Work in Estonia as a foreign doctor, nurse or AHP (2026)

• TerviseametHealth Board (Terviseamet)

  Doctors, dentists, nurses, midwives and pharmacists: registration and the compliance examination

  Read the registration guide

1. 1

   1. Have your education evaluated by Harno (ENIC/NARIC)

   Apply electronically to [email protected] with the application form, your identity document, your diploma, transcript or diploma supplement, and authorised translations into Estonian, English or Russian if needed. Scans must be colour PDFs at 600 dpi. The evaluation is free and Harno issues a written statement within 30 days of receiving all documents.
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   2. Start learning Estonian early

   The theory exam and work practice are in Estonian, and in employment you need C1 as a doctor or pharmacist and at least B2 as a nurse or midwife. Harno runs free state exams at A2, B1, B2 and C1 each quarter; you pass with at least 60% of the points and no zero in any section. This is usually the stage that takes longest.
3. 3

   3. Apply to the Health Board

   Send the Harno evaluation, the registration application form, an identity document, your diploma and diploma supplement, employer letters covering your last five years of work and proof of the €260 state fee. Copies must be notarised or certified by a sworn translator, with translations into Estonian or English. The Health Board checks your file within three months and decides whether you can sit the compliance examination.
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   4. Contact the institution that runs your compliance exam

   Doctors and dentists contact the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Tartu. Nurses and midwives choose Tallinn Health Care College or Tartu Health Care College. You can also authorise the Health Board to forward your materials to the institution you choose. The referral is valid for one year.
5. 5

   5. Get a personal identification code and register short-term employment

   You need an Estonian personal identification code to take part in the work practice. If you are not an EU or EEA national, the Health Board says you need short-term employment registered with the Police and Border Guard Board before you begin, and a long-stay visa may be needed.
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   6. Complete the work practice

   The practice part lasts up to six months and can be extended to 12. It takes place in Estonian, under supervision, at a practice base arranged with the institution. Dentists arrange their practice base privately at their own cost.
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   7. Pass the theory examination

   The theory exam is held within 12 months of finishing the work practice. If you fail the work practice, the Health Board says you wait at least six months before trying again, and a failed theory exam also has a waiting period before a resit.
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   8. Receive your registration

   The Health Board decides on your registration within one month of you passing the examination. Your name then appears in the public register, and you can apply for posts as a registered doctor, nurse or midwife.
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   9. Move onto a residence permit for employment

   For longer work your employer supports an application for a temporary residence permit for employment or an EU Blue Card. The salary must meet the criterion in force on the date of application, and the Police and Border Guard Board decides within about 90 days.

• English is not a registration requirement in Estonia, and no English test is listed by the Health Board. Documents can be translated into English or Estonian for the application, but the examination itself is in Estonian.
• The government regulation on Estonian language proficiency for officials, employees and sole traders requires C1 Estonian from doctors (arstid), psychologists, pharmacists and dispensing pharmacists (§ 9).
• The same regulation requires at least B2 Estonian from physiotherapists, midwives and nurses providing healthcare, and from other people taking part in healthcare whose duties include communicating with patients (§ 8).
• Harno holds state Estonian proficiency exams at A2, B1, B2 and C1. They are free, results are available within 40 days, and in the last quarter of 2026 the B2 exam is on 14 November and the C1 exam on 15 November. Registration closes on the first day of the month before the exam.
• Candidates with an Estonian personal identification code register through the EIS test database; those without one send a paper application to Harno at A. H. Tammsaare tee 47, Tallinn.
• For long-term residence after five years, the Police and Border Guard Board requires Estonian at B1, separate from the professional requirement.

• Short-term employment registration

  Your employer registers short-term employment with the Police and Border Guard Board before you start. It covers up to 365 days in a 455-day period, is registered or refused within 15 working days, and the employer must pay at least the Estonian average gross monthly wage, €2,092 from 5 March 2026. You still need a visa or visa-free basis to stay.

• Temporary residence permit for employment

  For longer work you apply at an Estonian embassy or, if you are legally in Estonia, at a Police and Border Guard Board office. The employer usually needs permission from the Unemployment Insurance Fund (Töötukassa). The decision takes about 90 days, the card is printed within 30 days of approval, and the first permit can last up to five years.

• Salary criterion

  From 5 March 2026, the Police and Border Guard Board sets the criterion at €2,092 a month at the 1.0 rate, €1,674 at 0.8, €2,594 at 1.24 and €3,138 at 1.5. Which rate applies depends on the type of job, so ask your employer which category your post falls into.

• EU Blue Card

  The EU Immigration Portal says you need a higher education diploma from a programme of at least three years, or five years of relevant experience, and a contract or binding offer of at least one year. It lists top specialists in health protection among the professions with the 1.24 salary coefficient. For a regulated profession, your qualification documents are assessed as part of the application.

• Immigration quota

  Employment migration is capped by an annual quota of 0.1% of the permanent population. The EU Immigration Portal says top specialists paid at least 1.5 times the average salary fall outside the quota.

• EU, EEA and Swiss citizens

  You need no permit. You register with the Health Board by sending a Certificate of Current Professional Status, the application form, your identity document and diploma, and the €260 fee. Under the general system, Harno says decisions take up to four months and may require an aptitude test or adaptation period of up to six months.

Minimum hourly pay under the healthcare collective agreement (Tervishoiuvaldkonna kollektiivleping 2025 to 2026), signed in March 2025 and valid until 31 December 2026. Rates are gross, per hour, from 1 April 2026. Employers may pay more; the agreement also sets night and weekend premiums.

• Doctor (arst)

  €20.96 an hour

  €19.97 from 1 April 2025.

• Resident doctor (arst-resident)

  €20.96 an hour

  Equal to the doctor minimum; paid for 40 hours a week.

• Specialist doctor (eriarst)

  €22.81 an hour

  €21.72 from 1 April 2025.

• Nurse (õde)

  €12.79 an hour

  Also applies to healthcare support specialists.

• Specialist nurse and midwife

  €13.27 an hour

  €12.64 from 1 April 2025.

• Assistant doctor (abiarst, medical student)

  At least 60% of the doctor minimum

  Collective agreement, clause 2.3.

• Night work (22:00 to 06:00)

  At least 1.42 times pay

  From 1 April 2026; weekend hours at least 1.25 times.