Specialist - recognition of a qualification acquired abroad

You must submit the application for recognition of the specialist qualification in writing to the State Medical Association of Rhineland-Palatinate or if you are already working in Rhineland-Palatinate or at which place you will be active at the responsible district medical association.

EU/EEA or state to which Germany and the European Union have granted a corresponding legal claim (Contracting State):

Anyone who, as a national of a Member State of the European Union, the European Economic Area or a contracting state, has proof of formal qualifications for (specialist) further training, is automatically recognised in accordance with Directive 2005/36 /EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 7 September 2005 on the recognition of professional qualifications and, upon application, receives the right to use a corresponding designation in accordance with the Continuing Training Regulations for Doctors in Rhineland-Palatinate.

The evidence of formal qualifications to be mutually recognised (specialist designations) is set out in Annex V to Directive 2005/36/EC.

If an EU/EEA/Contracting State qualification is proven that does not meet the standards for automatic recognition, an individual content review is carried out. It is examined individually whether there are significant differences between the foreign and the German specialist dentist qualification. Significant differences can be completely or partially compensated by knowledge that you have acquired as part of your professional experience abroad or in Germany.

Third countries:

Specialist qualifications that have been completed in a third country are individually checked to see whether there are significant differences between the foreign and German specialist dentist qualification.

A corresponding training in countries outside the European Union or outside the other contracting states of the Agreement on the European Economic Area can therefore be credited in whole or in part if it complies with the principles of the Continuing Training Regulations and a further training of at least 12 months has been completed in a desired designation in Germany.

Significant differences can be compensated in whole or in part by knowledge, experience and skills acquired by the applicants as part of their professional experience abroad or in Germany.

The same applies to continuing training in a member state of the EU /EEA /Contracting State if it has been completed by a doctor who is not a national of the EU /EEA/ Contracting State.

Please contact the State Medical Association of Rhineland-Palatinate or the responsible district medical association in Rhineland-Palatinate:

You can also contact the Point of Single Contact for Administrative Matters.

• Rhineland-Palatinate State Medical Association
• Point of single contact for administrative matters
• District Medical Association Koblenz
• District Medical Association Palatinate
• Bezirksärztekammer Rheinhessen
• District Medical Association Trier

The recognition of your specialist qualification and the activity as a specialist doctor are only possible if you already have a valid professional license/ license to practice medicine in Germany. This means that you must first have your qualification as a doctor recognised and have received the professional permit/license to practice medicine (information on this here: https://lsjv.rlp.de/de/unsere-aufgaben/arbeit/akademische-heilberufe/approbationen-und-berufserlaubnisse/). You can then apply for recognition of your specialist qualification.

You must prove your German language skills when issuing your professional permit/license to practice medicine. For specialist recognition, your German language skills will not be checked again.

If you apply for recognition as a specialist, the following documents and certificates must be submitted:

EU/EEA/Contracting State

• Application form
• Evidence of formal qualifications acquired abroad (diplomas, specialist designations)
• Declaration as to whether and to which State Medical Association an application for recognition or rewriting has already been submitted
• curriculum vitae
• German approbation

Third countries

• Informal application for recognition of a qualification
• Evidence of formal qualifications acquired abroad (diplomas, specialist designations)
• Evidence of relevant professional experience (detailed certificates, specifications) and other evidence of formal qualifications, where these are necessary to establish equivalence.
• Certificate of entitlement to practise in the country of training
• Declaration as to whether and to which State Medical Association an application for recognition or rewriting has already been submitted
• German license to practice medicine or professional license

The documents shall be submitted in the form of originals or certified copies. Your documents must be submitted in German or as a certified copy of a German translation. Translations must be made by interpreters or translators who are publicly appointed or sworn in. The translations must be made from the original. This must be certified by the translator.

If you submit your application electronically, only documents issued or recognised in a Member State of the European Union or another state party to the Agreement on the European Economic Area can also be transmitted electronically. If the competent authority has reasonable doubts as to the authenticity of the documents transmitted, it may require the production of certified copies.

Fees are charged for recognition. Information on this can be obtained from the State Medical Association or the District Medical Associations. The fee is to be paid with the application by bank transfer

For the procurement of necessary documents, further costs may arise, also for other bodies.

No deadlines have to be observed.

The procedure for examining an application for admission to a regulated profession must be completed as quickly as possible, and no later than three months after the submission of the complete dossier.
The time limit may be extended once appropriately if justified by the specific nature of the matter. The extension of the deadline is a maximum of one month if you have obtained your proof of formal qualifications in a member state of the EU or a state party to the Agreement on the European Economic Area or in a state treated as such by agreement.

• Continuing Education Regulations of the Rhineland-Palatinate State Medical Association
• §§ 25ff Health Professions Act Rhineland-Palatinate
• Directive on the recognition of professional professions

An appeal may be made against the decision of the competent authority. This will allow you to take legal action against the decision so that it is reviewed. Details can be given in the legal remedy at the end of your decision. However, you are advised to resolve the disputed issues with the competent body before you file an appeal.

You must submit the application for recognition of the specialist qualification in writing to the State Medical Association of Rhineland-Palatinate or if you are already working in Rhineland-Palatinate or at which place you will be active at the responsible district medical association.

• IQ Landesnetzwerk Rheinland-Pfalz