Approbation, FSP or Kenntnisprüfung still pending

The wording for each stage

Always the date you actually have, never the year you hope to pass. Which authority and which chamber depend on your Bundesland.

Where it goes in the CV

• In the profile at the top, in one sentence: "Approbation in Deutschland beantragt. Deutschkenntnisse auf B2-Niveau (Goethe-Zertifikat)."
• In its own section, "Approbation und Prüfungen", with one line per step from the lists above.
• Time spent on the process is its own entry, not a gap: "Anerkennungsverfahren und Vorbereitung auf die Kenntnisprüfung, Berlin".

The full CV structure: German CV for doctors.

And in the cover letter

One sentence in the last paragraph, word for word the same as in the CV, plus your earliest start date. For example: "Meine Approbation habe ich im März 2026 beantragt; die Fachsprachprüfung lege ich am 14. Januar 2027 ab." The full letter: Cover letter for a hospital job in Germany.

Example: a CV with Approbation applied for

Lina Haddad (an example person) has applied for her Approbation and holds German B2. Her profile says so in two sentences.

Why it matters

A hospital can ask the authority or the medical chamber about your file. A "passed" that was not true usually ends the whole application, not just one line of it. A clear "pending" is normal: hospitals that hire international doctors know the process takes months, often more than a year. More in Write exam pending, not passed.

The Approbation process changes from 1 November 2026: for degrees from outside the EU, the Kenntnisprüfung becomes the normal route. See what changes in November 2026.

Questions