Recognition of professional qualifications

Professional qualifications from abroad may include training or industry experience related to the work tasks or the profession to be worked with in Denmark.

Please note that there are other professions regulated by law in Denmark than those the Danish Working Environment Authority is responsible for approving. These include trades such as electricians and cable installers for example. You can see a complete list of all the regulated professions found in Denmark at the Ministry of Higher Education and Science.

If your qualifications originate from EU or EEA countries

If you are posted to work temporarily in Denmark and your qualifications originate from another EU or EEA country or Switzerland they must be recognised by the WEA before you begin working. This applies if you will:

• Work with interior demolition of asbestos
• Work with inspection, maintenance and repair of elevators, etc.
• Work with welding
• Work with setting up or dismantling scaffolding higher than 3 meters.
  (Exceptions: horse scaffold and roll scaffold).

Or work as:

• Telescopic loader operator
• Forklift operator
• Crane operator (mobile cranes, tower cranes and truck cranes exceeding 30 tonne-metres)
• Boiler operator
• Refrigeration engineer.

Work types that do not require recognition of qualifications

Work with the following tasks does not require recognition by the WEA but your employer is responsible for ensuring that you have the necessary qualifications.

• Work with asphalt materials
• Work with epoxy and isocyanates
• Work with styrene
• Work with horse and roll scaffolding
• Crane operator
  (Exceptions: mobile cranes, tower cranes and truck cranes exceeding 30 tonne-metres)
• Work as stacker operator
• Work as coordinator of safety and health procedures at the construction and installation site.

If your qualifications do not originate from an EU or EEA country

If you are posted to work in Denmark and your qualifications do not originate from another EU or EEA country or Switzerland they must be recognised by the WEA before you begin working. This applies if you will:

• Work with interior demolition of asbestos
• Work with asphalt materials
• Work with epoxy and isocyanates
• Work with styrene
• Work with welding
• Work at natural gas plant
• Work on inspection, maintenance, and repair of elevators etc.

Or work as:

• Boiler operator
• Crane drivers, forklift drivers and operators of telescopic loaders and forklift stackers
• Refrigeration engineer
• Scaffold erectors
• Coordinator of safety and health procedures in building and construction.

Permanent work in Denmark

If you are going to work permanently in Denmark, you must always apply to the WEA for recognition of your qualifications before you begin working. This applies regardless of which tasks you will perform, or which country your qualifications come from.

How to apply to have foreign qualifications recognised (at.dk/en)

How to apply for recognition by the WEA

Remember to apply for recognition in good time before work commences.

You must use this form to apply for recognition:

Apply for recognition of professional qualifications