The German companies benefit from increase in recognition of foreign professional qualifications. The Federal Statistical Office reports a 20% increase over the previous year. This is a particularly important signal in times of skills shortages.

The 20,000th recognition notification of the IHK FOSA went to Mariana Raposo dos Santos in Karlsruhe. This confirmed the full equivalence of the chemical laboratory assistant's training completed in Portugal with the German qualification. The recognition notification makes her professional qualification as a skilled worker transparent and thus contributes to her integration into the German labour market.

Compared to 2008, the number of EU foreigners in Germany has doubled. Most immigrants came from Southern and Eastern Europe. The immigrants represent a great potential for the German economy. The BQ-Portal offers comprehensive information on foreign vocational qualifications and thus creates greater acceptance for foreign credentials.

The United Kingdom leaves the European Union at the end of October - possibly without an agreement. What does a No-Deal-Brexit mean for the recognition of foreign qualifications?

The 2019 Global Education Monitoring Report by UNESCO congratulates Germany for its policies in recognizing migrants and refugees’ prior qualifications and skills. The recognition of foreign professional qualifications increases the probability of immigrant employment by 45 percentage points and the hourly wage by 40%. A million migrants a year visit the website ‘Recognition in Germany’, which offers advice on the recognition procedure in 9 languages. The information on foreign vocational training systems and professional qualifications in the BQ-Portal is accessed annually by over 180,000 website visitors, primarily assessment authorities, companies and experts.

A delegation with representatives of the Swedish Council for Higher Education visited the BQ-Portal on 1 February in order to get acquainted with the professional recognition in Germany. Since 2017 it is possible in Sweden to have your foreign professional credentials recognized. In Germany this legal right was introduced already in 2012. The Swedish Council for Higher Education is responsible for carrying out recognition procedures in Sweden and already uses the information available in the BQ-Portal in daily work. At the meeting, the Swedish guests learned how to find the information in the BQ-Portal, and found out, how the BQ-Team carries out research on foreign VET systems and professional profiles.

You want to foster integration of refugees? Or: You have already received a job application from a refugee and do not know how to evaluate his or her qualification and to determine whether the qualification is appropriate for the employment you are offering. Have a closer look at our compact country overviews, which are now available in English. They will give you a valuable insight into the country of origin of refugees in question and its education system. Our country overviews are available for following countries: Syria, Iraq, Iran, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Nigeria, Eritrea.

www.make-it-in-germany.com is the German government’s portal for qualified professionals from around the world. The portal, which can be browsed in a variety of different languages, offers information for those interested in moving to Germany – starting with preparations in the home country, to the actual move, to the first steps to be taken in Germany.

According to data published today by the Federal Statistical Office, more and more applications for professional recognition are being filed in. In 2017, some 25,000 new applications were submitted (a 9 percent increase over the previous year) and 21,800 qualifications were recognized (a 14 percent increase over the previous year). Since the Recognition Act came into effect in 2012, some 111,500 applications for the recognition of foreign professional qualifications were submitted, the Federal Statistical Office reports.

The IQ Competence Centre for Counselling and Job Training of Migrants in cooperation with the IQ Competence Centre for Securing Skill Base supports the implementation of § 17a of the German Residence Act with a new guideline in English. This guide, which was originally published in German, aims to provide all relevant stakeholders with a practical, easy-to-understand summary of the main steps, players and requirements involved in the procedures around Section 17a of the German Residence Act.