General information
The following information applies to persons who wish to stay in Germany for the purpose of recognising professional qualifications which they acquired abroad in accordance with Section 16d of the Residence Act.
If your vocational training has not been fully recognised by the competent German agency, you can apply for a visa to complete the necessary training in Germany and at the same time start to work. After completion and full recognition of your training, you can apply for permanent residence in Germany.
Please note that some university degrees from foreign universities are classified as vocational training in Germany.
Within a so-called recognition partnership, it is also possible to initiate the recognition process after entry, but to take up employment at the beginning of your stay. The prerequisite is that you first have a foreign professional qualification that is state-recognized in the country in which it was acquired. If it is foreign vocational training, it must also provide for at least two years of training. By entering into the recognition partnership, the employee undertakes to initiate the recognition process immediately after entry and to pursue it with the aim of determining the equivalence of his qualifications. At the same time, the employer undertakes to make it possible for any deficits identified in the recognition process to be compensated for. The employee must also have German language skills at least at level A2. A stay within a recognition partnership can last up to three years.
Basic information
- You have to submit your visa application for the purpose of recognition of foreign professional qualifications to the external service provider TLScontact. Information about the services TLScontact offers and how to make appointments can be found in German and English on the TLScontact website.
- All application documents must be submitted in original with 1 copy.
- Please sort the documents in the order listed below.
- Documents not in the German or English language must be submitted with a certified German or English translation.
- The Embassy reserves the right to request additional documents in individual cases.
- Incomplete application forms as well as applications with incomplete documents will delay processing and may lead to rejection of the application.
- Processing time is as a rule ca. 1 to 2 months but can take longer in individual cases. If the Foreigners authority issues a so-called preliminary approval to the visa according to Section 81a of the Residence Act (“Fast-track procedure for skilled workers”), the processing time is ca. 2 weeks.
- Please do not contact the mission abroad to check the status of your application during the normal processing period. Such inquiries are extremely time-consuming for the visa section and can thus not be answered.
For your application we require the following documents:
1. Passport and 1 copy of the data page. If you are a foreigner residing in Kenya, Burundi or Eritrea you have to show a valid residence permit for the country of residence.
2. 1 completed and duly signed application forms.
A digital application form to be completed online can be found on https://videx-national.diplo.de
3. 2 current, identical biometric passport photos with a white background
4. “Deficiency notice” (or interim notice) from the body responsible for recognition (not necessary for recognition partnership)
The notice must specify the necessary qualification measures or further qualifications (e.g. proof of language skills; reference to professional/linguistic deficits; in the case of professional/linguistic deficits in the regulated area: determination of the necessity of an qualification measure, examination or proof of language skills)
Please note: Information on the recognition procedure in Germany can be found here
For more detailed advice and support in the recognition procedure, please contact the Service Center for Professional Recognition (ZSBA)
5. Documents for the planned qualification measure
a) Predominantly theoretical courses (e.g. training courses, language courses)
- Invitation letter/registration confirmation from the provider
- “Self-disclosure” of the provider (e.g. state-approved / “AZAV”-approved / funding within the framework of state funding programs, such as the “Integration through Qualification (IQ)” funding program, information on any participating companies)
- Information on the type and duration of the measure with reference to the significant differences identified, information on the minimum language level required
- For courses offered by private, non-certified or non-publicly funded providers (not for language courses, preparatory courses for examinations): Confirmation from the competent body that the measure is suitable for achieving recognition
b) Predominantly company-based offers (e.g. training courses, internships)
- Forms “Declaration regarding a contract of employment” and supplementary sheet A to the form “Declaration regarding a contract of employment” completed by the employer
- Binding confirmation from the company that the qualification measure can be completed in the company
- Further training plan of the company, which clearly states who will supervise the applicant and how the goal of compensating for the deficits identified in the notice is to be achieved
- In addition, in the case of practical work: details of the planned remuneration
- In the case of predominantly company-based preparatory courses: confirmation from the provider of the qualification measure that the company-based practical phase is part of the preparatory course
c) Recognition Partnership
- Forms “Declaration regarding a contract of employment” and supplementary sheet A to the form “Declaration regarding a contract of employment” completed by the employer as evidence of a specific job offer for qualified employment.
If the employment requires a license to practice, you can also submit the “Declaration regarding a contract of employment” as proof of a specific job offer for non-skilled employment. In addition, information is required
- whether there is collective bargaining agreement OR the employer is a church institution that is bound by the regulations of equal committees, OR that the employer is a nursing facility approved in accordance with Section 72 SGB XI and
- the classification and remuneration correspond to an employment whose requirements lead to professional activity in the desired target occupation.
- Agreement between you and the employer stating that
- You undertake to immediately initiate the process for the recognition of your professional qualifications acquired abroad at the latest after entering the country with the body responsible for professional recognition in accordance with the federal or state regulations, and
- the employer undertakes to enable you to take the qualification measures required by the responsible body to recognize your professional qualifications as part of your employment relationship.
- Decision from the Central Office for Foreign Education (ZAB) about the recognition of the foreign professional qualification, which was preceded by at least two years of training, or the foreign university degree in the country in which it was acquired. Confirmation can be applied for via a digital procedure (https://zab.kmk.org/en/statement-comparability with regard to university degrees, https://zab.kmk.org/de/dab with regard to professional qualifications).
d) Taking examinations (Section 16d (5) of the Residence Act)
- Information on examinations
- If applicable, confirmation of employment in the event of passing the examination, if a residence permit for gainful employment is subsequently to be applied for. Job description and details of remuneration are required, as the Federal Employment Agency will be involved in these cases.
6. Proof of means of subsistence:
In the case of company-based measures, at least 1160 euros gross / 882 euros net per month must be available. Proof is provided by stating the salary in the employment/internship contract and the job description.
For school-based measures, at least 1027 euros net per month must be available. Proof must be provided by submitting a blocked account for the period of the planned recognition procedure.
7. Proof of the German language skills required for participation in the measure or examination (at least A2)
The documents should show which language skills are required for participation. The required language level is usually at least A2. Particularly in cases of § 16d (5) of the Residence Act, the language skills must enable the applicant to take and pass the examination. Particularly in the case of examinations that are required for the granting of a professional practice permit or for the granting of authorization to use a professional title for professions regulated in Germany (e.g. in the health and care sector), significantly higher requirements must be met and technical language skills are necessary.
A recognized certificate from an examination provider certified according to the standards of the ALTE (Association of Language Testers in Europe) must be submitted as proof. In Kenya, only the Goethe-Institut and ÖSD currently issue recognized language certificates.
The submitted language certificate must not be older than 12 months at the time of application. Taking different test parts from different ALTE certified providers is sufficient.
8. Certificate of completion of studies or vocational training completed abroad
9. Curriculum vitae in German, gapless
10. Proof of incoming health insurance coverage, valid for one year beginning with date of entry to Germany
11. (Optional) Preliminary approval of the Federal Employment Agency or the Foreigners Authority (or in the case of the fast-track procedure for skilled workers in accordance with Section 81a of the Residence Act)
12. Visa fee in the amount 75 Euros, payable in Kenyan Shillings
This fact sheet reflects the legal situation at the time of drafting it. It is regularly updated but makes no claim to be complete. Authoritative version of the fact sheet is the German version.
