example, by lodging an objection). The decision will then be reviewed. Details can be found in the information on legal remedies at the end of your decision. You should first speak to the responsible office before taking legal action against the decision.

Application

You submit an application for permission to use the professional title "midwife" to the competent authority.
You can submit the application with the documents to the competent authority, send it by post or upload it electronically. Do not send any originals.

Examination of the application by the competent body

The competent authority will check whether you meet all the requirements for being granted permission to use the professional title "midwife". One requirement is that your professional qualification is recognized.

Automatic recognition

There are various cases in which a professional qualification can be automatically recognized. As a rule, this applies if you have acquired your professional qualification in a member state of the EU, the EEA or Switzerland. The competent authority will inform you about the possibilities for automatic recognition. In the case of automatic recognition, the equivalence of your professional qualification is not checked individually. This means that if you also meet all other requirements (reliability, health suitability, German language skills), you will receive permission to use the professional title "midwife".

Certificate of conformity for professional qualifications acquired before the country of training joined the EU/EEA:

Professional qualifications from the EU or EEA can also be automatically recognized if they were started before the EU/EEA accession of your country of training (or do not correspond to the legal designations). To do this, you must submit a certificate from the competent authority in your country of training stating that your professional qualification meets the minimum EU standards ("certificate of conformity"). If your professional qualification does not meet the minimum standards, you must provide proof of your professional experience. You must have worked as a midwife in your country of origin for 3 consecutive years in the 5 years prior to submitting your application. This must be confirmed by the authorities in your country of origin.

If your professional qualification is automatically recognized, you must meet the other requirements. You will then receive permission to use the professional title "midwife".

There is no deadline.

Sometimes documents are still missing from the procedure. The responsible office will then inform you by when you have to submit the documents. This may prolong the procedure.

The responsible office will inform you of the costs. The costs generally depend on the time and effort required for processing.

Additional costs may be incurred (e.g. for translations or notarizations). These costs vary from case to case.

Partial access to the profession for professional qualifications from the EU, the EEA or Switzerland

Your professional qualification is not equivalent and the differences are too great? Then you may be able to work in the profession with partial access to the profession. With partial access to the profession, you can also work in the midwifery profession without recognition. There are certain requirements for this. Your professional qualification must include at least one so-called reserved activity of the German professional qualification of a midwife. Only specially trained persons may carry out reserved activities.
You must also provide proof: You are personally suitable, in good health and have the required knowledge of German.

With partial access to the profession, you may only carry out certain tasks as a midwife. You can apply for partial access to the profession from the competent authority.

Freedom to provide services

Do you only want to offer services in Germany occasionally and for a short period of time? Then you do not usually need a state permit. You must fulfill these requirements:

• You must be established in another EU, EEA or Swiss state.
• You must provide proof of your professional qualification.
• You must provide proof of German language skills at the required level.
• You must prove your personal suitability.
• You must notify the competent authority of your activity in writing.

The competent authority will inform you.

Notification of equivalence

The equivalence assessment (recognition procedure) also takes place during the licensing procedure. You can apply for a separate decision on the result of the assessment.

Procedure for ethnic German repatriates

As a late repatriate, you can go through the recognition procedure either in accordance with the laws mentioned here or in accordance with the Federal Expellees Act. You can decide for yourself. The responsible office will advise you which procedure is right for you.

Using the (male) professional title "maternity nurse"

Until the end of 2024, you can also apply for the (male) professional title "maternity nurse". The regulations of the Midwives Act as amended until December 31, 2019 will then apply. Your competent authority will inform you about the details.