Background:

Labour shortages are impacting the labour markets of several EU Member States, leading to an increase in job vacancies across high, medium, and low-skilled positions. Sectors such as construction, manufacturing, information and communication technologies (ICT), transport, health, and long-term care are experiencing persistent shortages. As the demand for skilled workers exceeds the supply within the EU, it is essential to attract global talent. Legal migration of individuals from third countries with the necessary skills can help address these labour shortages and contribute to the EU’s economic growth.

The EU Recommendation 2023/7700, published on 15 November 2023, provides guidelines to simplify and expedite the recognition of competences and qualifications of third-country nationals by EU Member States. The goal is to make the EU labour market more attractive to these professionals and facilitate their integration. The Recommendation applies in cases where access to a regulated profession in an EU Member State is granted through the recognition of professional qualifications.

The Spanish National Contact Point to the EMN launched this query in order to map the procedures in place across EMN Member and Observer Countries for the recognition of third-country qualifications for the profession of doctor with basic medical training.

Respondents:

21 EMN Member and Observer Countries (including BE) provided a public answer to this ad hoc query.

Findings:

A preliminary analysis of the results of the ad hoc query shows that:

• In all responding countries, the recognition of a medical doctor degree consists of at least a formal examination by a competent authority of the curriculum and training of the applicant, which leads to a formal academic recognition of qualifications. In BE, academic recognition is the competence of the language-based communities: for higher education diplomas, this concerns the NARIC centres of the Flemish and French Communities.
   
• The majority of countries impose additional requirements for the applicant to be able to exercise a medical profession, such as the successful passing of an exam on medical knowledge, or even the conduct of an internship/work placement for several months (EE, FI, FR, SE). In BE, the regulation of health professions is the competence of the federal level. Applicants who have received recognition of their qualifications and who wish to exercise a health profession in BE must apply to the Federal Public Service for Public Health.
   
• In the vast majority of responding countries, knowledge of (one of) the national language(s) is a formal requirement, either for the recognition of the diploma itself or for the exercise of the profession. In BE, knowledge of one of the official languages is not a criterion for academic recognition of the qualification.
   
• The fees that applicants must bear to apply for the recognition of their diploma range from € 0 (BG, FR, LT, LU, NL, PO) to € 700 (DE). In BE, the application fee is € 180 in the Flemish Community, with exceptions for certain categories of applicants such as applicants for international protection, beneficiaries of international or temporary protection, beneficiaries of income support, and jobseekers under certain conditions. In the French Community, fees vary from € 0 to € 200 depending on the applicant’s situation or country of origin.
   
• The ad hoc query provides detailed information on the number of applications received by each responding country in 2023 as well as the number of positive decisions issued. In BE, NARIC-Vlaanderen received 154 applications for academic recognition of medical degrees, versus 30 applications received in the French Community. Not all applications from 2023 have already received a decision.

For further details, please read the compilation of answers above.