Practising a healthcare profession with a foreign diploma
If you wish to reside permanently in Belgium and exercise a healthcare profession, you first have to request recognition or have your diploma declared to be equivalent to a Flemish diploma.
Where to apply for the recognition of your diploma
If you want to practise a healthcare profession in Belgium with a foreign diploma, you must first apply for recognition of your diploma. You can apply for recognition of your basic diploma in one of the 3 Belgian communities (Flemish, French or German-speaking community). You can only apply for recognition of a specialisation in one community.
Please note: you cannot apply for recognition of a specialisation if you do not yet have a recognition or a visa for your basic diploma. A recognition or equivalence issued by one community applies throughout Belgium.
These rules apply to the following professions.
- Doctor: general practitioner or other specialist.
- Dentist: general dentistry, periodontics and orthodontics
- Pharmacist: hospital pharmacist
- Physiotherapist
- Clinical psychologist and remedial educationalist
- Nurse: first the basic title and then professional titles and competences (specialisations)
- Healthcare professional
- Paramedical professions: pharmaceutical technical assistant (pharmacy assistant), dietician, occupational therapist, speech therapist, audiologist, orthoptist and optometrist, podiatrist, medical laboratory technologist, dental hygienist, medical imaging technician
- Midwife.
Whether you need to apply to NARIC-Vlaanderen or to Departement Zorg depends on
- where you obtained your degree
- what your situation is.
You can easily find out via the NARIC-Vlaanderen application wizard(opens in new window): answer a few questions and get advice tailored to your situation.
Your diploma or degree | Your nationality | Where to apply |
---|---|---|
Obtained in the European Economic Area (EEA)** | EEA* or outside the EEA | Apply for recognition by Departement Zorg(opens in new window) |
Obtained outside the European Economic Area (EEA)** or Switzerland |
| Apply for recognition by Departement Zorg(opens in new window) |
| Apply for recognition by Departement Zorg(opens in new window). | |
Obtained outside the European Economic Area (EEA)** | EEA* or outside the EEA |
|
*You are an EEA national in the following cases:
- You hold the nationality of one of the 28 member states of the European Union, Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein or Switzerland.
- You hold a residence permit for long-term residence in one of these countries or a residence permit as a family member of a European citizen.
- You are married to or legally cohabiting with a European citizen and are established in Belgium.
**The European Economic Area (EEA) consists of the 28 member states of the European Union + Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland.
Temporary visa for several months
- There is a separate procedure for people coming to practise a healthcare profession in Belgium temporarily (a limited number of months, e.g. for an internship) with a foreign diploma.
- You can apply for a temporary visa from FOD Volksgezondheid (FPS Public Health) at visa@health.fgov.be(opens in your email application). You therefore do not need to apply for diploma recognition.