Physiotherapist Qualified in the EU: How to Get Authorisation to Practice in France

You trained as a physiotherapist in an EU country and want to work in France? The good news is that there is a clear legal pathway. The important thing to understand upfront is that physiotherapists do not benefit from automatic recognition of qualifications — unlike nurses or midwives. Instead, they go through the general system of recognition, managed by the DREETS (the French regional directorate for economy, employment, labour and solidarity). This guide walks you through every step.

1. EU Physiotherapist in France: Automatic Recognition or Not?

Under EU Directive 2005/36/EC on the recognition of professional qualifications, two systems apply:

• Automatic recognition for seven professions with harmonised training across the EU: doctors, nurses responsible for general care, dentists, veterinary surgeons, midwives, pharmacists and architects.
• The general system of recognition, which applies to all other regulated professions — including physiotherapy (masseur-kinésithérapeute).

In practice, this means the DREETS does not simply check that you hold a recognised foreign diploma. It reviews the content and duration of your training and compares it with the French programme. If it finds significant gaps, it may require a compensation measure before granting authorisation.

2. Is There a Faster Route? The European Professional Card (EPC)

Before starting a classic DREETS application, you should know there's a fully digital alternative: the European Professional Card (EPC). Introduced by Directive 2013/55/EU amending Directive 2005/36/EC, the EPC currently covers only five regulated professions — nurses responsible for general care, pharmacists, physiotherapists, mountain guides and real estate agents. Physiotherapy is included.

In practice, the EPC lets you:

• submit your application online via the EU Login platform, with no paper file;
• track your application's progress in real time;
• reuse documents you've already submitted if you're targeting several EU countries;
• in some cases, benefit from tacit recognition if the competent authority fails to respond within the prescribed deadline.

One important nuance: the competent authority for the EPC is not a single body. For an incoming EPC application aiming at establishment in France, it's the regional directorate for Île-de-France (within the DREETS structure) that centralises and processes the file, under the order of 8 December 2017 — regardless of which département you ultimately intend to practice in (unlike the classic procedure below, where the DREETS of your practice département is competent). The CNOMK steps in for two specific situations: temporary service provision in France (where it may require an aptitude test) and outgoing EPC requests, when a physiotherapist already established in France wants to practice in another EU country.

You can choose between the EPC procedure and the classic DREETS procedure described below: both lead to the same right to practice, but the EPC is generally faster and more straightforward for a clearly identifiable European profile.

Learn more: European Professional Card — Ordre des masseurs-kinésithérapeutes

3. The General Recognition System: DREETS Procedure Step by Step

Step 1 — Identify the Right DREETS

Your application goes to the DREETS in the département where you intend to practice, not necessarily where you currently live. A directory of DREETS offices by region is available at travail-emploi.gouv.fr.

Step 2 — Assemble and Submit Your File

You submit your file in person at the DREETS office or by registered mail. The DREETS has one month to acknowledge receipt of a complete file. If documents are missing, it notifies you within that period.

Step 3 — Review and Decision

From the moment your file is declared complete, the DREETS has four months to issue a decision (the regulatory deadline under the directive). In the absence of a response within that deadline, the application is deemed rejected — so follow up proactively if needed.

Step 4 — Possible Compensation Measure

If the DREETS identifies significant differences between your training and the French programme, it may require:

• an aptitude test (written or practical exam);
• an adaptation period (supervised practice, typically 3 to 18 months).

As an applicant, you generally have the right to choose between the two. The scope of the measure depends on how large the gaps are — the more similar your training, the lighter (or absent) the compensation.

4. Documents Required for Your Application

The exact list may vary slightly depending on your country of origin and the regional DREETS, but a standard file includes:

All foreign documents must be translated by a sworn translator (traducteur assermenté) certified by a French court. Online or informal translations are not accepted.

Source: service-public.fr — Recognition of professional qualifications for EU nationals

5. Timelines to Plan For

Budget a total of 6 to 12 months between submitting your file and starting work, factoring in:

These are estimates. Regional workload and the complexity of your file can extend them. Translation alone may take 2 to 6 weeks — start early.

Practical tip: begin gathering your documents before you have a confirmed practice address. Your university may take weeks to issue a certified programme description.

6. After the DREETS: Registration with the Ordre des Masseurs-Kinésithérapeutes

DREETS authorisation is a necessary but not sufficient condition. Once you receive it, you must register with the Ordre des masseurs-kinésithérapeutes (the professional council for physiotherapists) in the département where you will practice.

The Ordre verifies:

• the validity of your DREETS authorisation;
• the absence of disqualifying criminal convictions;
• your intended mode of practice (private, salaried, or mixed).

Registration with the Ordre is mandatory for all physiotherapists working in France, including employed practitioners. Without registration, you cannot bill for reimbursable physiotherapy acts under the French health insurance system (Assurance Maladie).

More information: Ordre national des masseurs-kinésithérapeutes

How Suxens Can Help

Navigating French administrative procedures from abroad — in a second or third language — is genuinely challenging. Suxens exists to support EU paramedical professionals through every step of the process, from preparing your DREETS file to finding a practice location in France. Join the Suxens waiting list →

Further Reading

• Working in France with an EU health diploma — General guide (Suxens Art.1)
• Ordre national des masseurs-kinésithérapeutes — Registration
• Service-public.fr — Recognition of professional qualifications
• DREETS directory by region