Application

You submit an application for licensure as a dentist to the competent office. The competent office checks whether your education corresponds to the German education and whether all other requirements are met.

Automatic recognition

As a rule, the procedure of automatic recognition applies if you started your professional training after the EU/EEA accession of your country of training. This means that if you also meet all other requirements, your professional qualification will be recognized without an individual examination of equivalence.

Certificate of conformity

Professional training that you started before the EU/EEA accession of your training state (or that does not correspond to the legal designations) can also be automatically recognized. To do so, you must submit a certificate from the competent authority of your training state stating that your professional qualification meets the minimum standards of the EU ("certificate of conformity"). If your professional qualification does not meet the minimum standards, you must provide proof of your professional experience. You must have worked as a dentist in your country of origin for an uninterrupted period of 3 years in the 5 years preceding your application. This must be confirmed to you by the authority in your country of origin.

Examination of equivalence

If you cannot present a certificate of conformity or do not have enough professional experience, your training must be checked individually. The competent body will compare your professional qualification from abroad with your German professional qualification as a dentist. The competent body checks whether your professional qualification is equivalent. The professional qualification is equivalent if there are no significant differences between your foreign professional qualification and the German professional qualification.

Possible results of the examination

If your professional qualification is equivalent, your foreign professional qualification will be recognized. The authority can confirm the result to you in writing. You still have to fulfill the other requirements and prove your language skills. Then you will be granted a license to practice dentistry.

If the competent authority finds significant differences, you can compensate for the differences through your professional practice and other knowledge and skills (lifelong learning). You must provide evidence of the professional practice. Knowledge and skills must be certified by an authority in your country of origin.

However, it may be that this knowledge is not sufficient. In this case, you will not be able to compensate for the essential differences. Your foreign professional qualification will then not be recognized.

The competent authority will inform you in writing about the essential differences and why you cannot compensate for the essential differences through your professional practice. The decision of the competent body will also state the level of your training and the level required in Germany. You are then not allowed to work as a dentist. However, the competent body offers you to take an aptitude test. If you successfully pass the aptitude test (and meet all other requirements), you will receive your license to practice dentistry.

Qualifying examination

If your professional qualification is not equivalent, you can take an aptitude test. The aptitude test examines the essential differences of your professional qualification. The contents and the exact procedure of the examination are regulated by law. If you pass the aptitude test, you will be granted a license to practice dentistry. You must also meet the other requirements for this and prove your language skills.