SUDV Slovakia: Recognition, Exams and Fees

• Doctor (lekár), including graduates in paediatrics from third countries through a specific procedure
• Dentist (zubný lekár)
• Pharmacist (farmaceut)
• Nurse (sestra), at bachelor's level or at higher vocational level
• Midwife (pôrodná asistentka)
• Physiotherapist (fyzioterapeut), paramedic (zdravotnícky záchranár), radiology technician (rádiologický technik) and nutrition therapist (nutričný terapeut)
• Dental hygienist, dental technician, dental assistant, laboratory technicians, practical nurse-assistant, masseur, orderly, psychologist and physicist in health care
• The Centre does not keep a practising register. Doctors register with the Slovak Medical Chamber and nurses and midwives with the Slovak Chamber of Nurses and Midwives. Foreign specialisations are recognised by the Ministry of Health.

• A completed qualification in a health profession that is regulated in Slovakia and listed in the national database of regulated professions.
• Education from a state-recognised school in the country of training.
• Training that meets the formal requirements of Government Regulation No. 296/2010 for the Slovak profession you apply for.
• A certified copy of your diploma and a certified copy of your diploma supplement or full transcript of courses and examinations.
• An official translation into Slovak; the Centre accepts your own or an unofficial translation from English, German, French, Russian and Hungarian, and none is needed for documents in Czech or Latin.
• A simple copy of your identity document and of your previous education document.
• The administrative fee: €140 by eKolok for a paper application, or €90 for an electronic application.
• For the second stage: a passed supplementary examination in Slovak, taken after the first decision.

Check your route with the route finder

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   1. Find the Slovak name of your profession

   Use the database of regulated professions or the Centre's navigator to pick the profession exactly as Slovak law names it. Applying under the wrong name, such as paediatrician instead of lekár, delays the case because you are asked to change it.
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   2. Prepare your documents

   Gather a copy of your ID, certified copies of your diploma and transcript, the official or accepted translation and a copy of your previous education document. An apostille or superlegalisation is not required at submission, but the Centre may request it during the procedure, so check in advance how long your country takes to issue one.
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   3. Submit the application

   Send the signed form by post or deliver it to the registry at Černyševského 50, Bratislava, with an eKolok stamp worth €140 (code 2090). If you have a Slovak eID with a chip, you can apply through slovensko.sk for €90 using certified electronic conversions of your documents. Do not send the same application twice; repeated applications are dealt with in one decision.
4. 4

   4. Receive the decision on your formal qualification

   The Centre's processing time for third-country health qualifications is 2 months from a complete application. Decisions are electronic official documents; if you have no Slovak ID or your address is abroad, the Centre posts a paper copy. You can appeal within 15 days of delivery.
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   5. Optional: start a temporary professional traineeship

   With the decision you may work for a health care provider under the supervision of a qualified colleague for up to 18 months at one provider, without interruption and only once. The employer notifies the Ministry of Health. The Centre says you can apply for the exam at any time and need not finish the traineeship first.
6. 6

   6. Apply for and sit the supplementary exam

   Apply to the school or university that holds the exam for your profession, at least 30 days before the date, with a copy of your diploma and its Slovak translation, a copy of the Centre's decision and proof of payment. A decision issued by the Czech Republic or another state is not accepted. If no date is published for your profession, contact the Centre to register your interest.
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   7. Apply for recognition of your professional qualification

   Send the Centre the application form for recognition after the supplementary exam, with a certified copy or certified conversion of the exam report. The processing time is 1 month. The decision recognises your qualification for the independent practice of your profession.
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   8. Take the decision to your chamber and employer

   Register with your profession's chamber within 15 days of starting work. Passing the supplementary exam also counts as proof of Slovak under section 34b of Act No. 578/2004. Doctors with a specialisation then apply to the Ministry of Health to have it recognised.

• Supplementary exam: format

  Held in Slovak under section 18a of Act No. 422/2015 and Decree No. 30/2018. A written part tests professional knowledge and Slovak health law; only those who pass it go on to the oral part, which can include a practical test in simulated conditions. The oral part is public, and the school issues a certificate when you pass both parts.

• Doctors and dentists

  Held at the Faculty of Medicine of the Slovak Medical University, Limbová 12-14, Bratislava, for €500. Doctors are examined in internal medicine, surgery, paediatrics, and gynaecology and obstetrics. Dentists are examined in internal medicine, surgery and the dental disciplines. Published dates run from 8 September 2026 to 7 December 2027, and a passed written test stays valid for up to 1 year if you need to repeat the oral.

• Nurses, midwives and allied professions (university level)

  Held at the Faculty of Nursing and Health Professional Studies of the Slovak Medical University for nurses with a bachelor's degree, midwives, physiotherapists, paramedics, radiology technicians, nutrition therapists and dental hygienists. The 2026 dates are 3 March, 9 June, 13 October and 1 December. The fee is set by the ministry's measure on maximum annual tuition and must be paid at least 14 days before the exam.

• Nurses at higher vocational level and practical nurse-assistants

  Held at the secondary health school at Daxnerova 6, Trnava, which publishes topic lists and recommended reading. The 2026 dates for nurses at higher vocational level and practical nurse-assistants are 12 February, 23 April, 25 August and 12 November.

• Pharmacists

  Held at the Faculty of Pharmacy of Comenius University in Bratislava, which publishes question topics. Planned dates are 24 April 2026 and 20 November 2026.

• Aptitude test for paediatrics graduates

  Graduates of paediatrics programmes with no prior general medicine training take an aptitude test in subjects including anaesthesiology and intensive care, neurology, emergency medicine and general medicine, before they can be recognised as doctors. It can be taken in Ukrainian or Russian, and is followed by the supplementary exam.

• The Centre does not ask for an English test. English matters only for translations: your own or an unofficial translation from English is accepted with the application.
• The supplementary exam is held only in Slovak, so you need Slovak good enough to pass a written professional test and an oral examination.
• Passing the supplementary exam counts as proof of Slovak under section 34b of Act No. 578/2004, so you do not also need the Ministry of Health's language verification.
• For the temporary traineeship, a declaration that you know Slovak or English well enough for the work is enough.
• No CEFR level is published for the supplementary exam or for the Ministry of Health's language verification.

Estimate your total cost

• Formal qualification decision: 2 months from a complete application, the Centre states.
• Exam application: at least 30 days before the exam date; doctors' registration closes about a month before each date.
• Exam dates: ten dates published for doctors and dentists between September 2026 and December 2027, and four in 2026 for nurses and midwives at the Slovak Medical University.
• Professional qualification decision after the exam: 1 month.
• Supervised traineeship, if you choose it: up to 18 months while you prepare.
• Overall: the Centre publishes no total; preparing for an exam in Slovak is usually the longest stage.