Defizitbescheid (deficit notice)

The word is not used in the law. Officially the document is a recognition notice (Anerkennungsbescheid or Bescheid) issued at the end of the Anerkennungsverfahren. Applicants, employers and recruiters call it a Defizitbescheid when the result is no recognition or partial recognition because of substantial differences (wesentliche Unterschiede). Germany's recognition portal says these differences can concern the length of training, the knowledge and competencies taught or the skills learned.

• Your existing qualifications and the differences. Under section 7 of the federal recognition law (BQFG), a refusal because of substantial differences must set out your qualifications and the differences from the German training.
• Experience taken into account. The portal notes that the notice also records your training and the professional experience considered.
• The compensation measure. For regulated professions it often names the measure needed and sometimes providers.
• Appeal instructions. A notice includes instructions on how to challenge it (Rechtsbehelfsbelehrung).

Health professions have their own laws, such as the Bundesärzteordnung and the Pflegeberufegesetz, but they follow the same pattern.

• Doctors, dentists and pharmacists from third countries prove their knowledge through the Kenntnisprüfung.
• Nurses have the right to choose between a Kenntnisprüfung and an adaptation course of up to three years that ends in an exam (Pflegeberufegesetz, section 40).
• EU-trained applicants receive an aptitude test (Eignungsprüfung) or adaptation period limited to the listed gaps.

1. Tell the authority which measure you choose.
2. Complete it and send the certificate to the authority.
3. The authority then checks the remaining conditions, such as language, health and good conduct, and issues the licence.

Under the BQFG the authority confirms receipt within one month and decides within three months of a complete file, extendable once. The portal says you will receive the notice within three to four months at the latest once documents are complete. For EU-trained doctors the Bundesärzteordnung sets four months; in the fast-track procedure for skilled workers the notice should come within two months.

If you live in Germany, the federal recognition grant can reimburse up to €600 of procedure costs and up to €3,000 for training needed to reach full equivalence. You must apply for the grant before applying for recognition.

Sometimes. Nurses can waive the equivalence assessment for good and go straight to a Kenntnisprüfung or adaptation course (section 40(3a) PflBG). Doctors whose documents cannot be produced, or only with disproportionate effort, prove their knowledge through the Kenntnisprüfung (section 3(3) BÄO), and North Rhine-Westphalia offers this option on its form.

• Choosing the wrong training. The recognition portal warns that a course only leads to full recognition if it is the right training for your profession and your notice, so get advice before you book.
• Missing the appeal deadline. The deadline is stated in the instructions attached to the notice, so check it the day the notice arrives.
• Ignoring the next steps. The portal advises asking the authority in advance what happens after the measure, because the procedure varies by profession and state.