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Why Recognition Is Worth It
Maybe you’ve been in this situation: You completed training as a nurse, electrician, or teacher in your home country. But in Austria, you’re working as a janitor, housekeeper, or unskilled laborer. Your diploma is sitting in a drawer—and with it, a significant portion of your potential income.
You’re not alone in this. Thousands of people in Austria are working below their qualifications because their degrees aren’t formally recognized here. At the same time, Austria is urgently seeking skilled workers: in nursing, the trades, technical professions, and in kindergartens and schools. Many of these professions are officially on the list of shortage occupations. That means employers are waiting for people like you. Your qualifications are needed—they just need to be officially recognized.
The difference in salary is significant. A domestic helper in Austria earns an average of around 1,470 euros gross per month. A certified nurse often starts at more than double that amount, depending on the collective bargaining agreement—plus a 13th and 14th month’s salary, paid vacation, sick leave, and pension contributions. Calculated over an entire career, this recognition quickly adds up to a six-figure sum. Even if the process costs you a few hundred euros and takes several months, hardly any investment pays off as reliably as this one.
Add to that the security: With a recognized degree, you’re no longer dependent on unskilled jobs. You can apply for positions that match your training—and you’ll have a better chance of obtaining residence permits, financial aid, and continuing education opportunities. Our guides “From 24-Hour Care to a Permanent Position” and “Domestic Help Jobs in Vienna” show exactly what the path from an unskilled job to a skilled position can look like.
Recognition, Nostrification, Evaluation: What’s the Difference?
There are many terms related to this topic. They sound similar but mean different things. The good news: You just need to know which path fits your situation.
1. Professional recognition (EU/EEA and Switzerland): Did you earn your degree in an EU country, an EEA country, or Switzerland? If so, for regulated professions, EU Directive 2005/36/EC on the recognition of professional qualifications applies. “Regulated” means that the profession may only be practiced with specific training—for example, nursing, midwifery, medicine, or certain skilled trades. The process is standardized within the EU and is often faster than for degrees from non-EU countries.
2. Nostrification (Non-EU Countries): Is your degree from a country outside the EU, the EEA, or Switzerland—such as Serbia, Bosnia, Turkey, Ukraine, or the Philippines? If so, you’ll need nostrification for regulated professions. In this process, the responsible authority checks whether your training is comparable to the Austrian standard. If something is missing, you’ll be required to complete supplementary training or take exams. For academic degrees, this process is called “nostrifizierung” at universities.
3. Evaluation (non-regulated professions): Many professions are not regulated at all in Austria—for example, computer scientist, economist, translator, or marketing specialist. In these cases, you do not need formal recognition. The employer decides for themselves whether your qualifications are a good fit. Nevertheless, an official evaluation of your degree can help: You’ll receive a document that classifies your degree within the Austrian system. This strengthens your application. For higher education degrees, this is handled by ENIC NARIC AUSTRIA at the Ministry of Education.
Three examples illustrate the difference: A nurse from Slovakia (EU) goes through the EU professional recognition process. A nurse from Bosnia (non-EU country) needs nostrification. A programmer from Ukraine doesn’t need any procedure at all—his profession isn’t regulated, so he can apply directly and improve his chances with an evaluation.
So first, keep this one question in mind: Is my profession regulated in Austria? If so, you’ll need a recognition or nostrification process. If not, an assessment is often enough—or nothing at all. If you’re unsure whether your profession is regulated, that’s exactly what the free consultation we’ll show you below clarifies.
Who is responsible for what?
In Austria, there is no single recognition authority. The agency responsible is always the one that corresponds to your profession. Here’s an overview of the most important ones:
- Healthcare professions: The Ministry of Health is responsible for EU recognition and many healthcare professions. Nostrification for advanced nursing (certified health and nursing care) is handled by universities of applied sciences offering nursing programs. For nursing assistants and certified nursing assistants, the state government offices in your federal state are responsible.
- High school diplomas: Matura diplomas and high school transcripts are standardized by the Ministry of Education or the state education authorities.
- Degrees: Universities and universities of applied sciences handle the recognition of academic degrees. ENIC NARIC AUSTRIA is responsible for the evaluation process.
- Trades and Crafts: For regulated trades (such as electrical engineering, plumbing, and master builder), equivalency is handled by the Ministry of Economic Affairs or the provincial governor.
Sound complicated? It is at first. That’s why there’s the official information portal berufsanerkennung.at. There you’ll find a recognition guide: Enter your profession and the country where you received your training, and the portal will tell you which authority is responsible. Use this portal as your first step—it’ll save you a lot of wasted phone calls. And remember: The competent authority itself always provides the definitive information for your specific case.
Important to know: Within the same profession, jurisdiction may depend on the country where you received your training. Take nursing as an example: For a diploma from an EU country, recognition is handled by the Ministry of Health. For the same profession with a diploma from a non-EU country, the university of applied sciences or the state government office handles the recognition process. Therefore, always include both in every inquiry: your profession and the country where you completed your training.
Step-by-Step Guide to Applying
Here’s how the recognition process works in practice. Take your time with each step—mistakes at the beginning can cost you months later on.
Step 1: Get a free consultation. First, go to an AST—these are the contact points for people with qualifications earned abroad. The consultation is free and available in multiple languages. The advisors will tell you whether you even need to go through the process, which agency is responsible, and what documents you need to gather. They’ll also guide you through the entire process.
Step 2: Gather documents. Typically, you’ll need: a passport, diploma or degree certificate, proof of the content and duration of your education (list of courses, hours, internships), proof of work experience, and—depending on the procedure—a criminal record check and proof of German language proficiency. Obtain any missing documents from your home country early on—this often takes the longest. Some documents also require certification (an apostille) from the country of issue. A practical tip: Ask the authorities or an advisory center for a written checklist and check off each document individually. Never hand over originals if certified copies are sufficient.
Step 3: Have certified translations done. Documents in foreign languages must generally be translated into German by court-certified translators. A standard translation is not sufficient. Check with the relevant agency beforehand to find out which documents actually need to be translated—this will save you money.
Step 4: Submit your application. Submit your application to the appropriate agency—complete and organized. Incomplete applications are the most common reason for lengthy processing times, because the agency must request each missing document separately.
Step 5: Review and possible requirements. The agency compares your education to the Austrian system. There are three possible outcomes: full recognition, recognition with requirements, or rejection. Conditions usually involve supplementary training, an adaptation course, or supplementary exams—in nursing, for example, theory or practical classes at a school or university of applied sciences. This isn’t a failure; it’s the normal process: Most nostrification cases in nursing involve such conditions.
Step 6: Decision and Professional License. At the end, you’ll receive a written decision. With full recognition, you’re allowed to work in your profession—in healthcare professions, this requires registration in the Healthcare Professions Register. From now on, you can apply for jobs as a recognized professional.
One more tip for the entire process: Keep every confirmation and every letter from the authorities, and make a note of when you submitted each document. If a procedure stalls, you can use these documents to make specific inquiries at the advisory office. And if you receive a negative decision, that’s not automatically the end—you can appeal decisions, and it’s often possible to submit a new application with better documentation. The competent authority will provide definitive information on this.
Costs and Duration
Honest answer: There’s no one-size-fits-all figure—costs and duration depend on your profession, federal state, and your specific case. To help you plan, here are some realistic estimates:
- Government fees: Depending on the procedure, these range from small administrative fees to several hundred euros. For nursing degree recognition, you’ll also need to factor in the cost of the expert opinion from the university of applied sciences.
- Certified translations: often the largest expense. Depending on the language and volume of documents, the total can amount to several hundred euros.
- Supplementary training: If required, additional costs may apply depending on the provider and scope—check with the AMS and your state regarding financial assistance.
The good news about the costs: You often don’t have to cover them on your own. Depending on the state and your situation, there are grants available for recognition costs, translations, and courses—for example, through the AMS, the state government, or the Chamber of Labor. Be sure to actively ask about these at the counseling center before you spend any money. Many subsidies are only approved if you apply for them before spending the money.
As for the duration: Simple procedures with complete documentation are often completed within several weeks to a few months. For EU professional recognition, there are statutory decision deadlines of a few months. Nostrification involving supplementary training, on the other hand, can take a total of one year or longer—partly because you’ll be completing the requirements while working. Plan for this and start as early as possible. The relevant authority will provide you with binding information on fees and deadlines specific to your case.
Important: You’re allowed to work during the process—just not yet in the regulated profession. Many people bridge this gap by working in personal care or as domestic help, gaining language practice and making contacts along the way.
Proof of German Proficiency
For many application processes, you’ll need proof of your German language skills—and you’ll almost always need a good command of German once you start working. In healthcare professions, the authorities usually require Level B2 of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages; for nursing assistant positions, they may require Levels B1 through B2, depending on the state. B2 means you can understand specialized texts and express yourself spontaneously and clearly.
This is exactly where many people fail—not because of a lack of subject knowledge, but because of the technical language. Nursing documentation, official notices, exam texts: this is a different kind of German than what you use in everyday life. A textbook about vacations and shopping won’t prepare you for this. To find out which certificates count, how long it takes to reach B2, and how to get there faster, read our guide *German B2 for Nursing Staff*.
Official German and technical texts, decoded word for word
With “LinguaFlow,” you can enter any text—an official notice, a professional article, or your exam materials—and the app immediately shows you the meaning of each word in your native language, including an audio pronunciation. This way, you’ll understand difficult texts right away and, at the same time, build the exact vocabulary your application process and your profession require. Inspired by the Birkenbihl Method.
Try it for freeA practical tip: Start learning right away with the texts you actually need—letters from government agencies, training materials, and professional articles related to your field. This way, every learning unit prepares you simultaneously for exams, administrative procedures, and everyday work life.
Free Counseling Services
You don’t have to go through this alone. These organizations offer free assistance:
- AST – Contact Centers for People with Qualifications Acquired Abroad: the most important resource. Free, multilingual counseling on recognition throughout Austria, with locations in Vienna, Linz, Graz, and Innsbruck, and consultation days in the other federal states. AST guides you through the entire process. You can find all contact information at anlaufstelle-anerkennung.at.
- ÖIF – Austrian Integration Fund: provides advice on integration and German, offers subsidized German courses, and free learning materials. More at integrationsfonds.at.
- AMS – Public Employment Service: provides support with job searches and skills development and, under certain conditions, subsidizes courses and supplementary training—especially in fields with labor shortages, such as nursing. Information at ams.at.
- Chamber of Labor (AK): Provides members with advice on labor law—for example, if your employer does not correctly classify your qualifications—and offers educational grants depending on the state.
Our advice: As your very first step, make an appointment with the AST office near you. One hour of consultation there will save you weeks of research on your own—and protect you from costly mistakes, such as unnecessary translations. Bring all the documents you already have to this appointment, even if they haven’t been translated yet. The advisors will immediately see what’s missing and what you really need.
Also, be cautious of private agencies that promise “fast recognition” in exchange for high fees. You can go through the process just as effectively with the free support from the AST—no one can skip the legally required review steps just by paying a fee.
Frequently Asked Questions
Only if your profession is regulated in Austria—for example, nursing, medicine, electrical engineering, or teaching. For non-regulated professions such as computer science, sales, or graphic design, the employer decides. Even so, a voluntary evaluation of your degree can still help when looking for a job.
That depends on the process. Government fees range from small administrative charges to several hundred euros, depending on the profession and federal state. On top of that, there are the costs for certified translations of your documents—often the largest expense. The relevant authority will provide you with definitive information about all fees before you submit your application.
Expect it to take several weeks to several months, depending on your profession, the agency, and whether your documents are complete. If the decision requires additional training or exams, the entire process can take longer than a year. Submitting complete documents from the start is the best way to speed up the process.
Yes, but not in the regulated profession itself—you’ll need to receive a positive decision first. Many people work during the process, for example, as domestic helpers, in personal care, or as assistants. This provides income, practical experience, and daily exposure to the German language.
Typically, these include: a passport, diploma or degree certificate, proof of the content and duration of your training (list of subjects, number of hours), proof of work experience, and, depending on the procedure, a criminal record check and proof of German language proficiency. Documents in foreign languages usually require a certified translation. You can obtain the exact list from the relevant authority.
At the AST—the contact points for people with qualifications obtained abroad. They offer free, multilingual counseling throughout Austria and guide you through the entire process. The Austrian Integration Fund (ÖIF) and the AMS also provide support in the form of counseling and grants.
Read more in the guide: German B2 for Caregivers · From 24-Hour Care to a Permanent Position · Housekeeping Jobs in Vienna
