We implemented the revised Professional Qualifications (PQ) Directive in the UK on 18th January. This will make it easier for qualified professionals to work anywhere in Europe and help support economic growth.
The main change is that the Directive now improves a system to recognise professional qualifications gained in another member state. Before this Directive, a person who was qualified in one EU country would not necessarily have been able to practise in another EU country unless they had completed additional training, which often required starting over again.
The 18th of January also marks the launch of a range of support tools that can be used in order to get a person’s professional qualifications recognised in another country. These include:
An alert mechanism
This will provide reassurance for UK authorities that a person is still qualified and fit to practice.
Regulators, including professional bodies, are now required to warn their counterparts across Europe of any health professionals and teachers who have been restricted or prevented from practising. Information about a nurse or teacher who has been removed from a professional register elsewhere in Europe will be now sent immediately to the relevant UK authorities so that they will be able to take that information into account if the individual applies to register within the UK.
The European Professional Card (EPC)
This will support recognition of professional qualifications by putting application procedures online.
Five professions (general care nurses, physiotherapists, pharmacists, real estate agents and mountain guides) who studied and worked in the UK and now wish to go and work elsewhere in Europe can apply for the EPC and get their qualification recognised more easily and quickly. It might be extended to other professions in the future. More information on the EPC can be found here.
Point of Single Contact (PSC)
Now available for recognition of qualifications as well, PSC will make it easier to find information and enable any application to be made online.
For example, a UK engineer looking to work elsewhere in Europe can apply for their UK professional qualifications to be recognised well before they go there as all the information and any forms are now online. Links to all EU PSCs can be found here.
Increasing mobility and reducing bureaucracy will help all EU countries find the skilled professionals they need and so help boost economic growth. The process for recognising qualifications will be more transparent and the new support tools will also increase cooperation among regulators and professional bodies within Europe.
Your experiences
We would love to know if anyone has used the new system and what they think of it. In particular, we would welcome feedback on how well it’s working or not in specific countries or professions.