Work as a nurse in Germany

Start your journey as a nurse in Germany 

There is a series of steps you need to take as a nurse who already has at least two years of experience to immigrate to Germany; here is an overview of the steps you need to take (and later on, we will get to each step individually and in detail):

1. Collecting the required documents 
2. Getting the documents translated into German
3. Getting approval for the correctness of the translated documents from the German embassy
4. Sending the documents to the competent authority for the recognition process
5. Interviewing with the German employer and getting a job offer
6. Approval of the Federal Employment Agency
7. Getting an appointment with the German embassy 
8. Receiving the visa
9. Booking a flight and accommodation

1 ) What are the required documents to apply as a nurse in Germany?

To start your process, you must collect all the required documents according to the following checklist: 

• Identification (passport or personal ID)
• Diploma, bachelor’s certificate, and bachelor’s transcripts 
• CV or resume with complete information on school education, training(s), and professional career
• Evidence from the school/training center of the duration of the training
• Evidence of the theoretical and practical subjects with hours per Academic subject
• Proof of practical training (clinical internships) in the functional areas/departments (by hours)
• Evidence of the type and scope of the final examination: oral, written, and practical examination subjects
• Evidence of activities in your learned profession (e.g: job references)
• Evidence of further training
• Certificate of Good Standing“/ „Certificate of Current Professional Status“
• In the case of a change of name, the marriage certificate/ family register
• Criminal record
• Depending on the individual patient, possibly further documents

These documents could also differ according to the competent authority or state you are applying to. The candidates who sign a contract with us will receive a detailed checklist of documents after assessing the candidate's condition and according to their state preference.

2 ) Get the documents translated into German

Before sending your documents to the competent authority, you need to get them translated into German to get approval from the German embassy. 

3 ) Get approval for the correctness of the translated documents from the German embassy

Before using any of your translated documents, you should get approval from the German embassy, which means that the German embassy approves the correctness of the presented documents. Then, you should get an appointment from the German embassy and submit the required documents; it will take approximately one week to get them back. Now they are ready to be sent to Germany and start the recognition process.

4 ) Recognition (Anerkennung) process 

As an educated person who wants to have their former qualifications in Germany, you must go through the recognition process. First, the candidates will send the required documents and qualifications to the component authorities. After a certain period (usually between 1 to 4 months), they will announce if the documents are equivalent to nursing qualifications in Germany.

If you want to know more about the recognition process for nursing in Germany, you can click on (Recognition (Anerkennung)) for further information; We have explained in detail the recognition process, the required documents, and other possible questions you might face on this path.

After signing a contract with our clients, we will provide them with the complete checklist and timetable of the required documents according to their conditions

5 ) Interview with the German employer and get a job offer

After getting the response to your recognition (Bescheid), it is time to get a job contract from a German employer; you have two ways of finding a nursing job position in Germany, you can find a job offer yourself or leave this job to a job-finding agency. It would be best if you considered that these interviews are held in German, so the candidate should be almost fluent in German; it is worth mentioning that it is not necessary to have a language certificate at this point; you can have the interview and get the job offer, and while doing the rest of the process register and obtain the language certificate, which you will need for obtaining the visa.

Monarch clients will be fully prepared for the interviews beforehand and get a list of the most common questions to prepare themselves for the interview. If you are not that fluent in German, you can prepare yourself in advance. These are the list of questions, which you should know as a nurse who wants to immigrate to Germany Also, there will be a practice session with our experts to work on the weak point before the actual interview with the employer from the hospital. 

6 ) Approval of the Federal Employment Agency (Bundesagentur for Arbeit) 

After getting a job contract as a nurse in Germany, you still need another document from the federal employment agency, which will assess if the candidate has working conditions as a nurse in Germany. This process will also take about one to two months.

7 ) Get an appointment with the German embassy

For non-EU residents, they need to apply for a visa as well; after collecting all the required documents, you can make an appointment in the embassy and apply for a visa; assessing your documents can take about 4 to 6 weeks, but also Monarch’s client would get an emergency appointment from the German embassy, so their visa assessing process would take less than two weeks.

8 ) Collect the visa

After assessing your documents, you will receive an email from the embassy that your visa is ready to pick up.

9 ) Book a flight and accommodation

The last step before flying to Germany would be finding a suitable flight and accommodation.

For Monarch’s clients, the accommodation and flight would be booked by the agency or the employer. There will be specific agents for each candidate, which will accompany the client for the first days in Germany, including picking up from the airport, and bank opening or city registration process.

Our promise to you to become a nurse in Germany

Our agency will offer the following services to the nursing staff who wants to get recruited in Germany:

1 ) Our services in your home country

• Checking your conditions and consulting you about the required documents
• Arranging a meeting with German employers
• Preparing and practicing with our clients before the final interview with employers
• Setting a timetable for preparing, translating, and verifying documents at the German embassy
• Arranging and sending out your documents and doing the administrative process to obtain the recognition (Anerkennung) for your documents 
• Obtaining approval from the German Labor Office
• Arranging an appointment at the German Embassy and prepare your documents for the interview
• Pick-up visa
• Finding suitable accommodation and purchasing a flight ticket to Germany

2 ) Our services in Germany

• Making an appointment at the residence office, and helping you register in the city
• Applying for conversion of initial visa to work visa
• Registering for Insurance 
• Making an appointment and getting guidance for opening a bank account

Your journey to Germany, Free of charge! 

It might take you by surprise to know Monarch company offers all these services free of charge for nurses who wants to relocate and immigrate to Germany. Not only does Monarch not charge you for the provided services, but it also covers your expenses for language learning, examination, document translation, and verification at the German embassy. We will be paid by the destination institute or hospital afterward.

This is the list of expenses that will be refunded after entering Germany:

• Documents translation fees into German
• Document verification at the German embassy 
• Language training fees up to level  B2
• First and second attempts at the B2 examination at a recognized examination center (telc, Goethe, ÖSD)
• Visa fees at the German embassy

What are the requirements to apply as a nurse in Germany?

As we explained earlier, as a candidate who wishes to find a job position as a nurse in Germany, relocate, and immigrate, you need to collect the required documents according to the list but to be gainfully employed in Germany as a Nurse, you need to fulfill these three main requirements:

• Nursing bachelor's degree (or higher grades)
• At least two years of work experience in the related field (practical courses also count as work experience)
• German language certificate of B2

If you fulfill these three requirements, you can start your immigration process; we mentioned earlier that you could register and get your language certificate, which you will be needed for applying for a visa and becoming a registered nurse in Germany, but still, you should be almost fluent while getting interviewed, but you must have the language certificate before applying for a residency visa at the German embassy. Here is a related article if you want more information about language requirements (Immigration to Germany with the B1 language level)

Nursing salary in Germany

Another thing that you should also consider is the nursing salary in Germany. Nurses in Germany can have an income from 3000 euros to 5500 euros monthly, which is outstanding between other professions in Germany, and can fully cover their monthly expenses, including rent and internment. You also get to lay aside some money. It's worth mentioning that this income can differ according to your work experience or education degrees. Of course, your salary as a nurse in Germany could vary according to your years of experience and the city you work in, but in general, nursing is one of the highest-paid professions in Germany. In another article, we explained the effect of years of work experience on nursing salaries in Germany. 

If you don’t have related work experience or, for some reason, in validating your documents (Anerkennung), your documents are not equivalent to German work experience; you start to work as a nurse in Germany with one year of experience.

In this case, they get between 2.830 and 3.000, but this number grows for the nurses with more work experience.

Your most frequent questions were answered

1 ) How can I immigrate to Germany with my family as a nurse?

One of the common questions is if I work as a registered nurse in Germany, can I bring my family with me? This issue may concern many of you, but fortunately, the answer is YES. If you wish to bring your family to Germany while working as a nurse in Germany, you can easily apply for a family reunion visa for your spouse and children (under the age of 18). Later on, your family can apply for a Residence Permit and the EU Blue Card in Germany, as well.

2 ) What is the immigration age limit for nurses to come to Germany?

There is no age limit for nurses for immigration to Germany, but preferably, people should act before the age of 40.

(If a person can present a language certificate before the age of 45, there will be no problem with immigration, otherwise, the immigration conditions will be risky)

3 ) What is a nursing Ausbildung course in Germany?

Nursing Ausbildung is actually internship courses in the form of Dual Vocational Training (DVT) where the apprentice attends a Vocational School or College and works at the same time, earning a regular income in the process. After completing the 3-year course, the person can easily enter the work market.

For people who are interested in nursing in Germany, this is one of the best options to start this career.

4 ) Is my nursing degree recognized in Germany?

If you are wondering whether your university or college degree is valid in Germany, you can easily use the “Anabin" database. If you have completed university studies already, you can find out how your certificate will be evaluated in Germany, and whether you can apply with your previous qualifications, or you should start with a nursing Ausbildung in Germany.

5 ) What does Anerkennung mean?

In general, Anerkennung means recognition, but, in this case, recognition means that a foreign professional qualification is legally equivalent to a German professional qualification. In this case, if you are fully recognized in Germany as a nurse, you can work with your previous nursing qualifications in Germany.