Germany invites Vietnamese nationals to study and work as nurses

The department, which functions under the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs, announced Wednesday a program to choose candidates to work as nurses at general hospitals in Germany.

The program, implemented by the department in collaboration with the German Federal Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, will recruit 160 Vietnamese candidates aged 19-30 that have already graduated from university, college or intermediate programs in nursing, general medicine, physical therapy or pharmaceutical science.

In Germany, the candidates will have to take a three-year course to become a qualified nurse. In this course, they will get to work as interns at chosen hospitals and get paid 1,100-1,300 euros ($1,150-1400) per month.

When the course ends, those considered qualified enough will be offered jobs to stay on in Germany.

Candidates must have no criminal record, be vaccinated with at least two doses of the Covid-19 vaccine and be ready to receive additional injections if the vaccine they have received is not in a group recognized in Europe.

Before leaving Vietnam, the candidates will study a German language course lasting 12 months from July 2022 to August 2023. They will be allowed to stay for free at a boarding school and given a monthly stipend of VND910,000 ($40) per month. They will not have to pay visa application fees or air ticket fares to Germany or for the general health check before exit.

They will have to pay 70 euros to take the course and VND100,000 for the Fund for Overseas Employment Support.

According to a DW report in August 2021, Germany has an aging population and low birth rates, and the federal labor agency said the country must attract at least 400,000 skilled immigrants annually to keep up with demand.

The report quoted Federal Labor Agency Chairman Detlef Scheele as saying that Germany will need 400,000 immigrants per year and “significantly more than in recent years.”

“From nursing care and climate technicians to logisticians and academics, there will be a shortage of skilled workers everywhere,” he said.

Figures from the German Economic Institute suggest Germany will face a total shortage of 5 million skilled workers by 2030.