The German Bundestag has passed a bill to speed up the recognition of foreign professional qualifications in health professions. The draft, proposed by Health Minister Nina Warken (CDU), was brought forward on Thursday with the votes of the coalition partners and the Greens. The AfD voted against the bill, while Die Linke abstained.
The legislation aims to streamline, standardise and digitise the recognition processes for doctors, dentists, pharmacists and midwives. Warken said that recognition procedures should no longer create bottlenecks when integrating qualified professionals. “Uniform standards and digital procedures relieve all parties from unnecessary bureaucracy” she explained.
The bill also allows the federal states to assess applicants’ language skills for qualified third‑country professionals even before they complete their professional training.
The law still requires approval by the Bundesrat and is scheduled to enter into force on 1 November 2026.