Licence to practise medicine from the EU/EEA/Switzerland

Would you like to work as a doctor in Germany? Then you need a so-called approbation. You can also obtain a licence to practise medicine with a professional qualification from the EU, the EEA or Switzerland. To do this, you must have your professional qualification recognised.

The profession of doctor is regulated in Germany. This means that in order for you to be able to work as a doctor in Germany without restriction, you need a licence to practise medicine. The approbation is the state approval for the profession. This means that you are not allowed to work independently as a doctor without a licence to practise medicine.

Even with a professional qualification from a country of the European Union (EU), the European Economic Area (EEA) or Switzerland, you can obtain a license to practice medicine in Germany.

In order to obtain the licence to practise medicine, you must have your foreign professional qualification recognised.

In the recognition procedure, the competent authority compares your professional qualification from abroad with the German professional qualification and checks its equivalence. The equivalence of the professional qualification is an important prerequisite for the granting of the approbation.

A professional qualification from the EU, the EEA or Switzerland is usually automatically recognised when you apply for a licence to practise medicine. However, there may also be deviations from this rule. It depends on the state in which they completed their education and at what time. If you started your vocational training after the EU/EEA accession of your country of training, your professional qualification will be automatically recognised.

If your professional qualification does not originate from the EU, EEA or Switzerland, different regulations apply.

In addition to the equivalence of the professional qualification, you must also meet other requirements for the granting of the license to practice medicine. Other requirements are, for example, sufficient German language skills and health suitability.

You can also apply for the procedure from abroad.

Since 01.01.2023, the Hessian State Office for Health and Care (HLfGP) has been responsible.

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

The competent authority will inform you which documents you need to submit. Important documents are in general:

• Proof of identity (ID card or passport)
• Birth certificate as well as marriage certificate if your name has changed due to marriage
• Curriculum vitae
• Proof of training
• Proof of the content of your training:
• List of subjects and training hours you have completed
• Proof of your relevant professional experience as a doctor
• Information on whether you have already applied for a licence to practise medicine in Germany
• You don't live or work in Germany yet? Then you may need to prove:
  • You want to work in the profession in Germany. Evidence includes, for example, job applications, invitations to job interviews, personal statement
• Proof of your personal suitability: extract from the criminal record or certificate of good conduct from your country of origin. The proof must be no more than 3 months old at the time of application.
• Proof of your health suitability: Medical certificate. The proof must be no more than 3 months old at the time of application.
• Proof of your German language skills: Language certificate.

The prerequisite for the licence to practise medicine is general German language skills at level B2. You can also submit the required proof of language proficiency during the approbation procedure. In addition, you must take a medical language test at level C1 during the approbation process.

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

• Certificate

If you do not have a certificate of conformity: proof of the content and duration of your training (e.g. list of subjects and grades, study book, Diploma Supplement, Transcript of Records)

• Certificate according to § 14b of the Federal Medical Code that the applicant has actually and lawfully practiced the medical profession for at least three years without interruption during the last five years prior to the issuance of the certificate.

The competent authority will inform you which documents you need to submit as a simple copy, as a certified copy or in the original.

If your documents are not in German, you must submit German translations of your documents. Translations must be carried out by translators who are publicly appointed or authorised.

Applications and forms can be found at:

• You have a professional qualification as a doctor from the EU, the EEA or Switzerland.
• You want to work as a doctor in Hesse.
• Personal suitability: You are reliable to work as a doctor and have no criminal record.
• Health suitability: You can work mentally and physically as a doctor.
• You have German language skills at the required level. As a rule, these are general language skills at level B2 according to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) and medical language skills at level C1.

You can take legal action against the decision of the competent authority within a certain period of time (e.g. file an appeal). The decision will then be reviewed. Details on this can be found in the information on legal remedies at the end of your decision. We recommend that you first talk to the competent authority before taking legal action against the decision.

Application

You submit an application for a licence to practise medicine with the competent authority. You can submit the application with the documents to the competent authority or send it by post. The competent authority will then check whether your training corresponds to the German training and whether all other requirements are met.

Automatic recognition

As a rule, the automatic recognition procedure applies if you started your vocational training after the EU/EEA accession of your country of training. This means that if you also meet all other requirements, your professional qualification will be recognised without an individual equivalence test.

Certificate

Vocational training that you started before the EU/EEA accession of your country of training (or that does not correspond to the legal designations) can also be automatically recognised. To do this, you must submit a certificate from the competent authority of your country of training that your professional qualification meets the minimum standards of the EU ("certificate of conformity"). If your professional qualification does not meet the minimum standards, you will need to provide proof of your professional experience. You must have worked as a doctor in your country of origin for 3 years without interruption in the last 5 years prior to the application. This must be confirmed by the competent authority of your country of origin.

Equivalence test

If you are unable to provide a certificate of conformity or do not have enough professional experience, your training will need to be reviewed individually. The competent authority compares your professional qualification from abroad with the German professional qualification. 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 exam

If your professional qualification is equivalent and you meet the other requirements, you will be granted a licence to practise medicine.

Are there any significant differences between your professional qualification and the German professional qualification? Perhaps you can compensate for the differences through your professional practice, other knowledge or skills (lifelong learning). You must provide proof of professional experience. Knowledge and skills must be certified by an authority of the state in which you acquired the knowledge or skills.

However, it may not be possible to compensate for the essential differences by this knowledge. The competent authority will tell you the main differences and why you cannot compensate for the significant differences through your professional practice.

The decision from the competent authority also states the level of your training and the level required in Germany. You will then not be allowed to work as a doctor in Germany.

Suitability test

If your professional qualification is not equivalent and you cannot make up for the differences, you can take an aptitude test. The aptitude test examines the main differences between your professional qualifications. The aptitude test is an oral-practical exam.

If you pass the aptitude test and meet all other requirements, you will be granted a licence to practise medicine.

None.

Sometimes documents are still missing from the procedure. The competent authority will then inform you by when you have to submit the documents. As a result, the procedure may be prolonged.

The competent authority will inform you about the costs. The costs generally depend on the amount of work involved.

In addition, there may be additional costs (e.g. for translations or certifications). These costs vary from person to person.

Issuance of a licence to practise medicine, depending on the effort involved in the individual case: Fee from 200,00 EUR to 600,00 EUR

Freedom to provide services

Do you only want to offer services in Germany sometimes and for a short time? In this case, you usually do not need the state permit. You must meet these requirements:

• You must be established in another country of the EU, the EEA or Switzerland.
• You will need to prove your professional qualification.
• You must report your activity in writing to the competent authority.

The competent authority will inform you.

Certificate of equivalence

In the approbation procedure, the equivalence of your education is checked (recognition procedure). You can apply for a separate decision for the result of the examination.