Background information

The Act No. 400/2024 Coll. amending and supplementing Act No. 422/2015 Coll. on the recognition of educational documents and on the recognition of professional qualifications is a reaction to the EU Council Recommendation of 26 November 2018 on promoting the automatic mutual recognition of qualifications obtained in higher education, upper secondary education and vocational training and the outcomes of learning periods abroad (2018/C 444/01), as well as the required changes by the Directive (EU) 2024/505 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 7 February 2024 amending Directive 2005/36/EC as regards the recognition of professional qualifications of nurses responsible for general care trained in Romania, which will make their access to Slovak labour market easier and thus could ease the lack of nurses Slovakia is currently experiencing.

Content of measure

The Act changes the process of recognition of educational documents and professional qualifications, digitalises the process in order to simplify it, eliminates waiting periods and fees. People with foreign qualification obtained in any EU country or in a country with a bilateral agreement with Slovakia (currently Ukraine, Russia, China) now only need to visit the website of the Ministry of Education and find the appropriate clause on the recognition of the level of education for the educational document they have. They will then deliver this clause along with the educational document itself (or its copy) to an university or an employer to prove proper qualification. This applies only to unregulated occupations. Additionally, in regards to general nurses the Act amends which Romanian education in the field will be recognised in order to work in this regulated profession.

Use of measure

No information available. Before this measure, the Ministry received approximately a thousand requests yearly, but it is unknown how many of those were for regulated and how many for unregulated occupations.

Target groups

Workers	Businesses	Citizens
Particular professions	Does not apply to businesses	Applies to all citizens

Actors and funding

Actors	Funding
National government EU (Council, EC, EP)	No special funding required

Social partners

Social partners' role in designing the measure and form of involvement:

	Trade unions	Employers' organisations
Role	No involvement	No involvement
Form	Not applicable	Not applicable

Social partners' role in the implementation, monitoring and assessment phase:

• No involvement
• Main level of involvement: N/A

Involvement

No involvement.

Views and reactions

Employer organisations (EO) have expressed their desire to simplify the process of recognition of educational documents and professional qualifications at the beginning of the war in Ukraine, when the influx of immigrants started and was viewed as a possible boost to the workforce. Neither employer organisations nor trade unions have expressed any feedback during the interdepartmental comment procedure on this measure.

Sources

• 10 December 2024: Act No. 400/2024 Coll. amending and supplementing Act No. 422/2015 Coll. on the recognition of educational documents and on the recognition of professional qualification (www.slov-lex.sk)
• 01 March 2025: Act 422/2014 Coll. on the recognition of educational documents and on the recognition of professional qualifications and on amendments and supplements to certain act (www.slov-lex.sk)
• 01 March 2025: Information on the use of the recognition clause (uznavanie.minedu.sk)