Doingbusiness in France
You have been studying in Spain for 3, 4, 5 years or more, you will graduate in a few months, a few weeks and it is therefore time to think seriously about settling in France, if this is the option you are considering.
For many unregulated professions, the classic path of job offers, the activation of your network and that of your friends and family will be sufficient.
However, for other regulated professions, you will have to take administrative steps, obtain authorizations, and prove that your diplomas meet the expectations of the French authorities.
If the Treaty of the European Union provides in its article 8a the free movement of citizens, which translates, in particular by the right to exercise an employed or self-employed activity, the legislation also provides in certain sectors, special provisions as specified below in reproduction of the site of the International Center for Educational Studies ( www.ciep.fr heading ENIC-NARIC Recognition of diplomas in the European Union) dated November 15, 2013:
- The situation with regard to recognition is different, depending on whether the profession whose practice is envisaged is regulated in the host State, i.e. subject to the possession of one or more qualifications issued in that State, or not subject to national regulation.
- Community legislation had provided for automatic recognition of diplomas through the application of sectoral directives for a few professions essentially in the medical or paramedical field. For the other regulated professions, the Commission of the European Communities had adopted two directives 89/48 EEC and 92/51 EEC establishing a general system of recognition of diplomas. These allowed any fully qualified person to obtain recognition of his professional qualifications acquired in his country of origin, for the purpose of practicing the regulated profession in another Member State.
- Directive 2005/36/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 7 September 2005 on the recognition of professional qualifications renewed the previous legislation in force.
These directives do not establish a system of automatic recognition of diplomas, and migrants may be subject to "compensatory measures" in the event of substantial differences between the training they have received and that required to work in the host country. Each member state has a limited number of regulated professions.
All information on these professions and on access procedures can be obtained from the "contact and information point" for the application of European directives.
When the profession is not subject to regulation in the host country, the assessment of the diploma and the professional level is up to the employer. However, the worker may have difficulties in having his or her professional qualification recognized and in obtaining a job at a corresponding level. In this case, he/she can turn to the information centers in the host country.
In fact, in each European country, national information centers associated with the NARIC network (National Academic Recognition Information Centers) or, in some countries, centers designated exclusively to provide information on the professional recognition of diplomas are authorized to answer questions and issue certificates.
