Guide for Working Professionals in the European Union

In theory, entry into the European Union should have provided increased opportunity for working professionals for free movement and trade in other EU Member States.

The reality has proved to be different from expectations, however, as each Member State can legally impose a requirement on working professionals to be locally qualified for entry into their profession.

Sectoral Professions not affected by local restrictions
If you are a member of what are considered “sectorial professions”, then these restrictions will not apply to you. The sectoral professions are:

• Architects
• Dentists
• Doctors
• Midwives
• Nurses
• Pharmacists
• Veterinary surgeons

Other professionals may need to fulfil additional requirements before receiving approval to undertake practise in a foreign Member State.

Having a valid degree or professional license from the UK, for example, may not be enough to satisfy some Member States that you are fit to work in their territory.

Directive 2005/36/EC and what it can mean for you

In order to facilitate mutual recognition of professional qualifications between Member States, the various European institutions have made agreements that form the basis of Directive 2005/36/EC.

But this Directive really only provides for institutional recognition, and does not mean a professional who is qualified in one Member State will automatically be qualified in all Member States.

One of the key features of this Directive is that it is supplemented by a code of conduct that governs how administrators should approach the assessment and recognition of qualifications earned in foreign Member States.

Importantly, it should be remembered that this code of conduct and the Directive itself are intended to be applied to qualifications earned in Member States. Therefore, foreign qualifications obtained outside the EU may not necessarily be recognised even if they are considered sufficient to qualify for professional practise in the UK (or anywhere else, in fact, other than the country you are applying to practise in).

This Directive only covers professionals who are already fully qualified and intend to practise in a different Member State to the one in which they are qualified. Thus it does not apply if your intention is to study or participate in training.

Who can qualify for the provisions afforded by the Directive?

The provisions of the Directive apply to nationals of the 27 EU Member States (including people with dual nationality), plus nationals of Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway. Special rules apply to nationals of Switzerland if their qualification was earned in Switzerland.

Importantly, the provisions also cover those who are nationals of other countries but who have family members who are nationals of EU Member States (if the qualification was also earned in the EU). And long-term residents of the eligible countries who don’t fit into any of the other categories are also partially covered by the provisions.

Finally the provisions also cover bona fide refugees who have been granted asylum within a Member State. If a refugee has a professional qualification awarded in any EU Member State, the Member State that granted him or her refugee status should recognise this professional qualification pursuant to Directive 2005/36/EC.

Different rules and provisions based on your intentions

The rules that apply are different depending on whether you want to establish yourself in another Member State or just temporarily work in that Member State.

If your intention is just to work temporarily in the foreign Member State, then you are considered to be providing a temporary service. The advantage of being a temporary service provider is that the rules are more flexible compared with permanent establishment.

In most cases, temporary service provider applicants do not need to submit their qualifications for approval prior to commencement, and they can generally commence practise straight away.

On the other hand, if you are intending to establish on a long-term basis in the foreign Member State then you are covered by the Establishment clauses in the Directive.

Permanently establishing in a foreign Member State is much more formal, and your qualifications will be checked and must be approved in most cases before you will be allowed to commence your practise.

Qualifying directly in the foreign Member State may be a better choice for some

An interesting option exists if you have not yet qualified in your profession and your intention is to establish practise in a foreign Member State from the outset. In that case, you could consider qualifying directly in the foreign Member State through a course of distance education.

You can also apply to study on-campus in the foreign university, and there are a number of different sets of legal provisions that you will have to take into account in that case.

Some universities and colleges establish satellite campuses in other countries, and studying at one of these may confer the same qualifications as studying in the same university within its own country, but you should definitely ask about this when applying.

It may even be the case that you could qualify in your profession in more than one country simultaneously if you apply to a course of study at a foreign satellite campus in your own country.

Obviously if you qualify directly in the Member State where you wish to practise, then you should not need to rely on Directive 2005/35/EC, because your qualification should already be recognised in that State. There may still be formalities required before you can commence your activity, so it is important to ensure you comply with any legal requirements before making any sort of substantial investment in your new venture.

If you’ve previously had difficulties in registering with the General Medical Council (GMC) or the General Dental Council (GDC) using the Directive 2005/36/EC and you believe you meet the criteria of being qualified in these professions. Then we here at Hylton-Potts would be happy to look into your case and advise you on your case.

We have had great success with helping many others in a similar situation to you, where previously they’d found themselves running into road blocks. We know every case is different, but we prefer to work on a fixed fee basis here at Hylton-Potts. We believe our rates are highly competitive, considering our high success rate of assisting clients in making applications to SOLVIT.

We can also help you if your EU rights as a citizen or as a business are breached by public authorities in another EU country and you wish to bring a matter to court.