General care nurse · Germany

Work in Germany
as a nurse.

Two decisions stand between your qualification and a ward in Germany: the licence to use the professional title, and the permit that lets you live and work there. They run at different desks, on different timetables, and most guides only cover one of them.

Recognition
Regulated
Work permits sourced
3
Official sources
25
Last checked
2026-08-03
Build my roadmap →Compare the permits

The short answer

Two questions, and they are not the same question.

◎Licence decision required

Recognition

Regulated · non-EU qualifications are assessed case by case

Who decides: The recognition authority of the federal state (Bundesland) where you intend to work — Germany has no single national nursing authority. The BIBB Recognition Finder names the one competent for your profession and place of work.

Germany decides recognition case by case. The competent authority depends on both your profession and the federal state (Bundesland) where you intend to work, and it compares your qualification against a German reference occupation before issuing a written decision.

↗Always required

Work authorisation

Whatever the recognition branch says, you still need the legal right to work in Germany. We have sourced 3 routes for a qualification obtained outside the EU and EEA.

  • EU Blue Card
  • Residence permit for skilled workers with academic training (§ 18b AufenthG)
  • Opportunity Card (Chancenkarte)

Qualified inside the EU or EEA? Free movement replaces this branch entirely — pick your country below and the answer changes accordingly.

Work authorisation

Every permit we can source,
side by side.

Open the full roadmap →

EU Blue Card

The immigration authority (Ausländerbehörde) for the place where you live in Germany

Checklist
Salary floor
EUR 50,700 (2026 figure)§ 18g(1) sentence 1 AufenthG sets the floor at 50 per cent of the annual contribution assessment ceiling of the general pension insurance; the Federal Foreign Office states that as €50,700 a year for 2026. A lower floor of €45,934.20 a year applies in 2026 under § 18g(1) sentence 2 and § 18g(2) to the shortage occupations listed there, which the Federal Employment Agency describes as including "Akademische Fachkräfte in Mathematik, Informatik, Naturwissenschaft und Technik (MINT)" and "Führungskräfte in der Erbringung von Dienstleistungen im Bereich Informations- und Kommunikationstechnologie". The lower floor normally requires the approval of the Federal Employment Agency; the standard floor does not. Ask the authority whether your specific job falls in one of those groups before you rely on the lower figure.
Qualification
A German higher education qualification, or a foreign higher education qualification comparable to a German one.
Statement of Comparability where required for an EU Blue Card
2 weeks at the ZAB
Visa and permit decision
Not published as a single national figure — ask the mission or immigration authority handling your case
National visa, category D
€75
Issue of the EU Blue Card
€100
Extension
€96 for up to three months, €93 for longer
The procedure, step by step4 steps · 3 possible outcomes
  1. Secure an employment contract or a binding job offer in Germany, as a rule for at least six months.
  2. Establish that your degree is comparable to a German one: look it up in anabin, and apply to the ZAB for a Statement of Comparability where anabin does not settle it.A Statement of Comparability issued for an EU Blue Card is processed in about 2 weeks, against 3 months for a regular application.
  3. If you live outside the EU, apply for the employment visa at the German diplomatic mission responsible for your place of residence before you travel.
  4. Apply for the EU Blue Card at the immigration authority responsible for where you live in Germany.

Possible outcomes

  • An EU Blue Card, as a rule for four years; where the employment contract is shorter, for the contract period plus three months.
  • A settlement permit after 27 months holding the card with German at level A1 and the required pension contributions, or after 21 months with German at level B1, provided the other conditions are met.
  • Refusal, where the salary floor, the degree requirement or the other conditions are not met.

Residence permit for skilled workers with academic training (§ 18b AufenthG)

The immigration authority (Ausländerbehörde) for the place where you live in Germany

Checklist
Qualification
Proof of a German or recognised foreign university degree, or a foreign university degree comparable to a German one.
Permit decision
Not published as a single national figure — ask the mission or immigration authority handling your case
Statement of Comparability inside the Fast-Track Procedure for Skilled Workers
2 months at the ZAB
National visa, category D
€75
Issue of the residence permit
€100
Extension
€96 for up to three months, €93 for longer
The procedure, step by step4 steps · 2 possible outcomes
  1. Secure a concrete job offer for a qualified job that your qualification equips you to do. § 18b(1) AufenthG grants the permit for the exercise of any qualified employment.
  2. Establish that your degree is recognised or comparable: look it up in anabin, and apply to the ZAB for a Statement of Comparability where anabin does not settle it.
  3. Expect the immigration authority to obtain the consent of the Federal Employment Agency under § 39 AufenthG, unless the law or a regulation waives it for your case.Where a professional practice permit (Berufsausübungserlaubnis) is required for the job, § 18(2) AufenthG requires it to have been granted or assured. Whether your job needs one is the question the recognition part of this page answers.
  4. Apply at the German diplomatic mission if you are abroad, then at the immigration authority for where you live in Germany.For a first permit issued after your 45th birthday, § 18(2) no. 6 AufenthG requires either a salary of at least 55 per cent of the annual contribution assessment ceiling of the general pension insurance, or adequate old-age provision. The Federal Foreign Office states that ceiling as €101,400 for 2026; confirm both the ceiling and the resulting figure with the authority before you rely on them.

Possible outcomes

  • A residence permit for the exercise of any qualified employment.
  • A refusal where the degree is not recognised or comparable, where the Federal Employment Agency withholds its consent, or where the other conditions of § 18(2) AufenthG are not met.

Opportunity Card (Chancenkarte)

The German diplomatic mission responsible for your place of residence, which issues the national visa

Points-based
Qualification
Either you already qualify as a Fachkraft, or you hold a foreign university degree or a vocational qualification of at least two years' training that is state-recognised in the country where you obtained it, plus German at level A1 or English at level B2.
Visa decision at the mission
One mission publishes 2–3 weeks from complete documents, with security checks able to extend it. Turnaround is set per mission — check the one that will handle your case
Card for job search (Such-Chancenkarte)
Up to one year
National visa, category D
€75
Issue of the residence permit
€100 — the Opportunity Card is a residence permit under § 20a(1) AufenthG

Scored, not checked off. We explain the factors and link the official calculator — we never produce a score, because a score reads as a prediction.

The procedure, step by step4 steps · 3 possible outcomes
  1. Work out which of the two routes you are on. A recognised skilled worker (Fachkraft) gets the card without collecting points; everyone else has to score against the points table.
  2. Score yourself against the points table in the Annex to the Residence Act, which is the legal text the decision is made on. The minimum score is six points. We do not compute your score and no unofficial calculator decides your case.The criteria are listed in § 20b AufenthG and the points allotted to each are in the Annex to the Act, which is the source linked below. Any self-assessment tool is an aid, not a decision: the mission scores your case against the statute.
  3. Have the ZAB establish whether your qualification is recognised in the country where you obtained it. For higher education qualifications the ZAB issues a Statement of Comparability; where anabin already lists your institution as H+ and your degree as equivalent or conditionally comparable, the degree counts as state-recognised.
  4. Show that your living costs are covered for the search period, then apply for the national visa at the German diplomatic mission responsible for your place of residence.The Federal Employment Agency states the required monthly amount as €1,091 per month as at 2026, evidenced by a blocked account or a declaration of support. Confirm the current figure with the mission before you block the funds.

Possible outcomes

  • An Opportunity Card for up to one year to look for work or for measures towards the recognition of your qualification. It permits employment of on average no more than 20 hours a week, plus trial employment of up to two weeks at a time.
  • An extension of up to two further years (Folge-Chancenkarte) where you have an employment contract or a binding job offer for qualified employment in Germany and the Federal Employment Agency has given its consent, under § 20a(5) sentence 2 AufenthG.
  • Refusal, where you reach fewer than six points, where the qualification or language condition is not met, or where your living costs are not covered.

Recognition procedure

What the authority asks of you.

Ordered the way the procedure runs, from an origin outside the EU and EEA. Pick your own country of qualification below and the planner reorders it for you.

1

Prepare your documents

  1. Request certified copies of your degree and full academic transcripts from the institution that issued them in the Philippines.
  2. the Philippines is a contracting party to the 1961 Hague Apostille Convention, so an apostille replaces consular legalisation. Obtain it from the competent authority the Philippines has designated.Apostilles are issued per document. Budget one for the degree and one for each transcript you submit.
2

Get your qualification assessed

  1. Use the official Recognition Finder run by the Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training (BIBB) to identify the competent authority for your profession and your intended place of work.There is no single national office. Applying to the wrong Bundesland authority is the most common cause of delay.
  2. Submit your documents to that authority in the form it requires — normally certified copies with translations into German.
  3. The authority compares your qualification with the German reference occupation and issues a written decision. This normally takes three to four months.
  4. Have the Central Office for Foreign Education (ZAB) confirm that your qualification is recognised by the state in the country where you trained.Germany expects training of at least two years, or a degree.
  5. Apply to the competent Bundesland authority for an equivalence assessment against the German reference occupation, Pflegefachfrau / Pflegefachmann.
  6. You receive a written notice with the result after four months at the latest. The authority may extend the procedure in specific cases.An accelerated procedure of around two months exists under the Skilled Immigration Act; ask the authority whether your case qualifies.
3

Close any gaps

  1. If the authority finds a substantial difference in a regulated profession, it specifies a compensation measure: an adaptation period, an aptitude test or a knowledge test.Which measure applies is the authority's decision, not yours, and it varies by case.
  2. Show German at level B2 of the Common European Framework, and sit a specialist language examination (Fachsprachprüfung) covering subject-related language.You do not have to register for the specialist language examination if you completed your training in German.

What it costs

Apostille (per document)
Set by the authority the Philippines designates — confirm the current fee before applying
Recognition procedure
€170–€845, set by the competent authority
Translations and certifications
Additional to the official fee
Certifications and compensation measures
Additional to the procedure fee

How long it takes

Typical decision time, any profession
Normally 3 to 4 months
Legal maximum for nursing
Four months at the latest, extendable in specific cases

Possible outcomes

  • Full recognition — you may use the professional title and work as a nurse.
  • Recognition conditional on a compensation measure — an adaptation period, an aptitude test or a knowledge test, chosen by the authority.
  • Refusal, with the unmet requirements stated in the notice.

Possible, not predicted. Nobody here can tell you which one you will get.

Where you qualified

The answer changes
with your country.

Everything we cover →

Qualified outside the EU and EEA — permit required

Colombia → GermanyOpen this roadmapArgentina → GermanyOpen this roadmapIndia → GermanyOpen this roadmapPhilippines → GermanyOpen this roadmap

Qualified inside the EU or EEA — free movement applies

Spain → GermanyDifferent answerNetherlands → GermanyDifferent answer

People reach this page looking for

  • nursing recognition in Germany
  • Anerkennung as a foreign nurse
  • Pflegefachfrau recognition
  • German nursing licence for foreign nurses
  • nurse visa Germany

Questions

Answered from the same sources.

Is general care nurse a regulated profession in Germany?

Yes. Regulated · non-EU qualifications are assessed case by case. The decision is made by The recognition authority of the federal state (Bundesland) where you intend to work.

Which authority recognises a foreign general care nurse qualification in Germany?

The recognition authority of the federal state (Bundesland) where you intend to work. Germany has no single national nursing authority. The BIBB Recognition Finder names the one competent for your profession and place of work.

Which work permits can a general care nurse apply for in Germany?

We have sourced 3: EU Blue Card, Residence permit for skilled workers with academic training (§ 18b AufenthG), Opportunity Card (Chancenkarte). Each one has its own conditions, and this page compares them side by side rather than recommending one.

What salary do you need to work in Germany as a general care nurse?

EU Blue Card: EUR 50,700 (2026 figure, § 18g(1) sentence 1 AufenthG sets the floor at 50 per cent of the annual contribution assessment ceiling of the general pension insurance; the Federal Foreign Office states that as €50,700 a year for 2026. A lower floor of €45,934.20 a year applies in 2026 under § 18g(1) sentence 2 and § 18g(2) to the shortage occupations listed there, which the Federal Employment Agency describes as including "Akademische Fachkräfte in Mathematik, Informatik, Naturwissenschaft und Technik (MINT)" and "Führungskräfte in der Erbringung von Dienstleistungen im Bereich Informations- und Kommunikationstechnologie". The lower floor normally requires the approval of the Federal Employment Agency; the standard floor does not. Ask the authority whether your specific job falls in one of those groups before you rely on the lower figure.).

Does QualiPath calculate my points score?

No. Opportunity Card (Chancenkarte) is scored rather than checked against a list, and we explain the factors and link the official calculator instead of producing a number. Computing it here would be promising you an outcome we have no authority to promise.

Do you need your degree recognised for a Germany work permit?

Some routes ask for academic comparability, which is not the same thing as professional recognition. Statement of Comparability for foreign higher education qualifications is issued by ZAB (Zentralstelle für ausländisches Bildungswesen). The permit pages above say which routes require it.

How long does the process take?

Typical decision time, any profession: Normally 3 to 4 months. Legal maximum for nursing: Four months at the latest, extendable in specific cases. These are the timeframes the authorities publish, not a prediction about your case.

Is this page up to date?

The oldest source behind it was checked on 2026-08-03. Every claim links to the official page it came from, with its own check date, so you can verify any of it yourself in one click.

Evidence

Every claim on this page, and where it came from.

25 official pages, each with the jurisdiction it speaks for and the date a human last opened it. The oldest of them is 2026-08-03, and that is the date this page is only as fresh as.

Two minutes, no account

Your qualification, your country, your roadmap.

This page answers the pairing in general. The planner answers it for the country you actually qualified in, and prints the result with its sources attached.

Build my roadmap →How we verify this