Process for nursing professionals

Our Principles

ifi – International Institute for Skilled Professionals connects international nursing professionals and German healthcare institutions in a personal, reliable, and fast way. We are committed to fair and ethical practice across the entire service chain, from recruitment in the home country to the start of employment in Germany following successful completion of the recognition exam.

Overall Responsibility

The management of ifi bears overall responsibility for the entire service chain – from the initial contact in the home country, through preparation and placement, to the start of employment in Germany. Management ensures that all partners, agents, and service providers involved along this chain adhere to the same ethical and fair standards as ifi itself, and it also assumes responsibility for their actions.

Our Principles in Detail:

• The entire placement process is free of charge for nursing professionals. ifi does not charge nursing professionals any placement fees, success fees, or "service fees," either directly or indirectly.
• We prepare our nursing professionals for life and work in Germany while they are still in their home countries and provide them with, among other things, the information brochure on labour migration into nursing in Germany (in English here).
• ifi does not use retention or repayment clauses in placement contracts that are incompatible with the criteria of the "Fair Recruitment Nursing Germany" quality seal. Furthermore, ifi does not place candidates into employment contracts that contain retention or repayment clauses relating to placement costs.
• ifi recruits nursing professionals exclusively from India. ifi does not actively recruit in countries listed on the current WHO Health Workforce Support and Safeguards List (opens in a new tab).
• Transparency: ifi discloses its structures, services, and costs to all parties involved – nursing professionals, partner institutions, and cooperation partners – in a clear and understandable manner. This includes providing clear information about which services are rendered as part of the placement process, who finances them, and which costs arise on which side of the service chain.
• Written Documentation and Verifiability: All essential agreements – in particular placement and employment contracts, as well as information on rights and obligations – are documented in writing in a language understandable to the nursing professionals. This ensures that compliance with our principles is traceable and verifiable at all times – both for the nursing professionals themselves and for external auditing bodies.
• Sustainability and Participation: ifi focuses on long-term, sustainable cooperation rather than short-term placement success. Nursing professionals are actively involved in the process and can provide feedback on their experience with the recruitment and integration process. This feedback is incorporated into the ongoing development of our processes.
• ifi is committed to complying with international human rights standards, in particular:
  • WHO Global Code of Practice on the International Recruitment of Health Personnel
  • ILO Core Labour Standards (opens in a new tab)
  • ILO General principles and operational guidelines for fair recruitment (opens in a new tab)
  • UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGP) (opens in a new tab)
  • Relevant UN Human Rights Conventions (opens in a new tab)