SWITZERLAND RECOGNITION OF FOREIGN QUALIFICATIONS FACT SHEET

Transcription

1 SWITZERLAND RECOGNITION OF FOREIGN QUALIFICATIONS FACT SHEET a) Introduction In Switzerland, foreign qualifications may be recognized for either employment or education purposes. While the Lisbon Convention (11 April 1997) governs the recognition of qualifications for education purposes, Article 69 of the Federal Ordinance on Vocational and Professional Education and Training (SR ) and Article 5 of the Federal Ordinance on Universities of Applied Sciences (SR ) provide the legal framework for recognizing foreign degrees. This guide provides information on recognizing foreign degrees for employment purposes. Switzerland has both regulated and non-regulated professions. Regulated professions are subject to legal restrictions and may only be carried out those who hold specific qualifications. If you want to pursue such a regulated profession, you will need to have your qualifications recognized by the appropriate Swiss authorities. A list of regulated occupations and professions (in German) can be found here. If want to pursue a non-regulated occupation, you do not need to have your foreign qualifications recognized. In this case, you need to need to find an employer who will hire you. There are several authorities and institutions that recognize foreign degrees. Your occupation or profession determines which authority or institution is responsible for recognizing your qualifications. Your qualifications will only be recognized in Switzerland if they were issued or recognized by the national authorities of the country where you obtained them. b) Responsible authorities There are over twenty authorities responsible for recognizing foreign qualifications, ranging from the Swiss Red Cross to cantonal authorities. The appropriate authority depends on the profession or occupation you want to pursue. The most important authority for the recognition of foreign qualifications is the Federal Office for Professional Education and Technology (OPET), as it coordinates the recognition of foreign degrees. This Guide has been created as part of the Migration for Development in the Western Balkans (MIDWEB) project, which received financial assistance from the European Commission IPA 2009 Multi-beneficiary Programme 2.

2 In many cases, OPET is also the authority responsible for recognizing foreign degrees. Even if OPET is not the authority that recognizes your degree, you may submit a preliminary application to OPET. Upon receiving and processing your preliminary application, OPET will inform you which authority is responsible for recognizing your specific degree. Here are some of the most important authorities and institutes responsible for the recognition of foreign qualifications: Recognizing Authority or Institute OPET (Federal Office for Professional Education and Technology) Swiss Red Cross (SRC) Qualifications Recognized 1. You have an upper-secondary level qualifications relating to vocational education and training (VET) Examples: Social care, industry, craftsmanship, trade, commerce, HORECA, hospitality services, services, etc. 2. You have a tertiary-level A qualifications for the following specific professions (Fachhochschule): Engineering and IT Architecture, construction and planning Chemistry and life sciences Agriculture and forestry Economics and services Design Health care Social work Performing arts Applied linguistics Applied psychology 3. You are a VET teacher (Berufschullehrer/innen) You hold an upper-secondary and tertiary-level B qualification in a health care field and would like to work in Switzerland. Contact Information Federal Office for Professional Education and Technology (OPET) Contact point for the recognition of foreign qualifications Effingerstrasse 27, CH-3003 Bern Tel. +41 (0) kontaktstelle@bbt.admin.ch Web site: Swiss Red Cross (SRC) Contact point for recognition of foreign qualifications Postfach, CH-3084 Wabern Tel (Mo- Fr, am pm) Web site: 2

3 Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) Swiss Conference of Cantonal Directors of Education (EDK) You have qualifications to work as a doctor, dentist, veterinarian, pharmacist or chiropractor. You have qualifications to work as a teacher, special education teacher, speech therapist, psychomotor therapist and would like to work in Switzerland at an upper-secondary school within the general education sector. Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) MEBEKO, CH-3003 Bern Tel. +41 (0) , Web site: MEBEKO- Ausbildung@bag.admin.ch Swiss Conference of Cantonal Directors of Education (EDK) General Secretariat, House of the Cantons Speichergasse 6, Postfach 660, CH-3000 Bern 7 Tel. +41 (0) Web site: c) How qualifications are assessed The Federal Office for Professional Education and Technology (OPET) has a multi-tiered recognition procedure recognizing of foreign qualifications. First, you have to determine whether your occupation or profession is regulated in Switzerland. If your occupation or profession is not regulated in Switzerland, you may work in Switzerland without a recognition certificate for your foreign qualification. Nevertheless, if you wish, OPET can issue a level certificate or recognition certificate for your foreign qualification. If your occupation or profession is regulated in Switzerland, you are required to obtain a recognition certificate (equivalency) before you may begin work in Switzerland. To obtain a level certificate or recognition certificate (equivalency), you will have to submit a preliminary application to OPET, which enables OPET to determine which Swiss agency is responsible for recognizing your foreign qualifications. Upon completion of its assessment of the preliminary application, OPET will send you an information letter indicating what you have to do next. This letter will also contain details about the processing fees you have to pay to obtain the desired level certificate or recognition certificate. What are level certificates and recognition certificates? A. Level certificates Level certificates provide information about the level that the foreign qualification holds within the Swiss education system. They are useful for public authorities, education institutions and potential employers. OPET recommends that holders of foreign qualifications for unregulated occupations or professions obtain a level certificate instead of a recognition certificate. You do not need a recognition certificate to work in unregulated occupations or professions. In the case of 3

4 unregulated occupations and professions, employers have to decide whether a foreign qualification holder has the knowledge and skills they are looking for. B. Recognition certificates (equivalency) Holders of foreign qualifications for regulated occupations or professions need to obtain a recognition certificate to work in Switzerland. Recognition certificates confirm that the foreign qualification is equivalent to a corresponding Swiss qualification. Equivalency is determined on the basis of legally established criteria. d) How to apply 1. First, you have to submit a preliminary application to OPET. Please fill out and submit the fully-completed Preliminary Application Form and attach a non-certified copy and translation of your foreign qualification in one of Switzerland s official languages (Germany, French or Italian). As soon as OPET receives the aforementioned documents, it will conduct a summary assessment of your preliminary application. Upon completing this assessment, OPET will send you an information letter that includes the name of the authority responsible for recognizing your degree and details about the application procedure itself. You can download the Preliminary Application Form here. If your information letter states that an authority other than OPET is responsible for recognizing your degree, you will have will have to contact the relevant authority or institution and follow their application procedure. If your information letter states that OPET is responsible for recognizing your degree, the following steps apply to you: 2. You will have to fill out an application form and submit all the required documents to OPET by post. You will also have to pay the processing fee for the desired certificate (level certificate or recognition certificate) before your application can be processed. Once OPET has received the full application package and payment, it will assess either the level that your foreign qualification holds within the Swiss education system (level certificate) or the equivalency of your foreign qualification to a corresponding Swiss qualification (recognition certificate). 3. Upon completing its assessment, OPET will send you its positive or negative decision by post. If OPET s decision is positive, you will not receive a Swiss qualification but rather one of two certificates: a level certificate or a recognition certificate. Compensatory Measures for Recognition Certificates (Equivalency) If OPET finds substantial differences between the duration and content of your foreign education and the requirements of an equivalent Swiss qualification, then it might ask you to take compensatory measures (an aptitude test or a course/internship to fill gaps in knowledge) before it can issue a recognition certificate. You have to pay for these compensatory measures yourself. 4

5 Documents Required for the OPET Application You have to attach the following documents to the fully completed and signed application form you send OPET: A) Certified copies of qualifications You must submit a certified copy of all nationally-issued or recognised qualifications (degrees, diplomas, certificates, etc.). To obtain a certified copy of your qualifications, contact your local town hall in Switzerland, a notary s office in Switzerland, or the embassy or consulate of the country where your qualification was issued. B) Non-certified copies of supporting documents You must submit a non-certified translated copy of the following documents: A two to three-page (maximum) transcript of your education and training programme and the content of your final examination (Please include a list of studied subjects and the number of lessons per subject and year) Employment certificates (proof of work experience) Passport or identification card Proof of payment of processing fee In certain cases, you also have to include: Residence permit or cross-border work permit Language proficiency certificate (only for social work or VET teachers) Form for the education institution (only for professions that have equivalent Swiss UAS Bachelor's or Master's degree programmes) Please do not send original copies, as OPET will keep the received documents on file even after it has made its decision. OPET will not return documents. Note on translations All translations must be handled by an authorised translator. To find an authorised translator, please contact the Swiss Association of Translators, Terminologists and Interpreters (ASTTI). If your foreign qualification is written in a language that ASTTI does not offer, then please contact the embassy or consulate of the country where your qualification was issued. Fees and Costs of the OPET Application The processing fee is CHF 150 for level certificates and CHF 550 for recognition certificates. You must pay the processing fees in advance. OPET will not refund the processing fee in case of a negative decision. 5

6 In addition to OPET s processing fees, you may have to pay additional costs for such things as certified copies and translations of required documents. Do not underestimate the costs of translation and certification. Contact your local town hall in Switzerland, a notary s office in Switzerland, or the embassy or consulate regarding the price of certification. Contact ASTII for translation prices. You will also have to pay for all supplementary trainings and aptitude tests that OPET might ask you to complete before it recognizes your qualifications. Length of Application Procedure The application and recognition procedure can take up to four months, depending on the information required. In certain cases, especially if external experts have to be consulted, the application procedure can take over four months. Please plan in advance. e) Further Information For information regarding studying in Switzerland, please consult the Rectors Conference of the Swiss Universities website. Each Swiss university has its own requirements for the recognition of foreign degrees. Contact the university you are interested in to learn about its own admissions procedure. f) Useful links Institution Federal Office for Migration (FOM) Labour Market Quellenweg 6, CH-3003 Bern-Wabern Tel: +41 (0) Fax: +41 (0) web: Role The FOM regulates all matters relevant to aliens and asylum in Switzerland, including labour market for Non-EC/EFTA nationals. The Federal Office for Professional Education and Technology (OPET) Effingerstrasse 27, CH-3003 Bern Tel: +41 (0) Fax: +41 (0) web: The Federal Office for Professional Education and Technology (OPET) is the competent authority for the evaluation as to whether foreign diplomas are equivalent to Swiss ones throughout the sector of professional training and universities of applied sciences (FH). 6

7 Rectors Conference of the Swiss Universities CRUS Swiss ENIC P.O. Box 607, CH-3000 Bern 9 Tel: +41 (0) Fax: +41 (0) Web: CRUS is the authoritative organ for the evaluation as to whether foreign diplomas are equivalent to Swiss ones for teacher training, the Federal Institutes of Technology and the universities. Regional Employment Centres (RAV) Web: Regional employment centres (RAVs) are offices that specialise in the labour market, job placement and unemployment. Currently there are about 130 RAVs, which is the largest job placement network in Switzerland. Swissemigration Federal Office for Migration FOM Information: Brochure Living and Working in Switzerland available on schweiz/00191/index.html?lang=en Swissemigration is a service of the Swiss Federal Administration. It is located in the Federal Office for Migration (FOM) and provides information on immigration regulations, living conditions and the labour market. 7