On 26 March 2026 the Bundestag passed the most consequential German reform for non-EU dentists in a decade: from 1 November 2026, the Kenntnisprüfung (knowledge examination) replaces the slow, attritional equivalence review as the standard, default route to the Approbation — the full German dental licence. If Germany is your destination, this exam is effectively the spine of your plan.
What is the exam, and why did it become the default?
Until this law, each state authority could route a non-EU applicant into an "equivalence review" (Gleichwertigkeitsprüfung): a line-by-line comparison of your curriculum against the German one that took months — sometimes years — and usually ended at the same conclusion: "go sit the exam." The new law (the Act to Accelerate the Recognition of Foreign Professional Qualifications in the Health Professions) removes that loop: the Kenntnisprüfung is the default, the equivalence review survives only as the candidate's own elective alternative, a 3-attempt cap becomes uniform nationwide, and digital case processing becomes mandatory.
For an internationally trained applicant the practical meaning is predictability: instead of waiting months for an assessor's view of your transcripts, your calendar revolves around one defined exam. The old alternative — the Anpassungslehrgang, a 6-to-36-month adaptation course with a final assessment — was always scarce in dentistry and becomes even more marginal after November 2026; build your main plan on the exam.
The structure: three connected parts
The Kenntnisprüfung is pitched at the level of a German graduate (legal basis: ZApprO §§ 104–118) and has three parts:
- A written treatment plan (45 minutes) based on a real case
- An oral examination — a specialist discussion with the examining board
- A five-hour practical: two hours of prosthodontics, two of operative dentistry, one of oral surgery
The exam is in German, and its language prerequisite has two layers: general German at B2 and the specialist FSP exam at C1 — a story of its own, unpacked in our German-for-dentists guide.
Venues are the university dental schools of each state: Charité in Berlin; LMU Munich, Erlangen, Regensburg, and Würzburg in Bavaria; Heidelberg, Tübingen, Freiburg, and Ulm in Baden-Württemberg; Goethe Frankfurt in Hesse; Düsseldorf, Cologne, Bonn, and Münster in NRW; Hannover and Göttingen in Lower Saxony; Hamburg's UKE; plus Leipzig, Dresden, Halle, Greifswald, Kiel, Jena, and Mainz elsewhere.
Costs and queues, state by state
The official exam fee runs €200–700, but the more realistic number is each state's all-in process cost as candidates report it: Berlin around €1,800–2,200; Bavaria €2,000–2,500; North Rhine-Westphalia about €2,500 (written €330 + oral €960 + practical €1,210); Lower Saxony a €980 base from January 2026 plus components; Hamburg and the smaller states €1,800–2,300.
Waiting times are just as state-specific: Berlin and Hamburg shortest (two to four months), Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria three to six, NRW and Hesse longest (four to eight).
Choosing your state is therefore a strategic decision: the blend of "shorter queue + lower cost + a city with jobs and community" answers differently for every file. Germany hosts one of Europe's largest Iranian communities — roughly 250,000–300,000 people; 50–80k in Berlin, 25–40k in Hamburg, 15–25k in Munich, with active communities in Cologne, Frankfurt, and Stuttgart — which means that for most major states, someone who has sat that state's exam is only one introduction away.
Working before the exam: the Berufserlaubnis — Germany's hidden advantage
What separates Germany from the English-speaking destinations: you need not sit idle until Approbation day. With a Berufserlaubnis (temporary state practice permit), most states let you work as a dentist under supervision before you pass — on a real salary. That period does three jobs at once: it lifts your clinical German to FSP and exam level, funds your preparation, and builds the network (often the committed employer for an Anerkennungspartnerschaft). Most successful candidates report the combination of supervised work plus evening study — not pure home study.
Two 2026 requirements not to miss
Radiation protection: from 1 May 2026, holders of non-EU degrees must evidence radiation-protection knowledge through a certified course before the Approbation is granted. Put the course in your plan and budget.
Documents with court-authorised German translation: Germany does not accept standard certified translations from your home country; translations must come from a court-sworn (öffentlich bestellt) translator, and the full authentication chain must be complete. The chain — and the 2026 reality of the Tehran embassy's closed visa section and the Yerevan route — is covered in our German documents article.
After the pass: Approbation, and then work
With the exam passed and the file complete, the Approbation is issued — a full, permanent, nationwide licence equal to a German graduate's. Know the two stations after it: to work within statutory insurance (about 90 percent of the market), you must enter the state chamber's register and obtain KZV admission as a contract dentist; and joining the Versorgungswerk — the dentists' professional pension fund, notably more generous than the statutory scheme — from year one anchors your long-term finances.
The whole German route typically runs 24–60 months from decision to licence at €20,000–50,000 all-in; and the residence horizon is bright: an EU Blue Card after Approbation brings permanent residence in 21–27 months, and citizenship comes after 5 years' residence (the June 2024 reform), with dual citizenship accepted.
Frequently asked questions
What happens if I fail three times? The federal cap of 3 attempts is final; afterwards the exam route closes. That is why serious preparation before the first attempt is the strategy — not a trial run.
Is the exam like my university finals? The science is familiar; the difference is the German frame — guidelines, documentation, and clinical discourse in German. Candidates who have worked under a Berufserlaubnis report that gap as small.
Which state should I start in? The state holding your file is the state whose exam you sit; weigh queue, cost, supervised-work opportunities, and your own network. Switching states mid-process is possible but expensive.
The full German map — language, the §16d visa, the exam, and work — in our Germany guide.
