A nursing Ausbildung in Germany is one of the most searched options for young people in Cameroon, from Buea and Bamenda to Douala and Yaoundé. German hospitals and care homes need staff, the training is paid, and the qualification leads to a real profession. But nursing (Pflege in German) has its own rules: a separate law, a school certificate requirement and a different visa route. Here is what you need to know before you start.
What Pflegefachmann and Pflegefachfrau mean
In Germany, a nurse trained through an Ausbildung holds the title Pflegefachmann (man) or Pflegefachfrau (woman). The title is protected: you may only use it with an official permit, which you receive after passing the state examination (§ 1 of the Pflegeberufegesetz, the Nursing Professions Act).
The training is generalist. You learn to care for people of every age: hospital patients, elderly people in care homes, people at home, with placements in paediatrics and psychiatry too. Germany used to have three separate trainings (general nursing, children’s nursing, elderly care). The Pflegeberufegesetz merged them.
One option remains. If your contract provides for it, you can choose a specialisation in children’s nursing (Gesundheits- und Kinderkrankenpflege) or elderly care (Altenpflege) for the final year instead of the generalist qualification (§ 59 PflBG). Most trainees keep the generalist qualification, because it keeps the most doors open.
How long the training takes and how it works
The training lasts three years full time (up to five years part time). The law says the practical part predominates (§ 6 PflBG). In practice you alternate between:
- blocks of classes at a Pflegeschule (nursing school), covering anatomy, care techniques, medication, communication with patients and law;
- practical placements with your main employer (a hospital, a care home or a home-care service) and with partner facilities.
Your main employer is called the Träger der praktischen Ausbildung. It signs your training contract and pays you for three years. The training ends with a state examination with written, oral and practical parts.
Be realistic. This is physically and emotionally demanding work. You will work shifts, including early mornings, evenings, weekends and public holidays. You will care for sick and elderly people, sometimes at the end of their lives. The people who succeed are the ones who chose nursing for its own sake, not only as a way to get a visa.
The requirements: your school certificate really matters
This is the big difference from most other Ausbildungen. For an ordinary in-company Ausbildung, German law sets no minimum school certificate. For nursing, it does. § 11 PflBG requires:
- a mittlerer Schulabschluss (the German certificate after ten years of school) or an equivalent;
- or a Hauptschulabschluss plus at least two years of vocational training (or a one-year care assistant training);
- or another completed ten-year general school education.
For a Cameroonian applicant, this means your certificate must be recognised as equivalent by the German authorities. There is no public official table saying “GCE O-Level equals mittlerer Schulabschluss” or “BEPC equals mittlerer Schulabschluss”. Each file is assessed, usually by the school certificate recognition office of the German state (Land) where you will train. GCE A-Levels, a Probatoire or a Bac often put you in a stronger position, but only the official assessment counts.
Our guide to diploma recognition explains the procedure, and the article on recognition of Cameroonian certificates in Germany covers GCE and Bac holders in detail.
Besides the certificate, you need:
- German: for the visa, B1 is the norm, with a recognised certificate (Goethe, telc, ÖSD, TestDaF or ECL) showing all four modules passed. In nursing you talk all day with patients, doctors and families, so many schools and employers prefer B2. That is not a written rule, it is what we see in practice;
- health and reliability: to receive the title at the end, the law requires that you are medically fit for the job and that your conduct does not make you “unreliable” for the profession (§ 2 PflBG). Employers therefore often ask for a medical certificate and a police record extract.
For the full list, see our page on Ausbildung requirements.
How much do nursing trainees earn?
The law entitles nursing trainees to “appropriate training pay” for the whole training (§ 19 PflBG). The exact amount depends on your employer.
In the public sector (municipal hospitals, for example) the TVAöD-Pflege collective agreement applies. According to secondary sources (we could not read the official table), the amounts from 1 May 2026 are approximately:
| Year | Gross per month (approx.) | In FCFA (approx.) |
|---|---|---|
| 1st year | EUR 1,490 | 978,000 FCFA |
| 2nd year | EUR 1,552 | 1,018,000 FCFA |
| 3rd year | EUR 1,653 | 1,085,000 FCFA |
Treat these as indicative. Always check the figure written in your contract. Private and church-run employers (private clinics, care homes) use their own pay scales, sometimes close to these, sometimes lower.
Gross is not net. Your payslip deducts social contributions (health, pension, unemployment and long-term care insurance) and, depending on the amount, income tax.
For the visa there is one key threshold: in 2026, in-company training counts as covering your living costs if it pays at least EUR 1,048 gross or EUR 822 net per month (about 687,000 FCFA gross). The public-sector amounts above clear that bar. If your contract pays less, you must cover the gap with a blocked account or a formal commitment letter (Verpflichtungserklärung). Our page on Ausbildung costs and the article on Ausbildung salary in Germany go further.
The visa: what is different for nursing
The visa is the same as for other Ausbildungen: the vocational training visa under § 16a of the German Residence Act. You need a specific training place (a signed contract), the required German level and enough money to live on.
What differs is how the file is processed:
- since May 2026, registration for work and training visas is done on the Auslandsportal (digital.diplo.de), the German Foreign Office’s online portal;
- you submit the application in Yaoundé, at the German embassy or at VFS Global (Immeuble Ekang, opposite the Palais des sports). There is no German visa centre in Douala, Buea or Bafoussam;
- for health and nursing training, the file is processed by the BfAA (Bundesamt für Auswärtige Angelegenheiten, the Federal Foreign Office’s agency), and the embassy then issues the visa.
On timing, the embassy said in July 2025 that health professions could take up to ten months. That figure predates the switch to the Auslandsportal, so current times may differ. Plan with a wide margin: each nursing school has its own start dates, and your visa file must be ready well before the date in your contract.
The visa fee is EUR 75, charged as 50,000 FCFA (25,000 FCFA under 18), paid only at the counter against an official receipt. The embassy never asks for Mobile Money or phone transfers. The full process is in our § 16a visa guide and in the article on Ausbildung visa steps in Cameroon.
Nursing recruitment: watch out for fake agents
Nursing is the sector with the most misleading offers: “guaranteed place”, “visa in three months”, “pay 500,000 FCFA first”. Some reference points:
- nobody can guarantee you a visa: only the German authorities decide;
- the embassy appointment is free and booked in the official system;
- Germany created a quality label, Faire Anwerbung Pflege Deutschland (fair recruitment in nursing), owned by the Federal Ministry of Health. Its core rule: recruitment must be free for the nurse, the employer pays.
Read our anti-scam charter before you sign anything with anyone.
How to prepare your application
At ILC, the team prepares and sends applications for every sector, nursing included. The work happens in steps:
- Check your certificate: we look at whether your GCE O-Level, A-Level, BEPC, Probatoire or Bac can be presented as equivalent to the mittlerer Schulabschluss, and which documents need translating.
- Build your German: aim for a complete B1, then move towards B2 if you can. Learn care vocabulary (pain, medication, hygiene) early.
- Prepare your file: Lebenslauf (German CV), cover letter, translations, language certificate.
- Send applications to hospitals and care homes, then prepare for video interviews.
- Put together the visa file once the contract is signed.
Experience in care back home (a hospital placement, looking after an elderly relative, volunteering with the Red Cross) is not required, but it makes your motivation believable. Keep written attestations. Our nursing sector page summarises the job, and you can create your account to start the orientation.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need A-Levels for a nursing Ausbildung in Germany?
Not necessarily. The law asks for a mittlerer Schulabschluss or an equivalent, which corresponds to ten years of school. Your Cameroonian certificate must be assessed as equivalent, and a higher level (A-Levels, Probatoire, Bac) often makes that assessment easier.
Is B1 German enough for nursing?
For the visa, B1 is the norm. In practice, many employers and nursing schools prefer B2, because talking to patients is at the heart of the job. Get a complete B1 as fast as you can, then keep going.
How much does a nursing trainee earn in Germany?
In the public sector, about EUR 1,490 gross per month in the first year since May 2026, according to secondary sources. That is indicative: the figure that counts is the one in your contract.
How long does the visa take for a nursing Ausbildung?
Health files go through the BfAA. The embassy mentioned up to ten months in 2025, before the Auslandsportal. There is no guaranteed time, so start early.
Is there an age limit for a nursing Ausbildung?
The training visa law (§ 16a) sets no age limit. The under-35 limit applies only to the visa for searching for a training place (§ 17).
Sources
- Pflegeberufegesetz, § 1 (protected title)
- Pflegeberufegesetz, § 2 (conditions for the title)
- Pflegeberufegesetz, § 6 (length and structure)
- Pflegeberufegesetz, § 11 (entry requirements)
- Pflegeberufegesetz, § 19 (training pay)
- Pflegeberufegesetz, § 59 (choice of specialisation)
- Make it in Germany: vocational training visa
- German Embassy Yaoundé: work and training visas
- German Embassy Yaoundé: visa FAQ and waiting times
- Federal Ministry of Health: Faire Anwerbung Pflege Deutschland label
- TVAöD-Pflege amounts (secondary source)
Last checked: 19 October 2026.