Nursing remains the most frequently recognised profession: Growing Recognition of Foreign Qualifications

Rising number of recognised foreign qualifications.

In recent years, the number of foreign professional qualifications recognised in Germany has more than tripled. Turkey and Ukraine remain the leading countries in this statistic.

Germany is recognising an increasing number of foreign vocational and professional qualifications. According to the Federal Statistical Office, the authorities approved 79,100 applications last year — 20% more than in the previous year. Since the introduction of a unified system for recording recognition procedures under federal and state law in 2016, the total number has increased more than threefold.

At the same time, statisticians in Wiesbaden report that in 2024 the number of ongoing recognition procedures reached a record high of 95,500, more than double the figure recorded in 2016. Representatives from both the business sector and politics repeatedly stress the need to accelerate the recognition of foreign qualifications in order to address the growing shortage of skilled workers.

Economists: Germany needs foreign specialists

According to economists, Germany is increasingly dependent on foreign professionals, as nearly one third of the working-age population is expected to retire within the next 15 years. Statisticians emphasise:

“Younger generations will not be able to numerically replace the baby boomer generation.”

Qualifications from Turkey and Ukraine lead the statistics

According to 2024 data, Turkey remained the country with the highest number of recognised qualifications, with 9,200 positive decisions, followed by Ukraine. In Ukraine’s case, the number of successful recognitions more than doubled compared to the previous year, reaching 6,400.

Next in the ranking are Tunisia, India and Syria, while the figures for Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Philippines declined.

Nursing remains the most frequently recognised profession.

The list of the five most frequently recognised professions remained largely unchanged. Nursing ranks first, accounting for 41% of all recognised qualifications, including nurses, healthcare assistants and auxiliary staff. Compared to the previous year, the number of recognitions in this field increased by 19%.

Second place is held by medical doctors, with 11,000 recognitions (14%), granted as part of the medical licensing process. Engineers rank third, with 4,400 positive decisions, representing 5% of all recognitions.

They are followed by teachers (4%) and physiotherapists (2.8%), with early childhood educators coming next.

Source: dpa, Reuters