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EU introduces new card to enable professionals to work in other member countries

Xinhua, January 19, 2016 Adjust font size:

The European Union (EU) on Monday introduced the European Professional Card (EPC), which makes practicing a profession in another EU country easier for general care nurses, pharmacists, physiotherapists, real estate agents and mountain guides.

With the EPC, these professions can get their qualification recognized in another EU country more efficiently, as the assessment would be made on the basis of existing rules but the mechanism would be simplified through an electronic procedure.

The system provides for safeguards preventing abuse, with an alert mechanism ensuring that EU patients and consumers are adequately protected, the European Commission said in a statement. The EPC is not a plastic card, but an electronic certificate issued through the first fully online EU-wide procedure for the recognition of qualifications.

"The European Professional Card is a big step forward in making it easier and faster for qualified Europeans to work where their competences are needed, sought and appreciated. It is a practical tool that brings benefits not only to professionals, but also to people who want their services. It is yet another real benefit of the EU Single Market," said EU Commissioner Elzbieta Bienkowska, responsible for the internal market, industry, entrepreneurship and SMEs.

Based on practical experience with its functioning, the EPC may be extended to other mobile professions in the future. Endit