Recognition partnership

From Auswärtiges Amt

“The visa decision is made by the German consular post in Vietnam. This visa category typically requires the consent of the foreigners-authority responsible for your future work location; a Vorabzustimmung from the Federal Employment Agency or the responsible foreigners-authority materially shortens processing. Note: applicants aged 45 and over must show evidence of adequate retirement provision. Provide suitable proof of retirement security at the time of application (e.g. real estate, securities, insurance).”

— Federal Foreign Office of Germany · German diplomatic missions

What you need

You must show your vocational or academic qualification; a ZAB notice (or the corresponding digital information) confirming state recognition; an agreement with your employer on the recognition partnership (including remediation of identified deficits within max. 3 years); an Erklärung zum Beschäftigungsverhältnis (employer's declaration of the employment relationship) including supplementary form A, completely filled in by the employer; and a German-language certificate (minimum A2, not older than 12 months) from a recognised examination provider. In addition: a tabular CV, a passport, biometric photos, and medical-insurance cover until you start work. A Vorabzustimmung from the Federal Employment Agency or the responsible foreigners-authority materially shortens processing.

Checklist

Application and identity

Application form for national visas, completely filled out and signed by the applicant (online application form via VIDEX) *
Two recent biometric passport photos (45 mm x 35 mm) (photo specifications template). Please glue only one photo onto the application form and bring the second loose *
Valid passport (or a recognised substitute travel document) *

Curriculum vitae

Tabular and complete CV. In particular setting out your prior education and employment *

Qualification, recognition partnership, and employment

(Optional) Vorabzustimmung. If your employer has already obtained the consent of the Federal Employment Agency or the responsible foreigners-authority in Germany before the visa procedure begins, the consular post's processing time is materially shortened
University degree or vocational training certificate. It must show where and in which subject or occupation you completed the studies or training, and how long the training lasted *
ZAB notice. As proof that your training is state-recognised, please submit a corresponding notice from ZAB (Zentralstelle für das Auslandsbildungswesen) or the corresponding digital information *
Recognition-partnership agreement. Agreement with your employer that the recognition procedure will be undertaken after entry. The agreement must also show that the remediation of identified deficits will be enabled within a maximum of three years *
Declaration of the employment relationship. The form (link: Erklärung zum Beschäftigungsverhältnis) including supplementary form A must be completely filled in by the employer and submitted. The employment must be qualified employment. Exception: if the intended employment after recognition is a so-called regulated profession (especially medical professions), unqualified employment may be performed during the recognition procedure. In such cases the employer must state whether a collective wage agreement applies, whether church labour law applies, or whether the workplace is a care facility licensed under § 72 SGB XI. The information must also show that the employment leads to the intended target profession *

German language skills

German-language certificate. You must show German language skills appropriate to your planned activity, at least at A2 level. To do so, submit a language certificate from a recognised examination provider. These are currently: • Goethe-Institut e.V. certificates; • telc GmbH certificates; • Austrian Language Diploma (ÖSD) certificates; • „TestDaF" from the TestDaF-Institut e.V. (institute of FernUniversität Hagen and Ruhr-Universität Bochum; exam level starts at B2 CEFR); • ECL Prüfungszentrum certificates. The certificate must not be older than 12 months at the time of application. If you have taken the exam in different modules/parts, all modules must have been taken with the same examination provider. Proof of different exam parts from different providers is not sufficient *

Medical insurance

Proof of adequate medical insurance for entry, valid from your intended entry date until you start work *