Recognition of a foreign professional qualification

The recognition of a foreign degree from an EU/EEA state can, on the basis of the European guideline for the recognition of professional qualifications (2005/36/EG), be applied for at the Bundesministerium für Soziales, Gesundheit und Pflege (Federal Ministry for Social Affairs, Health and Care)

The Universities of Applied Sciences (UAS) are not responsible for the recognition process!

The responsible departments can be found at: http://www.berufsanerkennung.at/en.

Only after you have received the recognition notice from the Federal Ministry can you go to the respective UAS to take the compensatory measures prescribed therein in order to complete the aptitude tests or adaptation courses.

For this purpose, please send the notice of the Ministry by e-mail to the contact person responsible for the corresponding study program. Contact details can be found further down below.

An application for the recognition of a foreign degree from an EU/EEA state must be accompanied by the following documtents:

• Proof of citizenship or passport

• Certificate of graduation and award of the academic degree (diploma)

• Recognition notice from the Federal Ministry

• Proof of sufficient knowledge of German at level B2 (or C2 in the case of speech therapy) according to the European reference framework, as a prerequisite for admission to an associate degree program.

Recognized proof of German language skills:

In particular, the following certificates are recognized as proof of sufficient knowledge of the German language for admission to the study program:

• German as an examination subject of the school-leaving examination (level B2)
• Supplementary German examination at a pre-study course
• Certificate B2 of the Austrian Language Diploma German https://www.osd.at/ (for speech therapy: C2)
• „TestDaF (Test German as a foreign language, http://www.testdaf.de) with at least level TDN 4 in all exams (for speech therapy: at least level TDN 5)
• Certificate B2 of the Language Center of the University of Vienna https://sprachenzentrum.univie.ac.at/ (for speech therapy: C2)
• Goethe-Certificate B2 from the Goethe-Institute https://www.goethe.de/de/index.html (for speech therapy: C2)
• “Second level" of the German Language Diploma of the Conference of the Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs of the states in the Federal Republic of Germany https://www.kmk.org/themen/deutsches-sprachdiplom-dsd.html
• ECL Exam B2 in German, issued after December 2020 by the European Consortium for the Certificate of Attainment in Modern Languages https://eclexam.eu/ (language level C2 for speech therapy currently not available)

If other proof of knowledge of the German language is provided, the respective proof can be recognized in individual cases (if necessary, after obtaining expert opinions).

Note: All documents must be submitted as originals and as individual documents (one scan per document). Copies will be made on site. Certified German translations of foreign language documents (with the exception of English documents) must be submitted.

The general certification regulations for foreign public documents apply. https://www.help.gv.at/Portal.Node/hlpd/public/content/99/Seite.991183.html

For more detailed information click here:

Nostrifications: Bundesministerium Bildung, Wissenschaft und Forschung

Certifications: Bundesministerium Soziales, Gesundheit, Pflege und Konsumentenschutz

Recognition of a foreign degree from an EU/EEA state:

The recognition of a foreign degree from an EU/EEA state can, on the basis of the European guideline for the recognition of professional qualifications (2005/36/EG), be applied for at the Bundesministerium für Soziales, Gesundheit und Pflege (Federal Ministry for Social Affairs, Health and Care)

The Universities of Applied Sciences (UAS) are not responsible for the recognition process!

The responsible departments can be found at: http://www.berufsanerkennung.at/en.

Only after you have received the recognition notice from the Federal Ministry can you go to the respective UAS to take the compensatory measures prescribed therein in order to complete the aptitude tests or adaptation courses.

For this purpose, please send the notice of the Ministry by e-mail to the contact person responsible for the corresponding study program.

Recognition of a foreign degree outside an EU member state, an EEA state or Switzerland:

The recognition of a foreign degree outside an EU member state, an EEA state or Switzerland can be nostrified via the UAS/universities.

For non-physician health professions, MTD/midwifery/health and nursing degrees - bachelors/diplomas, those Universities of Applied Sciences which offer the respective bachelor degree program are responsible.

Secondary technical school diplomas or diplomas below NQF level 6 may possibly be nostrified at the federal state of Upper Austrian (Department of Health) in the field of certified nursing assistant (Pflegefachassistenz) or nursing assistant (Pfegeassistenz).

Please direct inquiries by e-mail to the contact person responsible for the corresponding study program. Contact details can be found further down below.

A nostrified academic degree has the same legal effects as an academic degree acquired in Austria; it therefore entitles the holder

• to use the corresponding Austrian (instead of the foreign) academic degree and
• to exercise all associated rights, in particular to exercise that profession which in Austria is reserved for graduates of a relevant University of Applied Sciences (UAS) degree program.

A recognition procedure (EU/EEA countries) has no effect on the academic degree obtained abroad.

The application for the nostrification of an academic degree acquired at a foreign University of Applied Sciences (UAS) requires, among other things, that the nostrification is mandatory due to a law or a legal regulation, e.g. for practicing a profession or for continuing the applicant's education in Austria.

According to § 6 Abs 7 FHG it is not allowed to submit the same nostrification request to other university councils (more than one university council) at the same time. Therefore, we check (at least on the basis of random samples) whether your application has already been submitted to another Austrian university councils for nostrification. In this case, your application will be rejected by the UAS for Health Professions Upper Austria. Anew application to the UAS for Health Professions Upper Austria is only possible if your nostrification request has been rejected by another UAS.

Important: Nostrification is not required, for example, if professional law already exists on the basis of the Professional Recognition Directive 2006/36/EC and the Austrian transposition regulations. The regulations on EEA recognition in the professional regulations apply.

For the nostrification of a degree obtained at a foreign UAS, the following points must be observed:

• The application for nostrification must designate the UAS degree program comparable in Austria, which is structured with regard to the requirements, the overall scope as well as the study contents in such a way that it is to be considered equivalent to the foreign UAS degree program named in the application.
• In order to assess equivalence in terms of requirements, overall scope and study content, the relevant documents/evidence must be attached to the application form.
• If the equivalence is basically deemed to apply and only individual supplements to the full equivalence are missing, the applicant has the right, in the case of a positive decision, to complete these courses and examinations announced by the head of the council at the UAS for Health Professions Upper Austria (as a quantitative guideline for individual supplements, a size of about 25% of the scope of performance required by the curriculum is considered).
• No nostrification is required for the admission of a foreign UAS graduate to an Austrian doctoral program.

The head of the council, as the competent authority, shall decide on an application for the nostrification of an academic degree acquired at a foreign University of Applied Sciences (UAS). The head of the council has to examine whether the applicant's foreign study program is structured with regard to the requirements, the overall scope as well as the study contents in such a way that it is to be regarded as equivalent to the domestic UAS study program named in the application ("equivalence examination").

If the equivalence is basically deemed to apply and only individual supplements to the full equivalence are missing, the applicant has the right to complete these courses and examinations announced by the head of the council as an associate student.

An application for nostrification must be accompanied by the following documents:

1. Proof of citizenship or passport
2. Curriculum vitae with correct and complete information about the full educational background
3. Birth certificate and any documents concerning change of name (e.g. marriage certificate), if the study certificates are in a previous name.
4. Proof of residence (registration form or indication of an authorized recipient in Austria)
5. School-leaving certificate/Matura (A-level) certificate
6. Certificate of graduation and award of the academic degree (diploma)
7. Transcript of Records for the entire study program
8. Proof of a state examination (professional examination)
9. Detailed curriculum of the completed training (broken down into theory and practice, specifying hours or units of instruction)
10. Proof of internships completed during the course of studies (indicating the respective internship areas and the internship hours completed for each internship)
11. Certificates of the examinations taken, including the name and number of hours of the courses attended and examinations taken (e.g. Diploma Supplement)
12. Copy of the diploma thesis/bachelor's thesis or summary in the German language
13. Further education and training certificates
14. Evidence of relevant work experience (references)
15. Scientific and/or practical work, certificates of completion, etc.
16. Urgent recommendation: proof of sufficient knowledge of German at level B2 (or C2 in the case of speech therapy) according to the European reference framework, as a prerequisite for admission to an associate degree program.

Recognized proof of German language skills:

In particular, the following certificates are recognized as proof of sufficient knowledge of the German language for admission to the study program:

• German as an examination subject of the school-leaving examination (level B2)
• Supplementary German examination at a pre-study course
• Certificate B2 of the Austrian Language Diploma German https://www.osd.at/ (for speech therapy: C2)
• „TestDaF (Test German as a foreign language, http://www.testdaf.de) with at least level TDN 4 in all exams (for speech therapy: at least level TDN 5)
• Certificate B2 of the Language Center of the University of Vienna https://sprachenzentrum.univie.ac.at/ (for speech therapy: C2)
• Goethe-Certificate B2 from the Goethe-Institute https://www.goethe.de/de/index.html (for speech therapy: C2)
• “Second level" of the German Language Diploma of the Conference of the Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs of the states in the Federal Republic of Germany https://www.kmk.org/themen/deutsches-sprachdiplom-dsd.html
• ECL Exam B2 in German, issued after December 2020 by the European Consortium for the Certificate of Attainment in Modern Languages https://eclexam.eu/ (language level C2 for speech therapy currently not available)

If other proof of knowledge of the German language is provided, the respective proof can be recognized in individual cases (if necessary, after obtaining expert opinions).

Note: All documents must be submitted as originals and as individual documents (one scan per document). Copies will be made on site. Certified German translations of foreign language documents (with the exception of English documents) must be submitted.

The general certification regulations for foreign public documents apply. https://www.help.gv.at/Portal.Node/hlpd/public/content/99/Seite.991183.html

The processing fee is € 150.00 regardless of the outcome of the nostrification and is to be paid after application.

The head of the council of the UAS for Health Professions Upper Austria has to check whether the applicant's foreign studies with regard to:

• the requirements (level classification: baccalaureate studies)
• the overall scope (ECTS) and
• the study contents

is structured in such a way that it is to be regarded as equivalent to the domestic UAS degree program named in the application. Equivalence is considered to exist if at least 75% of the course content is the same.

Those courses that are not supported by appropriate evidence cannot be included in the equivalency review.

During the examination of the content of your foreign educational qualification, it is determined whether the equivalence is basically deemed to apply (=conformity of the course content to the extent of at least 75%). If individual course contents are missing as a supplement to the full equivalence, a notice will be issued stating which courses/examinations must be completed in order to achieve equivalence.

The applicant has the right to complete the courses/examinations listed in the notification as an associate student at the UAS for Health Professions Upper Austria.

If the completion of courses/examinations is imposed to a manifestly disproportionate extent, the nostrification cannot be granted, which is why an application must be rejected in this case.

A manifestly disproportionate extent shall be deemed to apply, if it were necessary to prescribe courses/examinations to the extent of more than 25% of the scope of performance required by the curriculum of the Austrian field of study.

It should be noted that the German language competence of at least level B2 (or C2 in the case of speech therapy) is required for admission to an associate degree program at the UAS for Health Professions Upper Austria. In addition, the above mentioned proof of your German language proficiency is also required for subsequent professional authorization or registration in the health professional register („Gesundheitsberuferegister“).

If the application for nostrification is legally rejected due to a lack of equivalence of the domestic and foreign studies, the applicant can apply for the regular admission procedure at the UAS for Health Professions Upper Austria as a regular student.

After successful completion of the admission procedure, the applicant can apply for the crediting of examinations already completed abroad for the Bachelor program.

An appeal against decisions of the head of the council regarding nostrification is admissible to the Federal Administrative Court.

• Write an e-mail to the respective contact person of the relevant study program with the request for nostrification and indicate which education from which country you have acquired.
• Submit all documents required for a nostrification procedure properly scanned (each document a color scan) as a PDF with the exact designation of the document (e.g. document name: "Bachelordiplom_SURNAME", consisting of “one”document containing the original certificate, any certification notes as well as the associated translation).
• You will receive an appointment for a personal "orientation talk" at the UAS for Health Professions Upper Austria at the campus of the respective study program.
• As soon as all necessary documents are available, you will receive the application form for the nostrification procedure. Please complete and sign this form and return it to us immediately.
• You will then receive an invoice for the processing fee in the amount of € 150.00
• The official nostrification procedure will only start as soon as all the above-mentioned documents (see "Which documents do I submit?“), and the payment have been received. From this point on, the decision period of 6 months according to §73 AVG (Recognition and Valuation Act) or 4 months according to §7 (1) AuBG (General Administrative Procedure Act) for persons entitled to asylum begins.
• This is followed by the investigation procedure with regard to the content and formal examination of your submitted documents.
• In the course of the procedure, you may be invited to another personal appointment, at which the "expert talk" will take place. In the course of this talk, your theoretical and practical qualifications will be reviewed and your original documents will also be examined and checked. (Please bring these with you to the appointment!)
• After your application has been reviewed, a decision on the nostrification will be made by means of an official notice.
• In the event that the decision stipulates the completion of courses/examinations/internships, these can be completed at the UAS for Health Professions Upper Austria. For this purpose, you will be enrolled as an associate student and pay the ÖH (student union) fee (currently € 21.20) per semester.
• After successful completion of the prescribed courses/examinations/internships, confirmation of nostrification will follow, which, in conjunction with the previously issued nostrification notice, entitles the holder to use the corresponding domestic title BSc, professional qualification and also to be entered in the respective professional register.

For more detailed information click here:

Nostrifications: Bundesministerium Bildung, Wissenschaft und Forschung

Certifications: Bundesministerium Soziales, Gesundheit, Pflege und Konsumentenschutz