your right for your job in Germany

For skilled workers and experienced professionals, the following pathways are particularly relevant in practice:

• EU Blue Card: For academic professionals with an employment contract and a minimum salary (lower threshold for shortage occupations).
• Skilled Worker Visa (Professionals with vocational training or university degree): Requires a recognized qualification + job offer; often the standard route.
• Visa for Experienced Professionals: For individuals with relevant work experience, even without formal recognition required for classical skilled worker pathways (depending on profile/requirements).
• Visa for the Recognition of Foreign Professional Qualifications: If recognition is (partially/not yet) necessary and you are coming to Germany for qualification measures.
• Visa for Recognition Partnership: If an employer hires you and you complete the recognition process in parallel while in Germany.
• Visa Options for IT Specialists: Depending on qualification/experience (includes Blue Card or specific IT regulations).
• Visa for Vocational Training (Training in Germany): For individuals who want to start vocational training in Germany.

Which option fits best essentially depends on:

• Qualification (University degree/Vocational training)
• Recognition status
• Job offer
• Work experience
• Salary
• Regulation of the profession

The Recognition Partnership is a model in which:

• you can already enter and work with a German employer,
• although your qualification is not yet fully recognized,
• and you complete the recognition parallel in Germany (incl. possible adaptation measures).

Important:

• The employer commits to supporting the process.
• You commit to actively pursuing the recognition steps.
• Particularly relevant for regulated professions (e.g. nursing) or if recognition is still pending.

The Blue Card is usually worth it if:

• you have a recognized university degree (or one that is recognized as equivalent),
• you have an employment contract in Germany,
• and the salary reaches the Blue Card minimum threshold (depending on the profession, potentially a lower threshold).

Typical advantages:

• often attractive residence prospects, faster long-term options,
• in many cases administratively simpler than other paths,
• Family reunification is often easier to plan.

If the salary is not sufficient or the degree is not recognized/classifiable, the Skilled Worker Visa or a recognition path is usually more realistic.

In short:

Skilled Worker (Classic)

• strongly based on formal qualification (university degree or vocational training),
• often requires recognition/equivalence,
• plus job offer.

Experienced Professional

• focus lies on demonstrable, relevant work experience,
• can in certain cases work without the same formal recognition logic,
• but requirements regarding activity, experience, possibly salary/working conditions are decisive.

For many, the question is: Do you have a clearly recognizable qualification? If yes, “Skilled Worker” is often faster. If no, “Experienced Professional” can be an alternative if the profile is strong.

For IT, there are often several sensible paths:

• Blue Card, if academic background + salary fits.
• Skilled Worker Visa, if qualification is recognized and a job offer exists.
• Special IT regulations (depending on profile), if someone has very strong work experience and the employer hires accordingly.

Important for IT:

• clean role description, employment contract, salary, and a plausible profile (CV/projects/references).
• IT is “more flexible” than regulated health professions, but the documents must still be consistent.

Partial recognition means:

• The German authority says: “A part is equivalent, but certain content/competencies are missing.”

Then there are typically two paths:

• Adaptation measure (course, practical phase, knowledge test, aptitude test depending on the profession)
• afterwards full recognition.

In this phase, two visa options are frequently considered:

• Visa for the recognition of foreign professional qualifications (for the adaptation)
• or Recognition partnership (if employer employs you in parallel and the recognition process is ongoing)

Realistically (and varying strongly depending on country/profession/authority):

• Finding a job: often 2–12 weeks (sometimes longer, depending on profile)
• Recognition procedure: frequently 2–6 months (regulated professions tend to take longer)
• Visa/Appointment/Entry: roughly 4–12 weeks (depending on the diplomatic mission)

In total, many cases take 6–9 months, sometimes faster, sometimes significantly longer if documents are missing or recognition is complex.

For skilled workers, there are no costs at Nexora. The consultation and support are free of charge.

Nevertheless, external costs may arise that do not go to Nexora, for example:

• Fees at authorities (e.g. for visa application or certain procedures)
• Certified copies and possibly official certifications
• Translations by sworn translators (if required)
• depending on the case, also recognition fees or costs for necessary evidence

This means: Our support costs you nothing, but the official process can still incur expenses depending on the situation.