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The extended country profile of Ukraine includes information on the economy and society in the country, on the most important features of the vocational education and training system, and on immigration to and integration in Germany.
Our country profiles on selected countries with information on the economy and society, on the most important features of the vocational training systems and on current immigration to and integration in Germany are now also available in English!
Our country profiles have been updated and are now available. Check out our new country profiles on Ghana and Uzbekistan.
The profiles on 18 focus countries with high potential for recruiting skilled workers include information on the economy and society in these countries, on the most important features of the vocational training systems and on current immigration and integration in Germany.
German Bundestag passed the Integration Act on July 7. The guiding principle on which the new legislation is based is that of “support and challenge”. Refugees who have good prospects of being allowed to stay permanently will be eligible to take integration courses and to take advantage of job and training opportunities sooner than before. But they will also be required to work on their own integration. Those asylum seekers who refuse to take an integration course or who do not meet their duties to cooperate will have their benefits curtailed.
The Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) has evaluated the recognition of foreign professional qualifications in 2020. Overall, 5% more foreign vocational qualifications were recognised as fully or partially equivalent in 2020 than in the previous year.
The Federal Statistical Office published the statistics on the Recognition Act for the reference year 2016 this autumn. In 2016, 19.800 applications for recognition of foreign professional qualifications were processed. Only in 3,4 percent of cases, no equivalence could be established between a credential obtained abroad and a corresponding German qualification.
The new guideline of the funding programme Integration through Qualification (IQ) for guidance counsellors provides information on the application possibilities of Section 16d of the Residence Act. Various topics are covered in connection with the recognition procedure, such as qualifications to compensate significant differences to the German reference occupation, visa procedures, funding and necessary documents. In addition, IQ has published a "Handout for Professionals" in German and English.
Since February 2018 the project „Recognition in Germany“ is also on Facebook. Apart from information on recognition of professional qualifications their Facebook webpage offers in particular a platform for dialogue and exchange.
More than 44,130 applications for recognition of foreign professional qualifications were processed in 2022 in Germany. In most cases, full or partial equivalence could be certified in 2022. Only 2 percent of the applicants received a negative decision.
Germany is faced with the immense challenge of integrating thousands of refugees. The most successful path to integration is through the workplace. Refugees bring with them motivation, energy and commitment. Many of them are qualified professionals. Moreover, while fleeing from their home country, they gained a wide range of experiences useful for German employers. Refugees in Germany are eager to find a job and contribute actively to the society they live in. For refugees, employment is a new start in a new country and an opportunity to find home in Germany. For companies, employing refugees is an opportunity to fill open positions and invest in the future. Due to the demographic change and ageing society, many companies find it difficult to recruit the qualified professionals they need. The fact that the majority of refugees who come to us are under 35 years old enables companies to find and bind the employees they need.