Scheme active from September 1953
Indiviual AND Company
Primary Contact for the Scheme
Reinhard Fink
Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy
Civil servant (division “crafts, chambers of industry and commerce”)
Germany – Exercise of a skilled craft subject to a licence pursuant to the Crafts Code.
Links to more information about the scheme
bmwi.de/DE/Themen/Mittelstand/Mittelstandspolitik/handwerk.html
Certification Bodies
Chambers of skilled crafts (Meister examinations) and guilds of skilled crafts (journeyman’s examinations), acting as state authorities.
The transfer of knowledge plays an important role in the German skilled craft sector. Each year, more than 40,000 skilled craft workers participate voluntarily in further training courses (e.g. further training as an energy consultant in the skilled craft sector).
Example Certificates
| Supported Technology, Size and Possibility of Financial Support |
Are any other qualifications required to practice? | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Technology | Size Min and Max sizes | Necessity of Cert./ Qual. Is the scheme mandatory or voluntary for the technology listed? | Supporting financial schemes? Are there any supporting financial schemes? | Necessity for financial support Is it mandatory to be certified to qualify for the financial incentive? | EQF What level of education according to European Qualifications Framework is the scheme equivalent to? [?] | Plumber Is the supporting qualification as a plumber required? | Electrician Is the supporting qualification as an electrician required? | Parts Is a specializiation in the companents required as a supporting qualification? | Other Other requirement details | Financial Schemes |
| Air Heat Pump | Mandatory | EQF L6 | ||||||||
| Biomass | Mandatory | EQF L6 | ||||||||
| Ground Heat Pump | Mandatory | EQF L6 | ||||||||
| Hydro | Mandatory | EQF L6 | ||||||||
| Micro Combined | Mandatory | EQF L6 | ||||||||
| Shallow Geothermal | Mandatory | EQF L6 | ||||||||
| Solar Photovoltaic | Mandatory | EQF L6 | ||||||||
| Solar Thermal | Mandatory | EQF L6 | ||||||||
| Water Heat Pump | Mandatory | EQF L6 | ||||||||
| Wind | Mandatory | EQF L6 | ||||||||
| Supported Technology, Size and Possibility of Financial Support |
Are any other qualifications required to practice? | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Technology | Size Min and Max sizes | Necessity of Cert./ Qual. Is the scheme mandatory or voluntary for the technology listed? | Supporting financial schemes? Are there any supporting financial schemes? | Necessity for financial support Is it mandatory to be certified to qualify for the financial incentive? | EQF What level of education according to European Qualifications Framework is the scheme equivalent to? [?] | Plumber Is the supporting qualification as a plumber required? | Electrician Is the supporting qualification as an electrician required? | Parts Is a specializiation in the companents required as a supporting qualification? | Other Other requirement details | Supporting Financial Schemes |
| Air Heat Pump | Mandatory | EQF L6 | ||||||||
| Biomass | Mandatory | EQF L6 | ||||||||
| Ground Heat Pump | Mandatory | EQF L6 | ||||||||
| Hydro | Mandatory | EQF L6 | ||||||||
| Micro Combined | Mandatory | EQF L6 | ||||||||
| Shallow Geothermal | Mandatory | EQF L6 | ||||||||
| Solar Photovoltaic | Mandatory | EQF L6 | ||||||||
| Solar Thermal | Mandatory | EQF L6 | ||||||||
| Water Heat Pump | Mandatory | EQF L6 | ||||||||
| Wind | Mandatory | EQF L6 | ||||||||
| Legislation, subsidies and standards | |
| Costs/Benefit analysis (eg. payback period) | |
| Design (appropriate design of system dependent in relation to targeted heating system) | |
| Installation (actual installation process) | |
| Commissioning (ensure effective commissioning of system for optimal performance) | |
| Monitoring (operational or performance monitoring) | |
| Maintenance (understanding of maintenance and warranty based issues) |
| Average training cost | €0 - €1,000 The cost is the fee for the Meister examination. Additional costs can arise in individual cases from – voluntary – participation in Meister training courses. Example: Fee for the Meister examination by Karlsruhe chamber of skilled crafts (http://www.hwk- karlsruhe.de/weiterbildung/meister_werden/kosten-gebuehren.html) |
| Ongoing Costs in order to be Certified/Qualified |
|
| What is the anticipated duration of training for full certification/ qualification? | 3-5 years |
| Theory | Mandatory |
| Practical | Mandatory |
| Workplace Learning | Mandatory |
| Examination | Mandatory |
| Continuing Professional Development (CPD) | Optional |
| Ongoing Quality Control | Optional |
| The Certification is valid for | 16 years plus |
| Requalification is required | |
| Inspections of the installers work are carried out | |
| Evaluation of wider standards |
| A financial penalty could apply | |
| Retraining may be required | |
| Suspension from the scheme | |
| Exclusion from the scheme | |
| None |
| Damage to the renewable energy system | |
| Damage to wider energy infrastructure within end-users’ home | |
| Structural or building damage | |
| Significant degradation in system performance | |
| Poor consumer code of conduct |
| There is an established process for mutual recognition | |
| Details |
The recognition procedure is mainly based on professional experience and the applicant’s training and skills certificates. In line with Community law, the applicants can in certain cases be required to take an adaptation course or an aptitude test before the professional qualification is recognised. The rules in German skilled crafts legislation on the recognition of professional qualifications obtained in third countries go beyond requirements under Community law (Sections 40a, 50b of the Crafts Code and ultimately also Section 8 subsection 2 of the Crafts Code; this makes it possible for applicants to use their professional qualifications in Germany even if they only cover a significant subdivision of a skilled craft occupation which is generally subject to a licence. The chambers of crafts, as state authorities of the Länder, are responsible for recognising foreign professional qualifications in the field of skilled crafts subject to licence and listed in Annex A of the Crafts Code. |
| Evidence of certification | |
| Evidence of formal training | |
| Declaration | |
| Evidence of quality |
| An aptitude test | |
| Undergo a period of monitoring | |
| Demonstrate continuous professional development | |
| Evidence of quality of installations |
| Expected to demonstrate language ability | |
| Expected to demonstrate insurance |
The rules (training, Meister examination, further training) are constantly updated. The acquisition of the Meister certificate permits access to the occupation (independent exercise of a skilled craft subject to a licence) and protects the title (“Meister”, “Meisterin”) pursuant to Section 51 of the Crafts Code. Information is available from the 53 chambers of skilled crafts and guilds of skilled crafts.
HwO - nichtamtliches Inhaltsverzeichnis
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In Germany, access to a skilled craft, exercise of which is subject to a licence, is governed by a professional qualification system (not a certification system). For this reason, the answers to this questionnaire refer exclusively to the qualification of Meister of skilled crafts. Access to the occupation does not depend exclusively on the acquisition of a Meister qualification. A number of exceptions under current occupational law also permit access to the occupation. These include:- special provision made for skilled crafts workers in a different skilled trade or craft requiring a licence (“simplified Meister examination” pursuant to Section 7a of the Crafts Code; example: electrical technician obtains right to work in the skilled craft of installer),
- the “experienced journeyman rule” (recognition of “experienced journeymen” pursuant to Section 7b of the Crafts if they have six years’ professional experience, four of which have been spent in a senior position),
- the exception for engineers, graduates of technical universities and state or state-recognised further education colleges of technology or design, and
- the general exception if it is unreasonable for a person to take the Meister examination (Section 8 of the Crafts Code). The recognition of EU foreign nationals takes place pursuant to Section 9 of the Crafts Code in accordance with the EU Professional Qualifications Directive if these individuals wish to settle permanently or provide their services on a temporary basis in Germany.
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