• Exams need to get the Approbation in Germany
In this article, we try to explain through simple questions and answers in addition to a chart how the exams needed from (foreign) doctors to get the Approbation in Germany.
You can also understand these exams in the article about the 10 steps for beginning medical residency in Germany.
If you have the slightest doubt about a certain point or do not understand any information, ask at any time in the main group of our community “Facharzt JETZT” on Facebook and Telegram (groups will appear as a folder). We remind you that this article is a guidance article to help you understand things and you should not rely solely on it. You should always return to the official websites. 😊
• What is a must to have to be able to work in Germany?
A permanent German medical license = 🇩🇪 die Approbation
• Can I (as a foreign doctor) get the Approbation?
Yes, you can get the Approbation, but you have to fulfill specific requirements first and need certain documents. We will walk you through the most important requirements through three questions:
(1) Did you finish your internship year or can you finish it?
Regardless of which nationality you have or where you studied medicine, you must do after finishing medical school an internship year (🇩🇪 das Praktische Jahr). There are no discussions and no exceptions! Please finish your internship year. Without it, you cannot get a medical license in Germany. Can you finish/do an internship year?
| Yes | No |
|---|---|
| Congratulations 🥳 You can proceed to the next question (number 2). | If you did not/cannot, read the following article: “For medical doctors: Is the internship year (🇩🇪 das Praktische Jahr – PJ) a must to be able to work in Germany? 100% yes! No exceptions!“ |
(2) Where did you study medicine?
| 🇩🇪 Germany | 🌍 Rest of the world |
You get your German permanent medical license ( die Approbation) immediately after doing an internship year and the exam at the end of it (The third state examination = M3 exams). You are done 🥳 | If you did not study high school in Germany, then you need a medical language exam (🇩🇪 Fachsprachenprüfung). To know if you also need a medical knowledge exam (🇩🇪 Kenntnisprüfung), proceed to question number (3) |
(3) Did you study medicine in a university in the European Union (EU) or in the European Economic Area (EFTA)*?
| Yes 🇪🇺 🇮🇸 🇱🇮 🇳🇴 🇨🇭 | No 🌍 |
|---|---|
| Your road is going to be very easy. 🥳 You do not need a medical knowledge exam. All steps you need to do are in detail here: German medical license for EU/EFTA graduates | Probably, you will need to do a medical knowledge exam (🇩🇪 die Kenntnisprüfung). BUT: not all non-EU/EFTAgraduates need to do it 🥳 The details are in the following article (link). |
• Summary of the algorithm as a chart
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