CEFTA

CEFTA is taking steps to address potential barriers posed by requirements for professional qualifications. Building on a pilot project to establish a general system of mutual recognition of professional qualifications mandated by the CEFTA Joint Committee in 2020 to the Subcommittee on Trade in Services, experts from the CEFTA Parties have agreed on the text of a Decision on Establishing a General System of Recognition of Professional Qualifications. The Decision still needs to be adopted by the CEFTA Joint Committee.  

CEFTA also maintains a Joint Working Group on Mutual Recognition of Professional Qualifications between CEFTA, the Education Reform Initiative of South Eastern Europe (ERISEE), and the Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) Social Agenda Working Group (SAWG). The Joint Working Group was established by Decision No. 2/2015 on the Amendment to Decision No 5/2014 of CEFTA Joint Committee and operates under the auspices of the RCC and the CEFTA Subcommittee on Trade in Services. The purpose of the Joint Working Group is to:

• To facilitate negotiations for mutual recognition agreements of professional qualifications, which are of mutual interest to the CEFTA Parties; 
• To work towards enhancing transparency of arrangements on recognition of professional qualifications; 
  
• To enhance regional data exchange on the mobility of professionals; and
  
• To encourage overall intra-regional labour mobility.