Professional Caregiver; Applying for Registration

Anyone who wishes to serve as a professional guardian must register with the competent guardianship authority (home authority).

Depending on how long you have been working as a professional guardian and what academic or professional qualifications you hold, different regulations apply regarding the registration process and proof of competence.

Competent home authority: The guardianship authority within whose jurisdiction the professional guardian’s place of business is located or is to be established. If the professional guardian does not have a place of business and does not intend to establish one, local jurisdiction is determined by the professional guardian’s place of residence.

The requirements for registration as a professional guardian are:

• personal suitability and trustworthiness,
• sufficient expertise to perform the duties of a professional guardian, and
• professional liability insurance to cover liability risks arising from professional activities for financial losses, with a minimum coverage of 250,000 euros per insured event and 1 million euros for all insured events in a single insurance year.

Personal suitability is assessed during an interview. Reliability is verified through the submission of specific documents and statements.

A professional guardian must be able to legally represent the person under guardianship in all areas of responsibility ordered by the court. Therefore, extensive proof of expertise is required in various fields:

• Knowledge of guardianship and placement law, the related procedural law, and the areas of personal and financial care
• Knowledge of the social welfare support system, and
• Knowledge of communicating with individuals with illnesses and disabilities and of methods for supporting decision-making

Proof of expertise may be provided by

• submission of a certificate of successful completion of a recognized degree program, vocational training program, continuing education program, or recognized professional training course,
• certificates or other evidence of achievement from unrecognized degree, vocational, or continuing education programs, provided they fully or partially demonstrate the acquisition of the required knowledge (if only partial proof is provided, the remaining knowledge must be demonstrated by completing a recognized degree program, training program, continuing education program, or recognized specialized training course),
• Proof of eligibility to serve as a judge or of the successful completion of a degree program in social pedagogy or social work, or
• In individual cases: other evidence, provided that the demonstrated knowledge corresponds in content and scope to the requirements of a recognized specialized training course.

The registration process begins with the application, which must be filed with the locally competent registration authority.

All required documents must be submitted with the application.

A simplification applies to employees of recognized guardianship associations. These employees may be registered—even if, at the time of application, they cannot fully demonstrate their expertise, but can demonstrate that they possess it in all essential respects, provided that the other requirements are met and the guardianship association ensures that the person is supervised and monitored in the guardianships they manage by an employee registered as a professional guardian until they have fully demonstrated their expertise. In this case, full proof of professional competence must be provided within one year of registration.

Personal suitability is assessed during an interview.

Upon request, the competent authority will decide—even before the registration process begins—by means of a separate notice whether and to what extent the required proof can be provided through the submitted documents.

Even after registration is complete, there are still notification and reporting obligations to the competent authority:

• Every six months, changes to the list of guardianships handled (including the respective case numbers and the competent courts) must be reported.
• Changes that may affect the registration must be reported immediately.
• Changes to the total time commitment, the organizational structure, and a change in the registered office or place of residence must also be reported.
• Every three years, a current certificate of good conduct, information from the central debtor registry, and a statement indicating whether any insolvency, preliminary investigation, or criminal proceedings are pending must be submitted.
• If a determination procedure regarding the applicable remuneration schedule has been conducted pursuant to Section 8(3) of the Guardianship and Conservatorship Remuneration Act (VBVG), this must also be reported without being requested.

Violations may result in revocation of registration.

Professional guardians are required to participate in job-related continuing education on their own initiative and to submit proof of such participation to the competent authority.

• Applicants must submit the following documents:
  
  • Certificate of Good Conduct
  • Information from the Central Debtors Registry
  • Declaration Regarding Insolvency, Preliminary Investigations, or Criminal Proceedings
  • Declaration regarding previous registration proceedings
  • Proof of Qualifications (unless waived):
     
    • Certificate of successful completion of a recognized degree program, vocational training, or continuing education program, or
    • Certificate of successful completion of a recognized competency training course or
    • other forms of proof
       
  • Statement regarding the time commitment and organizational structure of the activity
  • Proof of professional liability insurance

A registration fee of 200 EUR is charged.

Additional fees may apply if a preliminary decision regarding the determination of professional competence is requested, or if a registration decision must be revoked or withdrawn.