Do German Hospitals Hire Doctors With a Temporary Permit
The rumour says German hospitals won't hire doctors on a temporary permit. Here's what actually decides whether you get the job.
Ahmed Quteishat
Assistenzarzt, Innere Medizin (Berlin) · Founder of Klaro
Can you work as a doctor in Germany with a Berufserlaubnis? Yes, for up to 2 years in total (§ 10 BÄO), usually while your Approbation is pending. On 3 November 2026, 162 of 13,580 open doctor jobs on Klaro (1.2%) said a Berufserlaubnis is enough; most others ask for the Approbation or do not say. Hospitals in Germany hire doctors on a temporary work permit (Berufserlaubnis) all the time. If your application gets ignored, the permit is almost never the reason.
What is the temporary permit
The Berufserlaubnis lets you work as a doctor before your full licence (Approbation) comes through. It is capped at 2 years in total (as of 2026).
Most foreign doctors use it while the state medical chamber reviews their file, or while they wait for the knowledge exam (Kenntnisprüfung).
Do hospitals avoid hiring on it
No. A junior doctor post (Assistenzarzt) filled by someone on a Berufserlaubnis is normal, not an exception. Hospitals need people on the ward and on night duty (Bereitschaftsdienst), and the permit lets you do both.
Your pay follows the same collective table as a colleague with a full licence. Your rotations are set by the same senior doctor. The permit changes your paperwork, not your job.
So what actually blocks the application
- An incomplete file: a missing language certificate, a criminal record extract older than 3 months
- No specialty named: a CV that says "I will take any department" gets no reply
- Only applying to university hospitals in Munich or Berlin, where 50 doctors apply for one post
What helps the file land on the right desk
Smaller hospitals, in smaller towns, are usually the fastest to answer. They run on fewer doctors and feel a gap sooner.
Attach your medical language exam (Fachsprachprüfung) certificate even if your permit is already approved. It is the paper a department head checks first.
Name one specialty on your cover letter. A hospital reading "open to anything" moves on to the next file.
What to do this week
- Check your file for 3 papers: language certificate, criminal record extract, medical certificate, all under 3 months old
- Pick one specialty and put it in your cover letter's first line
- Send your CV to 3 hospitals outside the biggest cities, not only to university clinics
Stand: 2026-11-03. This is a guide, not legal advice. Every German state has its own rules, and rules change. Check with your state's medical chamber (Landesärztekammer) before you act.
Ahmed Quteishat — Assistenzarzt, Innere Medizin (Berlin) · Founder of Klaro
Ahmed built Klaro after watching how much of a doctor's move to Germany gets lost in paperwork rather than medicine.
