Skilled Crafts Companies

Are you a skilled crafts company interested in recruiting skilled workers from abroad?

The project “Future International Talents for German Climate Businesses”, funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWE), offers you the opportunity to recruit skilled workers from Colombia and Uzbekistan for your company. Across nine pilot regions in Germany the project is implemented by the German Confederation of Skilled Crafts (ZDH), the German Federal Employment Agency (BA) and sequa.

Services
Participation
Skilled workers
Process
Support
Contact

Project services for skilled crafts companies

Personal Advice and Support

Individual Support
Our project team provides comprehensive support throughout the entire immigration and integration process. This includes selecting suitable candidates, arranging visa and the travel and supporting you in organizing the onboarding phase of your new employee.
Language and Cultural Preparation
We prepare skilled craftsperson in their home countries for living and working in Germany. They will learn German and receive intercultural orientation and preparation.
Comprehensive support in Germany
Once your new employee arrives in Germany, we will assist with the process of recognising foreign qualifications and organise the adaptation training programme to complete an adaptation qualification in the company.

A dedicated contact person at your local skilled crafts organization will be available to support you.

Conditions of participation

To participate in the project, your business must be located in one of the nine designated project regions on. Moreover, only small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) can participate (SMEs employ fewer than 250 people and the annual turnover does not exceed €50 million).

Grafik: Deutschlandkarte

Shared Project Costs

Funding
Participation requires a partial contribution to the overall project costs. Given the funding by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWE) this contribution is already reduced.
Contribution amount
The contribution for recruiting one skilled worker is €4,000. If you recruit at least two skilled workers in the same recruitment cycle from the same country, the total contribution is €2,000 per skilled worker.
Payment terms
Half of the contribution is due when the employment contract is signed and the other half once the person starts working in your company. If the employment relationship does not materialize through no fault of your own, there is no obligation to pay.

Profile of the skilled workers from Colombia and Uzbekistan

The skilled workers recruited by the project have completed at least a two-year vocational training course recognized in their home country. In addition, the obtained at least two years of relevant professional experience in one of the skilled crafts professions focused by the project.

All skilled workers participate in a German language course in their home country up to the B1 level (intermediate language ability, i.e., they can communicate simply and coherently on familiar topics and interests).

The project focuses on skilled crafts professions that contribute to the energy transition and climate protection in Germany, such as:

Electronics technician
Bricklayers
Concrete and reinforced concrete workers
Carpenters
Roofers
Road builders
Metalworkers
Plant mechanics for sanitary, heating and air conditioning technology
Motor vehicle mechatronics technician
Mechatronics technician for refrigeration technology

Together with our partners in Colombia and Uzbekistan, we determine which professions we will focus on in each recruitment cycle to attract skilled workers with the required profiles.

The Revised Skilled Immigration Act: Immigration Pathways

The Skilled Immigration Act was revised, and since November 2023 the amendents have entered successively into force. With this pilot project, the German Confederation of Skilled Crafts (ZDH), the Federal Employment Agency (BA) and sequa aim to gain knowledge on the practical effectiveness of two migration pathways defined in the revised Skilled Immigration Act. The second pathway is a completely new regulation.

Path 1:
Recognition of a foreign professional qualifications
Skilled crafts workers enter Germany with a residence permit to have their vocational qualifications recognized. Individuals start working directly in the businesses while simultaneously completing an adaptation training qualification programme (APQ) to acquire any missing skills. This programme consists of company-based and inter-company measures and is supported by the project. After successfully completing the APQ, the individuals continue their employment as fully skilled workers with a qualification recognized in Germany. To participate, candidates must have completed at least a two-year vocational training program and hold a state-recognized qualification from their home country. They must also provide proof of several years of relevant professional experience. The foreign qualification must relate to a corresponding German reference occupation.

Path 2:
Entry as qualified worker with professional work experience
Individuals with extensive professional work experience obtain a residence permit to start working in Germany as a qualified worker. A minimum two-year state-recognized vocational qualification from the home country is required. However, the focus is on several years of relevant professional experience. As part of the selection process, the project conducts practical work assessments to evaluate candidates’ professional competencies. Only positively evaluated applicants can participate in the project. The law stipulates a minimum gross annual salary of €43,470 (as of 2025) for the qualified worker. If you are bound to a collective agreement and pay according to it, you may deviate from this minimum salary threshold downwards.

Recruitment Process

1. Candidate Acquisition and Selection (Colombia)
Following a successful recruitment campaign in Colombia and Uzbekistan, the pre-selection of suitable craftspeople begins.

In Colombia, candidates are introduced to you before the language course starts. Columbian candidates must have a job offer by a German company prior to starting the language course. This is part of an arrangement between the Colombian and German labor administrations and is a specific request from the Colombian government.
1. Candidate Acquisition and Selection (Uzbekistan)
Following a successful recruitment campaign in Colombia and Uzbekistan, the pre-selection of suitable craftspeople begins.

In Uzbekistan, a pool of skilled and qualified candidate will created. This means selected candidates join the project and start the language course in their home country. Job placement begins once candidates reach German A2 level.
2. Preparation
Once in the project, candidates undergo several months of language preparation in their home country, aiming for B1 proficiency level. The preparation also includes intercultural training and orientation.
3. Employment Contract and Arrival
After achieving German A2 proficiency level, you and the candidate can sign an employment contract and prepare for the travel to Germany. This process is supported closely by the skilled immigration advisors in your local skilled crafts organization.
4. Induction Phase
Upon arrival in Germany, workers go through an orientation and integration phase, with support from skilled immigration advisors.
5. Adaptation Qualification
Skilled workers recruited through Pathway 1 begin their adaptation qualification in Germany alongside working in your company.

Skilled labour force in Colombia and Uzbekistan

Colombia and Uzbekistan offer a significant potential of skilled workers for the skilled crafts sector. In addition, Germany is viewed as an attractive destination for labor migration. Moreover, the two countries hold close and strong political ties with Germany. The collaboration with Colombia in recruiting skilled workers, for instance, is based on a longstanding agreement between the German Federal Employment Agency and the Colombian labor administration.

In September 2024, a migration agreement was signed between Germany and Uzbekistan to ease the entry of skilled Uzbek workers into Germany. The Uzbek government is keen to create legal, secure migration paths for its young population, with the German labor market offering attractive opportunities.

For more information on vocational training systems in Colombia and Uzbekistan, visit the information portal for foreign qualifications (BQ-Portal):

Colombia Uzbekistan

Project Support Structures

The participating skilled crafts organizations play a key role in the project implementation. Skilled immigration advisors are available as your first point of contact, providing consultations and continuous support during all stages of the recruitment process: from the preparation of the skilled worker in their home country up to constant support after their arrival in Germany.

If you are interested to learn more, please contact the skilled crafts organization in your region.

The project is implemented by the German Confederation of Skilled Crafts (ZDH), the Federal Employment Agency and sequa gGmbH in collaboration with nine skilled crafts organizations and the labor administrations of Colombia and Uzbekistan.

FAQ

Welche Vorteile habe ich als Arbeitgeber, wenn ich mich an dem Projekt beteilige?

Über das Projekt erhalten Sie als Betrieb Kontakt zu qualifizierten und vorausgewählten Fachkräften aus Kolumbien und Usbekistan. Während des gesamten Prozesses werden sowohl Sie als Betrieb als auch die Fachkräfte individuell begleitet, beraten und unterstützt. Die Fachkräfte absolvieren in ihrem Heimatland einen Sprachkurs bis zum B1-Niveau und werden interkulturell auf das Leben und Arbeiten in Deutschland vorbereitet. Unterstützung erfolgt zudem beim Visumprozess sowie bei der Einreise nach Deutschland. Je nach Zuwanderungsweg wird ggf. die Berufsanerkennung initiiert und begleitet sowie ein Weiterbildungsplan für die Anpassungsqualifizierungen in Deutschland zur Verfügung gestellt. Ihre persönliche Ansprechperson bei der zuständigen Handwerksorganisation wird Sie und die Fachkraft auch nach Ankunft in Deutschland weiter begleiten und Sie bei der betrieblichen und sozialen Integration der Fachkraft unterstützen.

Welche beruflichen Qualifikationen bringen die Fachkräfte aus Usbekistan und Kolumbien mit?

Die Bewerber und Bewerberinnen müssen für die Projektteilnahme einen mindestens zweijährigen, im Herkunftsland staatlich anerkannten Berufsabschluss vorweisen. Darüber hinaus ist der Nachweis über mehrjährige einschlägige Berufserfahrung in den deutschen, gesuchten Handwerksberufen erforderlich. Kommt ein Kandidat mit einem Visum zum Zweck der Anerkennung (Weg 1 im Projekt) nach Deutschland, muss der ausländische Berufsabschluss einen inhaltlichen Bezug zum deutschen Referenzberuf aufweisen.
Kommt ein Kandidat mit einem Visum über die sogenannte Erfahrungssäule (Weg 2 im Projekt), ist ein beliebiger, mindestens zweijähriger, im Herkunftsland staatlich anerkannter Berufsabschluss ausreichend. Der Fokus liegt hier auf der mehrjährigen, einschlägigen Berufserfahrung in den letzten Jahren. Für Kandidaten, die über den Weg 2 rekrutiert werden, können Arbeitsproben im Herkunftsland durch das Projekt durchgeführt werden. Auf diese Weise kann die fachliche Eignung der Bewerber geprüft werden. Das Ergebnis der Arbeitsprobe fließt in die Entscheidung über die Projektaufnahme ein. Nur Personen, deren Arbeitsprobe positiv bewertet wird, können am Projekt teilnehmen.

Über welche Sprachkenntnisse verfügen die Fachkräfte?

Die Fachkräfte reisen mit Sprachkenntnissen auf dem Niveau B1 nach Deutschland ein.

Weitere häufig gestellte Fragen finden Sie hier im Dokument:

FAQ für Arbeitgeber (PDF)