Engineer profession data by country
Where engineer is a regulated profession, how foreign qualifications are recognised and which shortage lists name it, country by country, from official registers.
38 countries have an official record for engineer: 35 regulate it and 23 name it on a shortage list. Comparable country-level profession salaries are not published here, so a best-paying destination cannot yet be named.
- Countries
- 38
- Regulated in
- 35
- On a shortage list in
- 23
Country by country
Open a country for its full record and sources. A dash means the register has no entry for that field.
| Country | Regulation | Recognition route | Shortage list |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | Regulated | Engineers Australia assesses migration qualifications through an accredited-qualification route or a Competency Demonstration Report (CDR), depending on the applicant’s qualification and pathway.Engineers Australia for migration skills assessment; the relevant State/Territory regulator for any required practice registration. | Listed2025 Occupation Shortage List (ANZSCO 2022) |
| Austria | Regulated | General system of recognition - primary application; DIRECTIVE 2005/36/EC; National legislation: Ziviltechnikergesetz 1993 - ZTG, BGBl. 156/1994. For EEA/Swiss Ziviltechniker permission, submit diploma/evidence; equivalence check may require aptitude test or adaptation course. Not general employee process. General system of recognition - primary application.Federal Ministry for Economy, Energy and Tourism for EEA/Swiss Ziviltechniker authorization. | ListedEURES labour shortages and surpluses dashboard — National Coordination Office submission |
| Belgium | Not marked regulated | Ordinary engineering employment has no general professional-registration route identified. If an employer or protected title requires it, apply for academic equivalence through the relevant Community; this is not a general practice licence.No profession-wide engineering recognition authority was identified for ordinary employee roles. Academic equivalence is handled by the relevant Community/NARIC; protected academic-title requirements are separate. | ListedEURES labour shortages and surpluses dashboard — National Coordination Office submission |
| Bulgaria | Not marked regulated | Only exact regulated activity subscopes have professional procedures: investment-design recognition through KIIP under PMS No.219/2005; cadastral practice follows the cadastre law and AGCC register. Ordinary engineer employment qualification is employer-assessed.No single authority for generic engineering employment. The national register names KIIP for engineers in investment design and AGCC for engineers in geodesy, cartography and cadastre; employers assess generic employee qualifications. | ListedEURES labour shortages and surpluses dashboard — National Coordination Office submission |
| Canada | Regulated | PEO route includes academic assessment, NPPE and experience/competency assessment according to applicant pathway.PEO regulates professional engineering in Ontario; each province/territory has its own regulator. | ListedCanadian Occupational Projection System — projected labour-market conditions |
| Croatia | Regulated | General system of recognition - primary application; DIRECTIVE 2005/36/EC; National legislation: Zakon o gradnji (NN 153/13, 20/17, 39/19, 125/19); General system of recognition - primary application; DIRECTIVE 2005/36/EC; National legislation: Zakon o poslovima i djelatnostima prostornog uređenja i gradnje (NN 78/15, 118/18, 110/19); General system of recognition - primary application | — |
| Cyprus | Regulated | General system of recognition - primary application; DIRECTIVE 2005/36/EC; National legislation: Ο περί Αναγνώρισης των Επαγγελματικών Προσόντων Νόμος 31(I)/2008 , Ο περί Επιστημονικού Τεχνικού Επιμελητηρίου Κύπρου Νόμος 224/90. General system of recognition - primary application; DIRECTIVE 2005/36/EC; National legislation: Ο περί Αναγνώρισης των Επαγγελματικών Προσόντων Νόμος 31(I)/2008 Ο περί Επιστημονικού Τεχνικού Επιμελητηρίου Κύπρου Νόμος 224/90. Apply to ETEK’s Members Register with a comparable engineering qualification recognized under its law and the required supporting record. Engineering branch matters; ETEK separately lists technical fields. Architects and civil engineers need one year practical work; electrical activities may need separate EMS competency. General system of recognition - primary application; DIRECTIVE 2005/36/EC; National legislation: Ο περί Αναγνώρισης των Επαγγελματικών Προσόντων Νόμος 31(I)/2008 Ο περί Επιστημονικού Τεχνικού Επιμελητηρίου Κύπρου Νόμος 224/90.Cyprus Scientific and Technical Chamber (ETEK); Electrical and Mechanical Services separately handles electrical competency certificates for defined electrical activities. | ListedEURES labour shortages and surpluses dashboard — National Coordination Office submission |
| Czechia | Regulated | Recognition of professional experience Annex IV - automatic recognition. General system of recognition - primary application. Recognition of professional experience Annex IV - automatic recognition; DIRECTIVE 2005/36/EC; National legislation: Act No. 360/1992 Coll., Article. ČKAIT assesses the foreign qualification for authorised construction work and may require an adaptation period or differential examination; the route depends on the qualifications and case.For authorised engineering work in construction, MMR is the responsible ministry and ČKAIT assesses the construction-engineering qualification route. This does not cover every engineering job. | ListedEURES labour shortages and surpluses dashboard — National Coordination Office submission |
| Denmark | Regulated | Recognition of professional experience Annex IV - automatic recognition; DIRECTIVE 2005/36/EC; National legislation: Executive Order No. 598 of 30/05/2018 on the excercise of profession as oprerator manager based on foreign professional qualifications: https://www.retsinformation.dk/Forms/R0710.aspx?id=201752 Act No. 26 of 10/01/2019 on safety of electrical plants, electrical installations og electrical material: https://www.retsinformation.dk/Forms/R0710.aspx?id=206233. No mandatory professional recognition for a generic engineering role. Foreign qualification assessment is optional; any regulated specialist title must use its own national route.No general licensing authority for the broad engineer target. UFSN provides voluntary educational-level assessment; a regulated specialist title has its own authority. | ListedEURES labour shortages and surpluses dashboard — National Coordination Office submission |
| Estonia | Regulated | For activities within Regulation 61, a foreign professional qualification must be recognized before acting as competent person; apply to TTJA with supporting documents.TTJA for construction or electrical competent-person activities within its remit. | ListedEURES labour shortages and surpluses dashboard — National Coordination Office submission |
| Finland | Regulated | First identify a regulated construction/design or site-management task; then obtain that task-specific recognition/certificate from the responsible authorised body.The Ministry of the Environment or its authorised qualification body for covered construction tasks; no single authority for every engineering role. | ListedEURES labour shortages and surpluses dashboard — National Coordination Office submission |
| France | Not marked regulated | For ordinary engineer employment, the employer assesses qualifications. CTI does not provide a general individual practice licence; foreign qualification does not itself grant the protected French diplôme title.No individual practice-licensing authority for general engineer employment; CTI accredits engineering schools and protects the French diploma title. | ListedEURES labour shortages and surpluses dashboard — National Coordination Office submission |
| Germany | Regulated | General system of recognition - primary application. For the protected title Ingenieur/in, apply to the authority/chamber appointed by the Land for an equivalence assessment and permission to use the title. In some situations the person may work in an engineering office without using the protected title, subject to the Land rules.The competent authority or professional chamber in the federal state where the applicant intends to practise. Use the federal Recognition Finder with the exact profession and intended city; the 16 Länder set their own authority arrangements. | ListedEURES labour shortages and surpluses dashboard — National Coordination Office submission |
| Greece | Regulated | General system of recognition - primary application. Apply to TEE under the applicable engineering specialty and Directive 2005/36/EC; the source requires qualification documents, possible professional-status evidence and TEE registration. Exact requirements depend on specialty and origin.For engineering titles within the Directive procedure, the competent provider is the locally responsible department of the Technical Chamber of Greece (TEE/TCG), under the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport. | — |
| Hungary | Regulated | Where a foreign higher-education credential needs formal recognition for work, OH-MEIK can determine qualification level and professional qualification; activity-specific legal authorisation, if any, remains a separate check. General system of recognition - primary application; DIRECTIVE 2005/36/EC; National legislation: -a tervező- és szakértő mérnökök, valamint építészek szakmai kamaráiról szóló 1996. évi LVIII. törvény -az épített környezet alakításáról és védelméről szóló 1997. évi LXXVIII. törvény -a szolgáltatási tevékenység megkezdésének és folytatásának általános szabályairól szóló 2009. évi LXXVI. törvény -az építésügyi és az építésüggyel összefüggő szakmagyakorlási tevékenységekről szóló 266/2013. (VII. 11.) Korm. rendelet.For foreign higher-education credentials used for employment or professional purposes, OH-MEIK in the Educational Authority is the official diploma-recognition authority; any activity-specific practice authority remains separate. | — |
| Iceland | Regulated | For protected engineer titles, apply to the Ministry for permission under Act No. 8/1996; foreign qualification recognition follows Act No. 26/2010. A construction-design appointment can require separate HMS designer certification.Ministry of Industries for protected technical-profession titles; Housing and Construction Authority (HMS) for certified designer status in the building-control scope. | — |
| Ireland | Regulated | General system of recognition - primary application. For a professional designation, apply to Engineers Ireland under the relevant title/experience assessment; the permit schedule does not publish one route for all generic engineering jobs.Engineers Ireland for the Chartered Engineer, Associate Engineer and Engineering Technician designations; no single authority is established here for generic engineering work. | ListedEURES labour shortages and surpluses dashboard — National Coordination Office submission |
| Italy | Regulated | For professions within its remit, the Ministry of Justice assesses foreign qualifications and may require an aptitude test or adaptation period before enrolment in the relevant Italian professional register. General system of recognition - primary application.The Ministry of Justice recognises foreign qualifications for the named civil/environmental, industrial and information engineering professions under its supervision. | ListedEURES labour shortages and surpluses dashboard — National Coordination Office submission |
| Latvia | Regulated | General system of recognition - primary application; DIRECTIVE 2005/36/EC; National legislation: Būvniecības likums/ Construction Law (2014); Vairāki Ministru kabineta noteikumi/ The Regulations of Cabinet of Ministers. Specified construction/electrical activities require a construction specialist practice certificate; delegated bodies assess education, experience and competence.Delegated competence-testing institutions handle certificates, with the responsible body determined by construction/electrical activity. | — |
| Lithuania | Regulated | General system of recognition - primary application; DIRECTIVE 2005/36/EC; National legislation: Republic of Lithuania Law on Construction; Republic of Lithuania Law on Territorial Planning; Order No D1-874 by the Minister of Environment of the Republic of Lithuania on the Procedure of Recognition of Civil Engineer’s Professional Qualifications for the Provision of Construction Works Services on a Temporary or Occasional basis in the Republic of Lithuania of 27 November 2013. General system of recognition - primary application.The Construction Sector Development Agency is the competent route contact for the named civil/construction-engineer qualification; other engineering codes in the frozen family are not thereby assigned to this authority. | ListedEURES labour shortages and surpluses dashboard — National Coordination Office submission |
| Luxembourg | Regulated | Recognition of professional experience Annex IV - automatic recognition; DIRECTIVE 2005/36/EC; National legislation: Loi modifiée du 2 septembre 2011 réglementant l'accès aux professions d'artisan, de commerçant, d'industriel ainsi qu'à certaines professions libérales. Règlement grand-ducal modifié du 1er décembre 2011 en matière de droit d'établissement. Loi modifiée du 28 octobre 2016 relative à la reconnaissance des qualifications professionnelles. Loi du 11 juillet 1996 modifiée portant organisation d’une formation menant au brevet de maîtrise et fixation des conditions d’obtention du titre et du brevet de maîtrise. For independent consulting construction engineering, the manager needs a recognised master's degree in construction engineering or equivalent plus two years' practical experience after graduation. Other frozen engineering specialties are not covered by this route. General system of recognition - primary application. General system of recognition - secondary application. Recognition of professional experience Annex IV - automatic recognition; DIRECTIVE 2005/36/EC; National legislation: Loi modifiée du 2 septembre 2011 réglementant l'accès aux professions d'artisan, de commerçant, d'industriel ainsi qu'à certaines professions libérales. Règlement grand-ducal modifié du 1er décembre 2011 en matière de droit d'établissement. Loi modifiée du 28 octobre 2016 relative à la reconnaissance des qualifications professionnelles. Loi du 11 juillet 1996 modifiée portant organisation d’une formation menant au brevet de maîtrise et fixation des conditions d’obtention du titre et du brevet de maîtrise.The Ministry of the Economy handles the business permit for the named independent consulting-engineer construction activity; qualification recognition may be requested through the higher-education recognition process where the stated degree criteria are not met. | ListedEURES labour shortages and surpluses dashboard — National Coordination Office submission |
| Malta | Regulated | Engineer-warrant applicants need the specified MQF Level 6 engineering qualification and professional experience; civil-engineer/perit activity uses its separate warrant route.Engineering Profession Board handles engineer warrants; Periti Warranting Board separately handles civil engineers/periti. | — |
| Netherlands | Regulated | No profession-wide foreign-professional recognition application is required for the title where the Dutch RegProf catalogue does not list it. Optional IDW diploma valuation compares an academic credential but is not a practice licence.No profession-specific recognition authority applies to the broad title when it is not listed as regulated; an optional academic credential evaluation can be requested through IDW/Nuffic/SBB. | ListedEURES labour shortages and surpluses dashboard — National Coordination Office submission |
| New Zealand | Regulated | The CPEng route assesses competence against the chartered standard; this is a voluntary/role-specific chartered status rather than foreign-qualification licensing for every engineering job.Engineering New Zealand assesses CPEng chartered status; there is no single licensing authority for every role across the ten frozen engineering groups. | — |
| Norway | Regulated | No profession-wide foreign professional-recognition application is identified for this broad title in the checked official list. Voluntary HK-dir education recognition assesses level/credits and is not a licence to practise.No single authority covers the broad frozen engineering family; HK-dir lists narrow titles with their own named authorities (including NVE and the Directorate of Mining). | — |
| Poland | Regulated | General system of recognition - primary application; DIRECTIVE 2005/36/EC; National legislation: - Law of July 7, 1994 Construction Law (Journal of Laws of 2020, item 1333, as amended) - in the language Polish: Ustawa z dnia 7 lipca 1994 r. Prawo budowlane (Dz. U. z 2020 r. poz. 1333 z późn. zm.); - Law of December 15, 2000 on the professional self-government of architects and construction engineers (Journal of Laws of 2019, item 1117) - in the language Polish: Ustawa z dnia 15 grudnia 2000 r. o samorządzie zawodowym architektów i inżynierów budownictwa (Dz. U. z 2019 r. poz. 1117); - Regulation of the Minister of Investment and Development of April 29, 2019 on vocational training to perform independent technical functions in construction (Journal of Laws, item 831) - in the language Polish: Rozporządzenie Ministra Inwestycji i Rozwoju z dnia 29 kwietnia 2019 r. w sprawie przygotowania zawodowego do wykonywania samodzielnych funkcji technicznych w budownictwie (Dz. U. poz. 831). For covered EU construction qualifications, submit the PIIB recognition application and evidence required by the chamber. This does not create a single recognition process for the full multi-specialty engineering family.PIIB for construction professions covered by the EU qualification-recognition rules; not a single authority for every engineering specialization. | — |
| Portugal | Regulated | General system of recognition - primary application; DIRECTIVE 2005/36/EC; National legislation: Law 123/2015, 2 of Septemper Law 9/2009, 4 of March with the changes by Law 26/2017, 30 of May (https://dre.pt/application/file/70170264) General system of recognition - primary application. For civil engineers, the cited EU/EEA/Swiss permanent-establishment route uses OE recognition/registration; third-country applicants contact OE. Do not extend this procedure to every frozen engineering branch. General system of recognition - primary application; DIRECTIVE 2005/36/EC; National legislation: Law 123/2015, 2 of September Law 9/2009, 4 of March with changes by Law 26/2017 30 of May (https://dre.pt/application/file/70170264)OE is the authority for the cited civil-engineer route; technical-engineering and other frozen branches may involve different professional bodies. | ListedEURES labour shortages and surpluses dashboard — National Coordination Office submission |
| Romania | Regulated | Recognition is required only for specifically regulated engineering activities; submit to the relevant named authority (for example, construction-control or cadastre), not one generic engineering board.Several authorities cover named subsets: ANCPI for cadastral/topographic/geodesy professions, State Inspectorate for Construction for site supervisor/technical responsible, and the Ministry for certified project verifiers and experts. | ListedEURES labour shortages and surpluses dashboard — National Coordination Office submission |
| Saudi Arabia | Regulated | Submit engineering qualification, identity and supporting records to SCE for professional registration/accreditation. The non-Saudi registration route includes a stated experience condition; branch and grade criteria differ.Saudi Council of Engineers (SCE) for covered engineering professional registration and accreditation. | — |
| Slovakia | Regulated | General system of recognition - primary application. For a listed authorized construction-engineering title, apply through the exact CRD/Chamber route and satisfy the title-specific education, experience and authorization conditions; no single procedure is established for the broad frozen family.Authority depends on the exact protected engineering profile; the Slovak Chamber of Civil Engineers handles named authorized civil/construction titles. | — |
| Slovenia | Regulated | Certified-engineer practice requires the relevant engineering profile, qualification and IZS register entry after professional examination or recognition decision; general engineering employment is not automatically subject to this route. General system of recognition - primary application.The Slovenian Chamber of Engineers (IZS) maintains the certified-engineer register and handles the protected professional title/qualification route. | ListedEURES labour shortages and surpluses dashboard — National Coordination Office submission |
| South Korea | Regulated | — | — |
| Spain | Regulated | General system of recognition - primary application | ListedEURES labour shortages and surpluses dashboard — National Coordination Office submission |
| Sweden | Regulated | — | ListedEURES labour shortages and surpluses dashboard — National Coordination Office submission |
| Switzerland | Regulated | General system of recognition - primary application; DIRECTIVE 2005/36/EC; National legislation: Not any, the cantons are competent for the regulation of the profession. Generic engineering access has no blanket federal recognition step; where the actual engineering activity is regulated, the foreign qualification must be assessed by the authority for that specific activity. General system of recognition - primary application. | ListedEURES labour shortages and surpluses dashboard — National Coordination Office submission |
| United Arab Emirates | Regulated | Where covered, apply through the relevant Emirate system for engineer registration/classification; Abu Dhabi grades include qualification, examination and experience requirements, while Dubai standards govern specified offices, contractors and their staff.Emirate and activity dependent. Examples: Abu Dhabi DMT through TAMM for covered engineering registration/classification; Dubai Municipality for covered consultancy/contractor activity and accredited staff. | — |
| United Kingdom | Regulated | General system of recognition - primary applicationNo single statutory competent authority for every engineering specialism in this frozen group is identified in the UK regulated-professions list; any protected title/activity must be checked separately. | — |
| United States | Regulated | — | — |
How this list is built
The list holds the 38 countries with at least one official record for engineer: a regulated-professions register entry, a recognition record or a shortage-list row. National occupation names are joined to this profession through a reviewed crosswalk, country by country; a name the crosswalk does not match is left out rather than guessed. Salaries are not shown until a profession-level salary is collected for the country.
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APA citation
ImmigrationDB. (2026, October 25). Engineer profession data by country [ImmigrationDB compilation; version 2beee9fd75bb659b0066038187ff8033]. ImmigrationDB. https://immigrationdb.com/move-as/engineer/ Retrieved 2026-10-25. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/BibTeX citation
@misc{immigrationdb_immigrationdb_engineer-profession-data-by-country_a09b0a93c45e,
author = {ImmigrationDB},
title = {Engineer profession data by country},
publisher = {ImmigrationDB},
year = {2026},
date = {2026-10-25},
version = {2beee9fd75bb659b0066038187ff8033},
url = {https://immigrationdb.com/move-as/engineer/},
note = {Retrieved 2026-10-25. ImmigrationDB compilation. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/},
}Markdown citation
[Engineer profession data by country](https://immigrationdb.com/move-as/engineer/) — ImmigrationDB; ImmigrationDB; version 2beee9fd75bb659b0066038187ff8033; retrieved 2026-10-25; built 2026-10-25.This citation identifies the ImmigrationDB compilation/page. Underlying source publishers and datasets retain their own terms; inspect the Sources section and cite those records separately. View the underlying source records.
Sources
- Jobs and Skills Australia / Australian Government
- Jobs and Skills Australia (JSA)
- ILO
- European Commission — Regulated Professions Database (RegProf)
- Chamber of Civil Engineers for Styria and Carinthia
- European Commission Regulated Professions Database
- European Labour Authority / EURES
- Austrian Federal Government, migration.gv.at
- Eurostat
- French Community legal database