Approbation Erteilung Zahnärztin oder Zahnarzt aus Drittstaaten

In order to work as a dentist in Germany, you need your license to practice medicine. The license to practice medicine is the state approval for the profession. The license to practice medicine is necessary because the profession is regulated in Germany. This means that you are not allowed to work independently as a dentist without a license to practice medicine.

Even with a professional qualification from a so-called third country, you can obtain the license to practice medicine in Germany. Third countries are all states that do not belong to the European Union (EU), the European Economic Area (EEA) or Switzerland.

The license to practice medicine will be granted to you by the competent authority if your dental training is equivalent to the German training. Equivalence is checked in the recognition procedure.

You must meet further requirements for the granting of the license to practice medicine. For example, they must be medically suitable and have the necessary language skills.

If your professional qualification comes from the EU, EEA or Switzerland, other regulations apply.

You can also apply for the procedure from abroad.

The competent authority will inform you which documents you need to submit. Important documents are in general:

• Proof of identity (identity card or passport in officially certified copy)
• German-language curriculum vitae in tabular form with your education and professional activities
• officially certified copy of your proof of formal qualifications
• Proof of the contents of your training:
  List of subjects and training hours you have completed
• Certificate that you are allowed to work as a dentist in your country of training
• Proof of your relevant professional practice as a dentist
• Extract from the criminal record or certificate of good conduct from your country of origin as proof of your worthiness and reliability (This proof must not be more than 3 months old at the time of application.)
• Medical certificate of your medical fitness (The certificate can be from an authority in your country of training. The certificate must not be more than 3 months old at the time of application.)
• Declaration that you have not yet applied for a license to practice medicine in Germany
• Registration certificate or declaration that you want to work where you apply

The competent authority will inform you which documents you must submit in the original or as copies.

If your documents are not available in German, you must submit German translations of your documents. The translations must be made by translators who are publicly appointed or authorised.

• You have a professional qualification as a dentist from a third country.
• You are medically suitable for work as a dentist.
• You are reliable and worthy to work as a dentist and have no criminal record.
• You have the necessary knowledge of German for the job. These are general language skills at level B2 according to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages and medical language skills at level C1.

The procedure costs money. The competent authority will inform you about the costs. The costs generally depend on the effort for processing.

In addition, additional costs may arise (e.g. for translations or certifications). These costs vary from person to person.

Application

You submit an application for a licence to practise dentistry with the competent authority. The competent authority will check whether your training corresponds to the German training and whether all other requirements are met. The license to practice medicine can only be granted if your training from a third country is equivalent to the German training.

Equivalence assessment

The competent authority compares your professional qualification from abroad with the German professional qualification as a dentist. The competent authority will check 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 test

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

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

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

The competent authority will tell you in writing the main differences and why you cannot compensate for the essential differences through your professional practice. The notification of the competent authority also states what level of your training has and what level is necessary in Germany. You are then not allowed to work as a dentist. However, the responsible office offers you to take a knowledge test. If you successfully pass the knowledge test (and meet all other requirements), you will receive the license to practice medicine.

Knowledge test

If your professional qualification is not equivalent and you cannot compensate for the differences, you can take a knowledge test. The knowledge test is based on the final examination as a dentist in Germany. The contents and the exact procedure of the examination are regulated by law. If you pass the knowledge test, you will be granted the license to practice dentist. You must also meet the other requirements and prove your language skills.

The competent authority will confirm that your application and documents have been received after a maximum of one month. The competent authority will inform you if documents are missing.

If the documents are complete, the procedure takes a maximum of 4 months.

None.

Sometimes documents are still missing in the procedure. The competent authority will then inform you by when you must submit the documents. This may prolong the procedure.

• Proof of language proficiency
  Prerequisite for the license to practice medicine is general German language skills at level B2. You can also submit the required proof of language proficiency during the licensing procedure. In addition, you must take a medical language test at level C1 during the licensing procedure.
   
• Professional permit
  Before taking the knowledge test, you can apply for a temporary professional permit. With a professional license, you may also work without a license to practice medicine (under the supervision of a dentist with a license to practice medicine). You must prove language skills at level B2 and take a specialist language test at level C1. The professional permit is usually valid for 2 years. Your competent office will inform you about this.
   
• Equivalence Notice
  In the licensing procedure, the equivalence of your training is checked (recognition procedure). You can apply for a separate notification for the result of the examination.
   
• Electronic application
  You can also submit your application electronically.
   
• Procedure for ethnic German repatriates
  As a Spätaussiedler, you can go through the recognition procedure either according to the law mentioned here or according to the Federal Expellees Act. You can decide for yourself. Your competent body will advise you on this.

You can take legal action against the decision of the competent authority. The decision will then be reviewed. Details can be found in the information on the right of appeal at the end of your decision. We recommend that you first talk to the competent authority before taking legal action against the decision.

• To work as a dentist in Germany, you need a state license (approbation).
• With a license to practice medicine you can work as a dentist.
• Even with a professional qualification from a so-called third country, you can obtain the license to practice medicine in Germany. Third countries are all states that do not belong to the European Union (EU), the European Economic Area (EEA) or Switzerland.

Since 01.01.2023, the Hessian State Office for Health and Care (HLfGP) has been responsible.