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The IQ Competence Centre for Counselling and Job Training of Migrants in cooperation with the IQ Competence Centre for Securing Skill Base supports the implementation of § 17a of the German Residence Act with a new guideline in English. This guide, which was originally published in German, aims to provide all relevant stakeholders with a practical, easy-to-understand summary of the main steps, players and requirements involved in the procedures around Section 17a of the German Residence Act.
The Statement of Comparability has been converted to a digital process. All application, processing and issuing procedures will be from now on digital.
The Federal Statistic Office reports that almost 12,000 foreign professional qualifications were recognized in 2013. This contributes considerably to securing an adequate supply of skilled workers.
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.
More than 13,200 foreign professional qualifications were recognised in 2014, the Federal Statistic Office reports. This is a twelve percent increase over the previous year. Since the Recognition Act entered in force in April 2012, some 32,500 applications were granted full or limited recognition, which is good news in view of rising skills shortages.
The federal cabinet approved the fifth report on the Recognition Act. The report bundles the results of the recognition monitoring and, as in previous years, provides important information on the current development in the area of professional recognition - at the political level as well as in practice.
In Bosnia-Herzegovina, Brazil and Colombia, three new counselling centres for the recognition of professional qualifications will be opened. In addition, the existing counselling services in Algeria, Egypt, India, Iran, Italy, Poland and Vietnam will be further expanded. Over the next four years, the Federal Ministry of Education and Research will fund the "ProRecognition" project with almost 8 million euros - twice as much as in the first funding phase.
The Service Center for Professional Recognition (ZSBA) started work on 1 February 2020. The ZSBA complements and strengthens existing structures for the recognition of foreign professional qualifications in Germany with a range of advisory services and personal support during the recognition procedure. This is primarily intended to help skilled workers who are still abroad and are at the beginning of their job search in Germany.
The Federal Statistical Office has published the recognition figures for 2022. In 2022, for the first time since Corona, the Federal Statistical Office recorded significantly more recognitions. 52,300 people received their recognition notification in this country. This is an increase of 11% compared to 2021. The number of new applications also rose sharply, by 13% compared to the previous year. This development is enormously important for Germany: Most companies face immense skills shortages.
On 30 November, the German Government agreed its key points on the immigration of skilled workers from third countries. It thus paves the way for the most modern immigration law Germany has ever had. The key points provide for facilitating immigration firstly for skilled workers with recognised foreign vocational qualifications, secondly for skilled workers with proven professional experience, and thirdly by introducing an opportunity card for job-seeking.