These 7 European Countries Are Giving Visas to Foreign Medical Professionals

Several EU countries are experiencing shortages in healthcare-related occupations, according to the 2023 EURES report on shortages and surpluses.

Specialist doctors and nursing professionals are among the most in-demand roles, with EU states attempting to fill these gaps by offering streamlined work visa procedures for foreign professionals, in Schengen.News reports.

Countries with significant healthcare-related shortages include Switzerland, Germany, Norway, Ireland, the Netherlands, Austria, and Denmark.

Ireland and Switzerland notably rely heavily on both foreign doctors and nurses, with Ireland, Norway, and Switzerland having the highest dependency on foreign-trained doctors, and Ireland, Switzerland, and Austria having the highest dependency on foreign-trained nurses.

2023 EURES Report on Shortages and Surpluses

Most In-Demand Healthcare Professions in EU Countries

The healthcare occupations facing the most shortages in these countries include:

• Specialist medical practitioners
• Generalist medical practitioners
• Nursing professionals
• Health care assistants
• Health professionals not elsewhere classified
• Midwifery professionals
• Physiotherapists
• Dentists
• Pharmacists
• Audiologists and speech therapists

With an aging population exacerbating these shortages, foreign professionals in these fields have a higher chance of securing employment and work visas in these countries.

Germany consistently reports shortages in the healthcare sector. The Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) indicated that 12 percent of doctors in Germany—approximately 62,000—were foreign nationals in 2023, a seven percent increase from a decade earlier.

Overall, 115,000 foreign doctors moved to Germany, with the profession being the second most recognized foreign qualification in 2022.

Germany also faces a critical need for nurses, requiring an additional 150,000 by 2025, according to Schengen.News. German authorities are actively seeking nursing staff from foreign countries, including Latin America.

Moreover, some EU countries, including Germany and Denmark, have recently relaxed immigration laws, increasing the likelihood of foreign workers obtaining work visas.