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Psychotherapist; application for a license to practice if trained in the EU/EEA/Switzerland

Psychotherapists can apply for a license to practice if they have completed their psychotherapeutic training in an EU member state, an EEA member state or in Switzerland and wish to practice their profession in Bavaria.

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Online services

  • Antrag auf Erteilung einer Approbation

    You can apply online to the relevant government for a license to practice or permission to temporarily practice an academic medical profession.

    Service note: If you have already submitted an online application and have questions, you can contact the ZAABY - Zentrale Anerkennungsstelle für Approbationsberufe in Bayern (info.ZAABY@reg-ob.bayern.de). Please note that ZAABY is currently receiving a large number of applications and inquiries. It may therefore take some time to process your request, so please bear with us.

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If you want to work as a psychotherapist in Germany, you need a special professional license - a license to practice.

After successfully completing your studies in an EU member state, an EEA member state or Switzerland, you can apply for a license to practice as a psychotherapist. This license allows you to practice the profession of psychotherapist in Germany independently and on your own responsibility.

You will receive a license to practice for an unlimited period of time. It is valid for the entire Federal Republic of Germany.

Your license can be withdrawn if you are no longer reliable to practice the profession. This may include violating professional regulations or committing a criminal offense. Your license can also be revoked if you have health problems that are relevant to practicing the profession of psychotherapist.

You will receive a license to practice as a psychotherapist under the following conditions:

  • Psychotherapeutic training completed in an EU member state, an EEA contracting state or in Switzerland which is equivalent to German training.
  • You have not been guilty of any conduct that makes you unworthy or unreliable to practise the profession.
  • You are medically fit to practise the profession.
  • You have the necessary knowledge of the German language to practice your profession.

  • Birth certificate/parentage certificate or extract from the parents' family register
    (certified copy)
  • if the name used differs from that on the birth certificate: proof of a change of name (e.g. marriage certificate)
    (certified copy)
  • valid proof of identity (e.g. passport)
    (certified copy)
  • complete and personally signed curriculum vitae

    (tabular and chronological list of the training courses completed and the relevant gainful activities pursued, stating the periods (month/year) and enclosing the relevant supporting documents)

  • Medical certificate (original)

    This must be issued and signed by a general practitioner or internal medicine practitioner established in Germany or another signatory state to the Agreement on the European Economic Area or in Switzerland and stamped with a practice or clinic stamp. If the practice or clinic stamp is not in German, a German translation of the stamp is required.

  • Certificate of good conduct of document type "O
    • If the applicant has already stayed in Germany for more than six months in the past or has had or still has a residence in Germany.
    • In Germany, this must be applied for at the registration office of the place of residence, stating the purpose "Approbation as a psychotherapist". The certificate of good conduct is sent directly to the competent authority by the Federal Office of Justice.
  • Proof of your completed training (certified copy)
    Proof of training such as a diploma or, if applicable, other country-specific proof in accordance with Annex 5 of Directive 2005/36/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of September 7, 2005 on the recognition of professional qualifications
  • Certificate of good standing, if applicable (certified copy)

    Is required from all countries in which the medical profession has already been practiced.

  • Proof of the language skills required for practicing the profession

    (Proof can be provided in different ways. You can find more information on this under "Special instructions").

You must submit the application for licensure with the required documents to the government of Upper Bavaria.

A fee of EUR 250 to 500 must be paid for the license to practice medicine if the training takes place in an EU member state, an EEA member state or in Switzerland. Additional costs are incurred for the specialist language test.

The application for approval is not subject to a time limit.

The granting of a license to practice medicine or a professional permit requires, among other things, that you have the necessary knowledge of the German language to practice your profession. The 87th Conference of Health Ministers in 2014 agreed in a key points paper on the requirements for knowledge of the German language and how this knowledge can be demonstrated. The following applies:

1. the required German language skills are deemed to be proven for applicants for whom the licensing authority determines without doubt that German is spoken and written fluently (e.g. as a native language) or that the completion of medical, dental, pharmaceutical or psychotherapeutic training (proof of training) was obtained in German.

2. proof of the required German language skills is generally deemed to have been provided if the applicant has completed at least ten years of general schooling at a German-speaking school or has completed at least three years of vocational training in German.

3. if proof is not deemed to have been provided in accordance with 1. or 2. above, the language skills required for practicing the profession shall be deemed to have been demonstrated by successful completion of the specialist language test of the Bavarian Chamber of Psychotherapists.

4 Specialist language tests taken at the Chamber of Psychotherapists or the competent authority of another country, as well as special specialist language tests from other examination institutions, are recognized, provided that they are equivalent to the specialist language test of the Bavarian Chamber of Psychotherapists and are suitable for demonstrating the language skills required to practice the profession. Whether this requirement is met in individual cases must be clarified in advance with the relevant professional licensing office.

Administrative court action

Status: 08.12.2025
Editorially responsible for prodecure description: Bayerisches Staatsministerium für Gesundheit, Pflege und Prävention
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