Academic Credentials for Mental Health Professionals in Germany

Germany rebuilt its psychotherapy training route in 2020, and most guides still describe the route it replaced. This page sets out what each mental health profession studies, what licence or permit that study leads to, and where the requirement is written down.

Quick answer: which qualification opens which right to practise

Germany separates three things that guides often merge: the academic degree, the state licence, and the right to bill statutory health insurance. The table pairs each role with its qualification and with what that qualification authorises.

Two rows do most of the work on this page. The first is the psychotherapy route, which changed in 2020 and is described below as it now stands. The last is the one readers most often get wrong: an unprotected title is not a licence to treat, because German law restricts the activity as well as the name.⁹

Psychotherapy: the current route to Approbation

Since 1 September 2020 there has been one route into the profession, and it starts at undergraduate level.

The Psychotherapeutengesetz makes the licence the gate. Anyone practising psychotherapy under the title Psychotherapeutin or Psychotherapeut needs the Approbation.¹ That is what a client, an employer or a foreign regulator checks for.

The five-year Direktstudium

The study programme runs five years full time at a university and carries 300 ECTS points, equivalent to 9,000 hours of work. It is built as a bachelor's degree followed by a consecutive master's, and both have to be accredited for the purpose.²

Of that total, 180 ECTS points, some 5,400 hours, are the components decisive for the Approbation. They divide into university teaching, 82 ECTS in the bachelor's and 54 in the master's, and supervised placements, 19 ECTS in the bachelor's and 25 in the master's.³

Check accreditation before you enrol, not after. A general psychology bachelor's does not open the master's; only one accredited against the professional requirements does, which is why the Act ties accreditation to both stages.²

The examination, and what it grants

The programme ends in a state examination, the psychotherapeutische Prüfung. Passing it is the precondition for the grant of the Approbation.⁴

The distinction matters when you are verifying someone. The examination is a step; the Approbation is the credential, issued by a Landesprüfungsamt and confirmable by a regulator.

The title granted is Psychotherapeutin or Psychotherapeut, without a qualifying adjective.¹ Practitioners licensed under the former Act keep the titles they were granted, Psychologische Psychotherapeutin, Psychologischer Psychotherapeut, Kinder- und Jugendlichenpsychotherapeutin and Kinder- und Jugendlichenpsychotherapeut, and continue to hold them lawfully, practising within the scope the former Act set, which for the child and adolescent title is defined by the patient's age.⁵ Seeing one of those titles on a practitioner's door tells you when they qualified, not that anything is amiss.

The transitional route, and the date it ends

The older route is still running, but only for people already inside it.

Those who had begun the qualifying degree before 1 September 2020 may complete the old Ausbildung, as Psychologische/r Psychotherapeut/in or as Kinder- und Jugendlichenpsychotherapeut/in, under the Act as it stood until 31 August 2020. They must finish by 1 September 2032, and finishing by that date brings the Approbation under the former provisions.⁶

There is a narrow hardship extension beyond that. The competent authority may allow completion after 1 September 2032 where there is a particular hardship and completion by 31 August 2035 can be expected.⁶

One exception, for the child and adolescent route only

The closure is not quite absolute, and the exception is easy to miss: it sits in a later subsection of the same provision.

The Länder may allow people who began the qualifying study after 31 August 2020 but before 31 August 2026 to complete the old Kinder- und Jugendlichenpsychotherapeut training. Two conditions attach. The training must be dovetailed with a master's programme at a Hochschule für angewandte Wissenschaften, and the arrangement must be needed to secure regional psychotherapeutic provision.⁶

This is a permission given to the states, not a national route. Whether it is open to you depends on whether your Bundesland exercised the option, so check with that state's authority rather than assuming either way. The intake window closes on 31 August 2026, but people already inside the arrangement remain inside it for years afterwards.

What this means in practice. If you are outside Germany and planning a move, neither the old route nor this exception is available to you. If you are inside one of them, the deadline is fixed and worth diarising.

After Approbation: Weiterbildung to Fachpsychotherapeut

The Approbation is the licence. It is not, on its own, the qualification that gets most psychotherapists into publicly funded practice.

A second stage follows. The Weiterbildung lasts a minimum of five years after Approbation and leads to the specialist designation, in one of three Gebiete: psychotherapy with children and adolescents, psychotherapy with adults, or neuropsychological psychotherapy. At least two years must be spent in a hospital and at least two in an outpatient clinic or practice.⁷

The Bundespsychotherapeutenkammer states plainly what it is for: this Weiterbildung is in future the precondition for treating people insured under the statutory scheme.⁷

Within the two age-based Gebiete the trainee also deepens one recognised method. The model regulations set out four: analytic psychotherapy, systemic therapy, psychodynamic psychotherapy and behavioural therapy.⁸

Who actually awards it. The rules are made and applied at state level. The Bundespsychotherapeutenkammer adopted a model Weiterbildungsordnung in April 2021, and each Landespsychotherapeutenkammer enacts its own version. The designation may only be used once that chamber has recognised it and issued the certificate.⁸

Psychiatry: medicine first

Psychiatrists qualify as doctors first, so the chain runs through the medical regulator rather than the psychotherapy chamber.

The Bundesärzteordnung requires the Approbation as a physician for anyone practising medicine, and protects the titles Ärztin and Arzt. The Approbation follows a medical course of at least six years and at least 5,500 hours, including a practical training period of eight to twelve months in hospitals or comparable settings, and the passing of the medical examination.¹⁰

The specialist training

Specialisation is governed by the Weiterbildungsordnung of each Landesärztekammer, built on the Bundesärztekammer model regulations of 2018.

For Facharzt für Psychiatrie und Psychotherapie the total is 60 months. Two blocks are compulsory within it: 12 months in neurology, and 24 months in inpatient patient care.¹¹

One point is regularly reported the wrong way round. Time in general medicine, internal medicine, psychosomatic medicine and psychotherapy, child and adolescent psychiatry, or forensic psychiatry is not a further compulsory block. Up to 12 months of the 60 may be spent in those fields, for the competences they build.¹¹ That is a permission, not a requirement, and it changes how a training plan is built.

Training ends in the Facharztprüfung before the state medical chamber, which also holds the register.

Heilpraktiker für Psychotherapie: the parallel permit

Germany has a second lawful way to practise psychotherapy, and a survey that leaves it out describes only part of the field.

The Heilpraktikergesetz sets the rule. Anyone who wants to practise Heilkunde without being licensed as a physician needs a permit. The Act defines the practice of Heilkunde broadly, as any activity carried out professionally or commercially to identify, cure or alleviate illness, suffering or bodily injury in people, even when performed in the service of others. Practising without either medical authorisation or that permit is a criminal offence, carrying up to one year's imprisonment or a fine.⁹

A restricted form of that permit covers psychotherapy alone, granted by the local Gesundheitsamt rather than a professional chamber.

What the permit requires

Taking Munich as a worked example, an applicant must be at least 25, have completed at least Hauptschule, show personal reliability and health fitness, and be resident or first practising in the city.¹²

The assessment is a knowledge test in two parts, written and oral, against federal guidelines issued in March 2018. The oral part follows at least three weeks after the written one, and both count as a single unit, so failing either means retaking both.¹²

What it is not

State it honestly in both directions. This is a lawful route, used by many practitioners, and a permit holder is not practising illegally. It is also a materially different credential.

• It does not carry the protected title. Psychotherapeutin and Psychotherapeut may be used only by those the Psychotherapeutengesetz authorises¹
• It does not rest on a prescribed course of study. The Act has the implementing provisions test knowledge and ability rather than training, so there is no statutory curriculum, no minimum degree and no supervised training requirement behind it⁹¹²
• It does not open statutory-insurance practice, which runs through Approbation and the Weiterbildung described above⁷

If you want to know which of the two you are dealing with, ask for the Approbation. The licensing guide linked in section 15 sets out how to check.

Psychology degrees: what they are, and what they are not

Psychology in Germany follows the Bologna structure: a B.Sc. of three years, then a consecutive M.Sc. of two. The older Diplom-Psychologe, abbreviated Dipl.-Psych., was the standard degree before that changeover. It is a legacy award, still held and still a full psychology qualification, but no longer conferred.

The distinction that trips people up. A psychology master's is an academic degree. It is not a licence to treat, and it does not by itself confer any right to practise psychotherapy under German law. That right comes from the Approbation, or from a Heilpraktiker permit.¹⁹

The two have partly converged since 2020, because the degrees on the Approbation route are themselves psychology degrees. But a general M.Sc., however strong, is not one of them unless accredited for the purpose.²

Social work: recognition is a state matter

Social workers carry a large share of German psychosocial work, in youth welfare, addiction services, community psychiatry and forensic settings.

The qualification is a bachelor's degree in Soziale Arbeit, usually three to four years, most often at a Hochschule für Angewandte Wissenschaften. Master's degrees are increasingly common but are not the entry qualification.

What converts the degree into the recognised professional standing is the staatliche Anerkennung, and this is where the federal picture ends. Recognition is governed by each state's own law.¹³

North Rhine-Westphalia shows the shape. Its Sozialberufe-Anerkennungsgesetz has the university itself grant recognition, by its own certificate, on completion of a qualifying programme, and that recognition authorises the staatlich anerkannt designations.¹⁴

Other states route it through a separate practice phase and an examination before a state-designated authority.¹³ Check the rule where you intend to work: a route that is automatic in one state is a separate process in another.

Social work recognition does not authorise psychotherapy. A social worker who wants to treat takes one of the routes in sections 2 and 5.

Psychiatric nursing after the 2020 reform

Nursing qualifications changed shortly before psychotherapy did, and the older names are still widely quoted.

The Pflegeberufegesetz came into force on 1 January 2020. It replaced the separate trainings with one generalist qualification, and the title it awards is Pflegefachfrau or Pflegefachmann. Training runs three years full time, or up to five part time, with the practical component predominating.¹⁵

Two specialist titles survive as an election. Trainees who take the corresponding specialisation may instead qualify as Gesundheits- und Kinderkrankenpflegerin or Kinderkrankenpfleger, or as Altenpflegerin or Altenpfleger.¹⁵

The practical consequence for readers checking a credential. Someone who trained before 2020 holds a title such as Gesundheits- und Krankenpfleger, and holds it lawfully. Someone entering nursing today does not receive it.

Psychiatric nursing is a specialisation taken after qualifying, through a Fachweiterbildung entered with completed nursing training and a period of practice. It is set by state law and hospital-sector recommendations rather than federal statute, so its length and content vary. Degree routes in nursing science run alongside it, including master's programmes in advanced practice.

Systemic therapy and work with families

Marriage and family therapy is not a separate licensed profession in Germany. Work with couples and families is done from within the professions above, under the German category of systemic therapy.

Systemic therapy took a specific route into publicly funded care. The Gemeinsamer Bundesausschuss recognised its benefit on 22 November 2018 following an IQWiG assessment, then resolved on 22 November 2019 to admit it as an outpatient statutory-insurance treatment for adults by amending the Psychotherapie-Richtlinie.¹⁶

That decision covered adults only. The G-BA said at the time that it was preparing an application to assess the method for children and adolescents, and added them on 18 January 2024 (in force 12 April 2024). Check the current Psychotherapie-Richtlinie rather than relying on this date.¹⁶

That decision is what put systemic therapy alongside analytic, psychodynamic and behavioural therapy as a reimbursable method for adults. It is also why systemic therapy appears among the methods a psychotherapist may deepen during Weiterbildung, in both the child and adolescent and the adult Gebiete.⁸

The parallel non-clinical track. Systemische Beratung is trained by private institutes and certified by professional societies, principally the Systemische Gesellschaft and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Systemische Therapie, Beratung und Familientherapie. That certification is a society standard, not a state licence, and a systemic counsellor without Approbation who treats illness is subject to the Heilpraktikergesetz rule in section 5.⁹

Occupational therapy

Occupational therapists work extensively in German psychiatric and psychosomatic services, and the route is the shortest here.

The Ergotherapeutengesetz requires an Erlaubnis to work under the title Ergotherapeutin or Ergotherapeut. It is granted to an applicant who has passed the state examination for occupational therapists after a three-year training, and who meets the reliability, health and German-language requirements.¹⁷

The training ordinance sets the volume. It comprises 2,700 hours of theoretical and practical instruction and 1,700 hours of practical training.¹⁸

Degree programmes in Ergotherapie exist at universities of applied sciences, often combining the state examination with a bachelor's award. Mental health specialisation follows through continuing education, not a separate licence.

Note what the Act does and does not do. It attaches the Erlaubnis to use of the title. It is not a psychotherapy licence, and it does not displace the rule in section 5.

Art therapy and music therapy

Both are established fields in German clinics, both are academically taught, and neither has a professional statute behind it. That combination needs stating carefully, because the honest position is not simply "unregulated".

No federal Act protects the titles Kunsttherapeutin, Kunsttherapeut, Musiktherapeutin or Musiktherapeut, and none regulates entry to those fields. The associations describe this openly, and are working to change it.¹⁹

What is nonetheless restricted. The absence of a title statute does not put treatment outside the law. Practising Heilkunde without the Approbation that authorises it, or without a Heilpraktiker permit, remains an offence under the Heilpraktikergesetz, whatever the practitioner calls themselves.⁹ Arts therapists typically work as employees within a clinic, under the responsibility of the treating physician or psychotherapist, which is one reason the question rarely surfaces.

Training is at master's level or through recognised institute programmes, entered with both an artistic background and one in psychology, education or social work. Established examples include the M.A. in Bildnerisches Gestalten und Therapie at the Akademie der Bildenden Künste München²⁰ and the M.A. Musiktherapie at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater Hamburg.²¹ Programmes change, so check current provision through Hochschulkompass or the DAAD database rather than any list.

The training institutions say the same thing. The Hamburg programme page tells its own students that the licence to practise music therapy on one's own responsibility can be obtained after the course, by examination at the responsible health authority.²¹ That is the permit described in section 5.

What is changing, and by when

The Bundesarbeitsgemeinschaft Künstlerische Therapien, formed in 2014 from ten professional associations, presented a draft guideline for the artistic therapies in Berlin on 9 June 2026, with a stated completion target of 31 December 2028.¹⁹

Reimbursement is a separate question from title protection, and currently the harder one. The music therapy association reports that music therapy has sat on the negative list in Annex 1 of the Heilmittel-Richtlinie since 1992, so statutory insurance does not fund it as a prescribed outpatient therapy.¹⁹

Counselling

Counselling psychology as a distinct licensed profession does not exist in Germany. Two things sit under the English word.

The first is Beratung offered from within another profession, most often social work, psychology, education or pastoral care, in agencies such as Erziehungsberatungsstellen and Suchtberatungsstellen. The reference points are the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Beratung and, for psychologists, the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Psychologie.

The second is the freestanding title Psychologischer Berater. It is not protected, carries no statutory training requirement, and does not permit statutory-insurance work.

The Heilpraktikergesetz rule applies here as everywhere. Counselling that stays clear of identifying, curing or alleviating illness is not restricted; counselling that does not requires Approbation or a permit.⁹ The boundary is drawn by the activity, not by the word on the door.

Qualifications earned abroad

A foreign qualification does not convert automatically, and two separate questions are involved: academic comparability, and the licence to practise, which the professional authority decides.

The academic assessment

The Zentralstelle für ausländisches Bildungswesen, the ZAB, is the central body assessing foreign qualifications. It issues the Zeugnisbewertung for foreign higher education degrees and maintains anabin, the database of foreign institutions and awards.

The ZAB is blunt about that document's limits. It does not entitle the holder to admission to study, to further study, or to work in a regulated profession.²²

The legal framework, correctly named

The statute is often cited under a name that does not exist. The recognition law of 2012 is the Anerkennungsgesetz, its core instrument the Berufsqualifikationsfeststellungsgesetz, the BQFG, in force from 1 April 2012.²³

The BQFG applies only where the profession's own Act does not provide otherwise. Its scope provision says so expressly.²³ For the regulated health professions the operative provisions therefore sit in the sectoral statutes: the Psychotherapeutengesetz for psychotherapists, the Bundesärzteordnung for physicians, the Pflegeberufegesetz for nurses, the Ergotherapeutengesetz for occupational therapists.

An applicant who quotes a non-existent Act to a Landesprüfungsamt is quoting nothing.

Where applications go

• Physicians: the state authority responsible under the Bundesärzteordnung, with the Landesärztekammer holding the register¹⁰
• Psychotherapists: the state authority that grants the Approbation, with recognition of foreign qualifications governed by the Psychotherapeutengesetz, which sets a separate provision for qualifications gained in third countries from the one for EU, EEA and equivalent states¹
• Nurses and occupational therapists: the state health authority for that Land¹⁵¹⁷
• Non-regulated fields: no recognition is legally required, and a ZAB assessment is used for employment and further study²²

German language competence is required for the regulated health professions, generally at B2 in the Common European Framework with C1 for professional communication, and medical applicants also sit a specialist language examination. The threshold is set by the state authority, so confirm it there rather than assuming a national figure.

Our companion guide sets out how credentials compare between countries: see the international credential equivalency guide for mental health professionals.

Continuing professional development

Two duties are often reported as one, and the figures then attach to the wrong people.

The first duty is contractual, and it binds practitioners working within statutory health insurance. Section 95d of the Sozialgesetzbuch V requires a contracted practitioner to prove, every five years, that the continuing education obligation has been met. The statute sets no number of points. It attaches consequences instead: a 10 per cent fee reduction for the first four quarters, 25 per cent thereafter, two years to make good the shortfall, and referral for withdrawal of the authorisation if it is not made good.²⁴

The number comes from the Kassenärztliche Bundesvereinigung regulation made under that section, in force since 1 October 2016. At least 250 continuing education points must be evidenced within the five years, and it applies to contracted psychotherapists on the same terms as to contracted physicians, through a certificate from the Ärztekammer or the Psychotherapeutenkammer.²⁵

So the same rule governs both professions. A psychiatrist and a psychotherapist working in statutory-insurance practice each evidence 250 points over five years, through their respective chamber.

The second duty is professional, binding chamber members whether or not they hold an insurance authorisation. Each chamber's Berufsordnung sets its content, so the requirement for a privately practising psychotherapist is a matter for that state's chamber.

The other professions on this page have no federal continuing education statute of this kind. Requirements come from employers, from state law in nursing, and from the associations.

Licensing, protected titles and verification

This page covers what you have to study. Which titles German law protects, what the Approbation means in practice, how the Heilpraktiker permit sits beside it, and how a client checks a practitioner's standing are all answered in our companion guide, mental health licensing and regulation in Germany, which sets out the regulators, the legislation and the verification routes.

Choosing a route, and finding a therapist

Four questions narrow a German training route faster than any prospectus.

• Do you need the Approbation? If you intend to treat under the protected title, or to work within statutory health insurance, yes, and the route is section 2 then section 3
• Is the programme accredited for that purpose? Ask the department whether its bachelor's and master's are accredited under the Psychotherapeutengesetz. A strong psychology degree that is not will not open the next stage²
• Which Bundesland? Weiterbildung, medical specialisation, social work recognition and nursing specialisation are all decided at state level, so the state chamber or ministry is the authority, not a national summary⁸¹³
• Are you inside the transitional route or outside it? If you began the qualifying degree before 1 September 2020, the old Ausbildung is open to you until 1 September 2032. If you began it between then and 31 August 2026, the child and adolescent route may still be open, but only if your Bundesland took up the option, so ask that state's authority. Otherwise it is closed⁶

If you are looking for a therapist in Germany rather than a training route, the Approbation is the credential that answers most questions at once. TherapyRoute is a clinician-run directory, founded by a registered clinical psychologist. Start with our guide on how to find the right therapist.

Last reviewed: August 2026. Jurisdiction: Germany. Rules that are set by each Bundesland are flagged as such in the text. Programme details, entry requirements and state-level rules change; confirm with the university, the state chamber or the relevant authority before applying.

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References

1. [1] Psychotherapeutengesetz (PsychThG 2020), § 1 Berufsbezeichnung, Berufsausübung: "Wer die Psychotherapie unter der Berufsbezeichnung 'Psychotherapeutin' oder 'Psychotherapeut' ausüben will, bedarf der Approbation." The designation may be used only by those the Act authorises, by physicians, and by holders of the pre-2020 titles. Recognition of qualifications obtained outside the scope of the Act is Abschnitt 3, §§ 11-13: § 11 third countries, § 12 other member and contracting states, § 13 general provisions. gesetze-im-internet.de.
2. [2] PsychThG 2020, § 9 Dauer, Struktur und Durchführung des Studiums: five years full time at a university, 300 ECTS points equal to 9,000 hours, comprising a bachelor's degree and a consecutive master's, both requiring accreditation, with the master's entered on a bachelor's meeting the professional requirements. gesetze-im-internet.de.
3. [3] PsychThG 2020, § 9 Abs. 6-9: the components decisive for the Approbation are university teaching and the supervised placements, together 180 ECTS points equal to 5,400 hours; teaching is 82 ECTS (2,460 hours) in the bachelor's and 54 ECTS (1,620 hours) in the master's; placements are 19 ECTS (570 hours) and 25 ECTS (750 hours) respectively. gesetze-im-internet.de.
4. [4] PsychThG 2020, § 10 Psychotherapeutische Prüfung als Voraussetzung für die Erteilung der Approbation. The state examination includes a case-based oral and practical component and a competency-based practical assessment. gesetze-im-internet.de.
5. [5] PsychThG 2020, § 26 Weiterführen der alten Berufsbezeichnungen: Psychologische Psychotherapeutinnen and Psychotherapeuten and Kinder- und Jugendlichenpsychotherapeutinnen and -psychotherapeuten licensed under the former Act continue to hold those titles. gesetze-im-internet.de (PDF).
6. [6] PsychThG 2020, § 27 Abschluss von Ausbildungen. § 27 Abs. 2: persons who had begun or completed the qualifying degree named in § 5 Abs. 2 of the Act as in force to 31 August 2020 "können die Ausbildung ... noch bis zum 1. September 2032 absolvieren", and receive the Approbation under the former provisions on successful completion by that date. § 27 Abs. 2a: "Abweichend von Absatz 2 Satz 1 können die Länder vorsehen", that persons who began that study after 31 August 2020 but before 31 August 2026 may complete the Kinder- und Jugendlichenpsychotherapeut training under the former Act, where taken "verzahnt mit einem Masterstudiengang an einer Hochschule für angewandte Wissenschaften" and needed "um die regionale psychotherapeutische Versorgung sicherzustellen". § 27 Abs. 3: the competent authority may on application allow completion after 1 September 2032 where "ein besonderer Härtefall vorliegt" and completion by 31 August 2035 can be expected. gesetze-im-internet.de.
7. [7] Bundespsychotherapeutenkammer, Muster-Weiterbildungsordnung für Psychotherapeut*innen beschlossen, decision of 24 April 2021: "mindestens fünfjährigen Weiterbildung"; Gebiete "Kinder und Jugendliche, Erwachsene oder Neuropsychologische Psychotherapie"; "mindestens zwei Jahre Weiterbildung in einem Krankenhaus und mindestens zwei Jahre in einer Ambulanz oder Praxis"; "Diese Weiterbildung ist künftig die Voraussetzung, um Versicherte der gesetzlichen Krankenversicherung zu behandeln." bptk.de.
8. [8] Bundespsychotherapeutenkammer, Muster-Weiterbildungsordnung Psychotherapeut*innen, as resolved to 22 May 2022. Abschnitt B sets the three Gebiete; Abschnitt C the methods within them: Analytische Psychotherapie, Systemische Therapie, Tiefenpsychologisch fundierte Psychotherapie and Verhaltenstherapie, each in child and adolescent and adult forms, with all but Analytische Psychotherapie additionally appearing in a form within Neuropsychologische Psychotherapie; § 6 provides that a designation may be used only after recognition by the Psychotherapeutenkammer and issue of a certificate. bptk.de (PDF).
9. [9] Heilpraktikergesetz (HeilprG), § 1 Abs. 1: "Wer die Heilkunde, ohne als Arzt bestallt zu sein, ausüben will, bedarf dazu der Erlaubnis"; § 1 Abs. 2 defines the practice of Heilkunde as "jede berufs- oder gewerbsmäßig vorgenommene Tätigkeit zur Feststellung, Heilung oder Linderung von Krankheiten, Leiden oder Körperschäden bei Menschen, auch wenn sie im Dienste von anderen ausgeübt wird"; § 5 makes practice without medical authorisation or that permit an offence punishable by imprisonment of up to one year or a fine. Last amended 23 December 2016. gesetze-im-internet.de.
10. [10] Bundesärzteordnung (BÄO), § 2 Abs. 1: "Wer im Geltungsbereich dieses Gesetzes den ärztlichen Beruf ausüben will, bedarf der Approbation als Arzt"; § 2a protects the titles Ärztin and Arzt; § 3 Abs. 1 requires a medical course of at least six years and at least 5,500 hours, including a practical training period of "acht, höchstens zwölf Monate", and the passing of the medical examination. gesetze-im-internet.de.
11. [11] Bundesärztekammer, (Muster-)Weiterbildungsordnung 2018, Gebiet Psychiatrie und Psychotherapie, as set out in the Deutsches Ärzteblatt Ärztestellen guide. Total 60 months; "müssen 12 Monate in Neurologie abgeleistet werden"; "müssen 24 Monate in der stationären Patientenversorgung abgeleistet werden"; up to 12 months of the 60 may be spent in Allgemeinmedizin, Innere Medizin, Psychosomatische Medizin und Psychotherapie, Kinder- und Jugendpsychiatrie und -psychotherapie and/or Forensische Psychiatrie. aerztestellen.aerzteblatt.de.
12. [12] Landeshauptstadt München, Erlaubnis nach dem Heilpraktikergesetz beschränkt auf das Gebiet der Psychotherapie: granted by the Gesundheitsamt; requirements include completion of the 25th year of age, at least Hauptschule, personal reliability, health fitness and residence or first practice in the city; the Kenntnisüberprüfung has a written part against the federal guidelines of March 2018 and an oral part at least three weeks later, counting as one unit. stadt.muenchen.de.
13. [13] Deutscher Berufsverband für Soziale Arbeit, Staatliche Anerkennung: state recognition is a separate qualification governed by each Land's law, with the practice component evidenced through arrangements that differ between states, and the examining authority designated by the responsible state ministry. dbsh.de.
14. [14] Nordrhein-Westfalen, Sozialberufe-Anerkennungsgesetz (SobAG): § 1 Abs. 1: a completed qualifying programme at a state or state-recognised Hochschule in NRW itself leads to recognition. § 1 Abs. 4 verbatim: "Die staatliche Anerkennung wird von der Hochschule mit einer eigenen Urkunde ausgesprochen und berechtigt zum Führen der Berufsbezeichnung ...". Cited to the NRW system file serving the statute text; the portal's search-result link serves a JavaScript shell with none of it. recht.nrw.de.
15. [15] Pflegeberufegesetz (PflBG), § 1: the titles requiring authorisation are "Pflegefachfrau" and "Pflegefachmann"; § 6: three years full time or up to five years part time, theoretical and practical instruction plus practical training, the practical training predominating; §§ 58-59 preserve the elective titles Gesundheits- und Kinderkrankenpflegerin or -pfleger and Altenpflegerin or Altenpfleger, a Wahlrecht for the final third of training. Training provisions in force 1 January 2020, the Act having commenced in stages from 25 July 2017. gesetze-im-internet.de.
16. [16] Gemeinsamer Bundesausschuss, resolution of 22 November 2019 amending the Psychotherapie-Richtlinie to admit Systemische Therapie as an outpatient statutory-insurance treatment for adults, following recognition of its benefit on 22 November 2018 on the basis of an IQWiG assessment; entry into effect required ministerial review, Bundesanzeiger publication and a fee determination. On the age scope the release states: "Derzeit bereiten wir einen Antrag auf Nutzenbewertung für den Einsatz des Verfahrens bei Kindern und Jugendlichen vor". g-ba.de. Children and adolescents: resolution of 18 January 2024 amending the Psychotherapie-Richtlinie, in force 12 April 2024, g-ba.de.
17. [17] Ergotherapeutengesetz (ErgThG), § 1: "Wer eine Tätigkeit unter der Berufsbezeichnung 'Ergotherapeutin' oder 'Ergotherapeut' ausüben will, bedarf der Erlaubnis"; § 2 grants it to an applicant who "nach einer dreijährigen Ausbildung die staatliche Prüfung für Ergotherapeuten bestanden hat" and who meets the reliability, health and German-language conditions. Last amended 12 December 2023. gesetze-im-internet.de.
18. [18] Ausbildungs- und Prüfungsverordnung für Ergotherapeutinnen und Ergotherapeuten (ErgThAPrV), Anlage 1: theoretischer und praktischer Unterricht "2 700 Stunden"; praktische Ausbildung "1 700 Stunden". gesetze-im-internet.de.
19. [19] Deutsche Musiktherapeutische Gesellschaft, Berufsrechtliche Regelung für Künstlerische Therapien, Update 1 (August 2026): the artistic therapies have no professional legal protection in Germany; the Bundesarbeitsgemeinschaft Künstlerische Therapien, formed in 2014 from ten associations, presented a draft guideline in Berlin on 9 June 2026, target 31 December 2028; music therapy has been on the Negativliste in Anlage 1 of the Heilmittel-Richtlinie since 1992. musiktherapie.de.
20. [20] Akademie der Bildenden Künste München, M.A. Bildnerisches Gestalten und Therapie. adbk.de.
21. [21] Hochschule für Musik und Theater Hamburg, Master Musiktherapie: a part-time Master of Arts over six semesters, taught in block seminars. The programme page states that the licence to practise music therapy on one's own responsibility can be obtained after the course, by examination at the responsible health authority. hfmt-hamburg.de.
22. [22] Kultusministerkonferenz, Zentralstelle für ausländisches Bildungswesen: the central office assessing foreign qualifications, issuing the Zeugnisbewertung for foreign higher education degrees and maintaining anabin. The limit is on the ZAB's own Zeugnisbewertung page, in its own words: "sie berechtigt aber nicht zur Studienzulassung, zu weiterführenden Studien oder zum Arbeiten in einem reglementierten Beruf". zab.kmk.org.
23. [23] Berufsqualifikationsfeststellungsgesetz (BQFG), enacted 6 December 2011, in force 1 April 2012, last amended 16 August 2023. § 2 Abs. 1 applies the Act to the assessment of equivalence for professions regulated under federal law "sofern die entsprechenden berufsrechtlichen Regelungen nicht etwas anderes bestimmen", so the sectoral professional Acts govern where they make provision. gesetze-im-internet.de.
24. [24] Sozialgesetzbuch V, § 95d Pflicht zur fachlichen Fortbildung: five-yearly proof to the Kassenärztliche Vereinigung; the section sets no number of points, and provides for a 10 per cent fee reduction for four quarters, 25 per cent thereafter, two years to make good, then referral for withdrawal of the authorisation. It speaks throughout of the Vertragsarzt, reaching psychotherapists through § 72 Abs. 1 Satz 2 SGB V, under which the provisions of that chapter referring to physicians apply correspondingly to psychotherapists. gesetze-im-internet.de.
25. [25] Kassenärztliche Bundesvereinigung, Fortbildungsregelung, in force 1 October 2016, § 1: contracted physicians and contracted psychotherapists meet the obligation under § 95d Abs. 1 SGB V by evidencing, within the statutory five-year period, a Fortbildungszertifikat of the Ärztekammer or the Psychotherapeutenkammer; § 1 Abs. 3: "Innerhalb des gesetzlich vorgeschriebenen Fünf-Jahreszeitraums sind insgesamt mindestens 250 Fortbildungspunkte nachzuweisen." kbv.de (PDF).