Attorney-at-law; Recognition of foreign professional qualifications

• § 4 Federal Lawyers' Act
• § 16 et seq. Act on the Activities of European Lawyers in Germany
• § 3 et seq. Ordinance on the Aptitude Test for Admission to the Bar

• Application for the determination of an equivalent professional qualification for admission to the bar (in German),
• Proof of identity
• a curriculum vitae in tabular form (in German),
• proof of entitlement to direct access to the profession of European lawyer,
• proof that more than half of the minimum training period has been completed in Member States of the European Union or in other contracting states of the Agreement on the European Economic Area or Switzerland, or a certificate of at least three years' professional practice in one of these countries,
• a declaration that the application for the determination of an equivalent professional qualification was not submitted at the same time to another examination office, whether and, if so, at which examination offices an application has already been submitted or an aptitude test has been taken (in German),
• where applicable, proof that differences between the subjects covered by the training and those required for the practice of the profession of lawyer in Germany have been fully compensated for by professional practice or further training.

• All relevant documents that are not available in German must be submitted with a German translation. The translations must be carried out by translators who are publicly appointed or authorised.

• You can apply for the determination of an equivalent professional qualification as a prerequisite for admission to the bar in Germany if:
• you have completed professional training which entitles you to direct access to the profession of European lawyer, and
• you have completed more than half of the minimum training period in member states of the European Union or in other contracting states of the European Economic Area or Switzerland, or
• You can prove that you have practised the profession of European lawyer for at least three years if less than half of the minimum training period has been completed in a Member State of the European Union, another contracting state of the European Economic Area or Switzerland.

An aptitude test is required if your training related to subjects that are substantially different from those required for practising the profession of lawyer in Germany and these differences are not compensated for in any other way, in particular by professional practice or further training measures.

• Submit an application.

The application for the determination of an equivalent professional qualification can be submitted to any examination office within the Federal Republic of Germany responsible for taking the aptitude test, but not to several at the same time.

Joint Legal Examination Offices are located in Berlin, Düsseldorf and Stuttgart.

• The Examinations Office will confirm receipt of the application within one month and, if necessary, inform you if any documents are missing.
• The Examinations Office will decide on the application no later than 4 months after receipt of all required documents.
• The Examinations Office requires you to take an aptitude test if:

• your training related to subjects that are substantially different from those required for the practice of the profession of lawyer in Germany, and
• these differences cannot be compensated for in other ways, in particular by professional practice or further training.

• The aptitude test consists of a written and an oral part.
• Two supervisory papers must be completed as written examinations.
• The oral exam consists of a short presentation and an exam interview.
• The Examinations Office will issue a confirmation of the successful completion of the aptitude test. A failed aptitude test may be repeated twice.

The deadlines vary in the Joint Legal Examination Offices .

Objections to the evaluation of the examination performance.

If you are admitted to the oral examination, you must submit your objections to the evaluation of the written proctoring papers to the Examinations Office within one month of notification of the examination decision at the latest, and the objections to the evaluation of the oral examination must be submitted to the Examination Office immediately after the announcement of the examination decision. Objections to the evaluation of the written proctoring papers must be substantiated within two months of the announcement of the examination decision at the latest, and objections to the evaluation of the oral examination must be substantiated within one month of the announcement of the examination decision at the latest (§ 24 (2) EuRAG).

If you are not admitted to the oral examination, you must submit your objections to the assessment of the written proctoring papers to the Examination Office within one month of notification of the examination decision at the latest and substantiate them within two months of its announcement (§ 24 (3) EuRAG).

• § 23 Act on the Activities of European Lawyers in Germany (EuRAG)

• There are many counselling services available. These can be found on the Recognition in Germany portal. Seek personal advice from an IQ counselling centre on this procedure and your qualifications. The advisors will also help you with your documents before submitting your application. The consultation is free of charge. You can also call the hotline of the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees.