The system of recognition of diplomas from colleges and vocational schools acquired outside Germany is quite complex, but, nevertheless, the residents of the Western Balkan countries are at the top of the list of applications for recognition in 2018, writes Deutsche Welle.
In Germany, a total of 50,514 applications for recognition of foreign professional qualifications have been submitted during 2018, most of them are from Syria – 6,498, in second place is Bosnia and Herzegovina with 4,392, and in third place – Serbia with 3,291.
Countries outside the European Union are also on the list, Poland and Romania, followed by the non-EU country again – the Philippines, followed by Ukraine, Albania and Russia, with ten-ranked Croatia with 1,251 requests.
Although the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs considers that the procedure for obtaining a residence permit in Germany for people from the Western Balkans has been facilitated, the visa application procedure is still not short.
The recognition of a diploma implies that it is treated in the same way as a diploma from a German university and this is not an easy procedure especially when it comes to the social sciences.