Recognition of medical professional qualifications acquired on the territory of third countries (all medical professions) is carried out in a two-stage process. In the first stage, the applicant applies to the Ministry of Education, Research, Development and Youth of the Slovak Republic - Centre for the Recognition of Educational Qualifications (CRD) for recognition of the educational qualification. The recognition of education documents shall assess whether the education document was acquired at a state-recognised school and whether the education fulfils the formal requirements of comparability according to the requirements defined in Government Regulation No 296/2010 Coll. on professional competence for the exercise of the health profession, the method of further education of health professionals, the system of specialisation fields and the system of certified work activities.
After the recognition of the educational document, the applicant is obliged to take a supplementary examination at a secondary or higher education institution that provides the same study programme as the one completed in order to verify the actual knowledge of migrants.
A document of professional qualification for the exercise of the health profession issued in a third State shall be automatically recognised as equivalent to a document of professional qualification for the exercise of the health profession issued in the Slovak Republic on the basis of the recognised document of education and the supplementary examination carried out after the recognition of the document of education at a recognised university or a recognised secondary school in the Slovak Republic. Proof of successful completion of the supplementary examination shall be attached to the application for recognition of the professional qualification as a compulsory annex to the application.
How to proceed
- The first step is to apply to the CRD for recognition of formal qualifications and professional qualifications for the exercise of the regulated profession. Once you have received a decision on the recognition of the educational document for the exercise of the health regulated profession, you can:
- apply for a supplementary examination at a university or secondary school in the Slovak Republic
- take up a temporary professional traineeship
- In the second step, after successful completion of all parts of the supplementary examination, you need to send the supplementary examination report to the CRD together with the application for recognition of the professional qualification after the supplementary examination. You will be issued with a decision on the recognition of your professional qualification for independent practice of a regulated profession
Supplementary examination
The dates and content of the supplementary examination for each health profession can be found in the Supplementary Examination section. You must apply for the examination directly at the university or secondary school that has a published date for the supplementary examination (not at the CRD).
Temporary professional traineeship
A person who has a recognised educational qualification to practise a regulated health profession in the Slovak Republic is entitled to undertake a temporary professional traineeship in which he/she practises the profession under the supervision of a qualified person for a maximum period of 18 months. The temporary professional traineeship is not compulsory in the process of recognition of professional qualifications, but it can help a worker with a qualification from a third country to bridge the period of preparation for the supplementary examination and to get directly acquainted with the system. It is also not necessary to complete the full 18 months of the temporary professional traineeship; the candidate can apply for the date of the supplementary examination at any time, regardless of the temporary vocational traineeship.
More information about temporary professional traineeship available on the website of the Ministry of Health.