European Professional Card
The European Professional Card (EPC) is an electronic procedure you can use to have your regulated professional EU qualifications recognised in other EU countries under EU Directive 2005/36/EC on the recognition of professional qualifications, as amended by Directive 2013/55/EU.
You can use the EPC procedure if you are:
- A nurse responsible for general care
- A pharmacist
- A physiotherapist
- A mountain guide
- A real estate agent
What is the European Professional Card?
The European Professional Card (EPC) is an electronic procedure you can use to have your EU professional qualifications recognised in another EU country. It is not a physical card, but electronic proof that you have passed administrative checks. After you get the EPC, you must still register with the relevant Competent Authority.
Eligibility
The EPC procedure is governed by the above mentioned EU Directives. Only eligible persons may avail of it. An eligible person is (a) a National of a Member State (b) a family member of a National of a Member State, as defined in Article 2(2) of Directive 2004/38/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004, who has been given the right of residence or permanent residence in the State pursuant to that Directive, or (c) a person granted refugee or subsidiary protection status in the State under Council Directive 2004/83/EC if 29 April 2004 or a dependent family member of such person.
Application Process
You will first need to sign in to Your Europe website, the European Commission authentication service. You will need to create an account if you don’t have one already. You will then need to complete your EPC profile with your personal information and contact details. Once your profile information is complete, you can create an application, upload electronically scanned copies of the relevant documents and submit them to you home country.
What documents are required?
The following documents are or may be required:
- Proof of nationality/identity
- Proof of legal establishment
- Evidence of formal qualifications or professional competences
- Proof of good character/repute/non-bankruptcy
- Proof of absence of a suspension or prohibition from practice
- Proof of good health
- Proof of financial standing
- Proof of insurance coverage
- Additional information about the training duration and contents
- Other relevant training
- Professional experience
- Information on equal treatment of qualification
- Other
Translations are not needed for passports and ID cards, however, authorities may ask you for translations of other documents.
Fees
For each application, both home country and host country authorities could charge you fees to examine your file. If they do, you will receive a separate invoice from each authority.
Timelines
If your profession benefits from automatic recognition, eg. nurse or pharmacist, your home country authority has up to 1 month to check your application and forward it to the host country. The host country will make a final decision within 2 months.
If you don’t benefit from automatic recognition, eg, physiotherapist, real estate agent or mountain guide, the host country will make a final decision within 3 months.
If the host country authorities don’t make a decision within these timeframes, your qualifications are tacitly recognised and you can generate an EPC certificate from your online account.
Appeals
If the host country authorities find that your education, training and professional experience don’t meet their standards required in that country, they could ask you to undergo an aptitude test or an adaptation traineeship.
If the authorities reject your application, they have to explain why and how you can appeal.
Frequently Asked Questions (External Link)
Updated 8th January 2021