Nursing and health professions
Ghana is on the WHO list 2023 (not on the provisional 2026 list) and in the annex to § 38 BeschV, so German law restricts recruiting. Employers and private agencies may not recruit nurses and other health workers in Ghana or place them from Ghana. Whether you may apply yourself is discussed below, with open points.
The WHO list
- The WHO Health Workforce Support and Safeguards List 2023 (55 countries) names countries with a low health-worker density and low health coverage; WHO asks richer countries to avoid active recruitment from them. Ghana is on the 2023 list (African Region; WHO release of 14 March 2023).
- WHO circulated a provisional 2026 update (circular C.L.25.2026 of 8 June 2026, 36 countries) in which Ghana does not appear. It is provisional: exemption requests were due by 31 Aug 2026 and the final list is pending. Until the German annex to § 38 BeschV is changed, Ghana stays in it. Check the WHO page.
- WHO says neither the Code nor the list limits the freedom of health workers to migrate to countries that admit and employ them.
What German law does (§ 38 BeschV)
- § 38 BeschV: recruitment in, and placement from, the states in Annex 1 to the ordinance may, for health and nursing jobs, be done only by the Federal Employment Agency. The Annex 1 (55 states) lists Ghana (no. 14).
- So private recruiters and agencies cannot lawfully recruit nurses in Ghana. An agency that does so, or asks you for money, is a red flag (Scams).
- Applying yourself is allowed, but the rules bite: with private placement there is no BA approval and the accelerated skilled-worker procedure falls away. Worker and employer declare own initiative in writing. Targeted recruiting by the employer itself is also covered; hints from friends or family are not. The state of habitual residence decides. It also applies to in-company Ausbildung (§ 16a) and predominantly in-company recognition measures (§ 16d (1)). For you the consequence is that approval is to be refused where the job came about through unlawful placement or recruitment, so no visa on that basis (§ 40 (1) Nr. 1 AufenthG). The fine of up to €30,000 (§ 39 BeschV with § 404 (2) Nr. 9, (3) SGB III) targets employers and private recruiters, not the worker. Source: state form of the Regierung von Mittelfranken (administrative practice, not statute). Ask a lawyer; the final 2026 list may lead to a changed Annex.
- We found no Federal Employment Agency recruitment programme for nurses from Ghana; check the BA and Make it in Germany.
Recognition: regulated professions
Nursing is a regulated profession: you may work as a nurse only with German recognition; otherwise as an assistant. Federal portal: anerkennung-in-deutschland.de. In Berlin the LAGeSo decides. Fees, processing time and treatment of Ghanaian nursing qualifications (for example from the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Ghana) by the LAGeSo were not confirmed.
| Way | In short |
|---|---|
| Recognition from abroad | If the training is only partly equivalent you get a notice with the missing parts. |
| Qualification measure (§ 16d (1)) | Permit for an adaptation course (Anpassungslehrgang) or aptitude test (Kenntnisprüfung). German as a rule at least A2. |
| Recognition partnership (§ 16d (3)) | Needs a concrete job offer and an agreement with the employer. |
Fair recruiters: the seal Faire Anwerbung Pflege Deutschland does not help for Ghana: seal holders may not recruit from Ghana either (§ 38 BeschV). Other health professions (doctors): licensing rules were not covered here; ask the LAGeSo. Documents: Documents.
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