Mobility of professional ski instructors in the EU enhanced

Mobility of professional ski instructors in the EU enhanced

After a number of years of work and preparations, the European Commission has adopted a new common training test (CTT) for ski instructors to facilitate the recognition of their qualifications. Exploiting for the first time the opportunity provided by the Revised Professional Qualifications Directive (2015), the Commission has worked with Members States and relevant stakeholders to create this novel instrument to facilitate the access of professional instructors to activities in other Member States, while ensuring the high level of skills and knowledge of safety and environmental issues needed.

The CTT does not harmonise national rules and is thus voluntary in nature for the Member States. What it does is to offer those, who have passed the aptitude test, to pursue their profession in any host Member State concerned under the same conditions as the holders of a professional qualification acquired in that Member State. The CTT builds on the previously adopted Memorandum of Understanding, which constituted a pilot project for professionals having passed the Eurotest and the Eurosecurity test, and which was signed by eleven EU Members States. The provisions agreed in the Memorandum have been taken into account as basis for the new regulation establishing the CTT, in particular in the technical parts describing how the tests should be organised.

All citizens of the EU, and not only those from Members States regulating the ski instructor profession, who hold or who are in training to obtain a qualification listed in the Annex to the Commission Delegated Regulation (each Member State has identified an appropriate qualification and an awarding institution) will be entitled to participate in the CTT. After a candidate passed the CTT, each Member State should recognise that the successful completion of the CTT effectively gives the said candidate access to the professional activities of ski instructors under the same conditions as the holders of professional qualifications acquired in that Member State.

The EP and the Council have 2 months to scrutinise the Commission Delegated Regulation, after which the act will enter into force 20 days after its publication in the Official Journal of the EU.

The topic of mutual recognition of professional qualifications in sport has been on the EU’s agenda for a number of years; and with it the particular issue of ski instructors’ qualifications as it is regulated in 13 EU Member States and is characterised by an important need for mobility. The subject has been dealt with by the Commission Expert Groups and followed up by Council Expert Groups under both the 2011-2014 and the 2015-2017 Work Plans. To get an overview of the situation and prepare the grounds for the establishment of the CTT, the Commission published in 2016 a short study mapping the ski instructors’ qualification environment in the EU Members States.

More information

EOC EU Office article on the subject from 2016

Recent Posts

SAFE HARBOUR Project Meeting 2 in Bucharest

The SAFE HARBOUR consortium met this week in Bucharest, Romania, for its second project meeting, reaffirming its commitment to strengthening safeguarding across European sport. Hosted by the Romanian Olympic and Sports Committee in a hybrid format, the two-day meeting brought together partners to exchange insights, review progress, and plan next steps. Discussions focused on key […]

Read More
EmpowHER Volleyball: New insights on gender equality in sport leadership

The EmpowHER Volleyball Game Changer (EVGC) project, led by the European Volleyball Confederation (CEV) and co-funded by the EU, has released its Gender Equality Survey Analysis, highlighting the continued underrepresentation of women in volleyball leadership across Europe. Based on over 820 responses, the study shows that women hold only 11–30% of leadership roles, with few […]

Read More
SAFE HARBOUR promoted during the Educational Module 2 of the GUARD project

On 14 October 2025, the SAFE HARBOUR project was presented during Module 2 of the Educational Training within the GUARD Project, held in Zagreb. Together, these initiatives provide a comprehensive approach to advancing safeguarding standards at all levels of European sport. During the session, participants explored how SAFE HARBOUR reviews the GAP Report to identify […]

Read More

Related Posts

October 27, 2025
SAFE HARBOUR Project Meeting 2 in Bucharest

The SAFE HARBOUR consortium met this week in Bucharest, Romania, for its second project meeting, reaffirming its commitment to strengthening safeguarding across European sport. Hosted by the Romanian Olympic and Sports Committee in a hybrid format, the two-day meeting brought together partners to exchange insights, review progress, and plan next steps. Discussions focused on key […]

October 17, 2025
EmpowHER Volleyball: New insights on gender equality in sport leadership

The EmpowHER Volleyball Game Changer (EVGC) project, led by the European Volleyball Confederation (CEV) and co-funded by the EU, has released its Gender Equality Survey Analysis, highlighting the continued underrepresentation of women in volleyball leadership across Europe. Based on over 820 responses, the study shows that women hold only 11–30% of leadership roles, with few […]

October 17, 2025
SAFE HARBOUR promoted during the Educational Module 2 of the GUARD project

On 14 October 2025, the SAFE HARBOUR project was presented during Module 2 of the Educational Training within the GUARD Project, held in Zagreb. Together, these initiatives provide a comprehensive approach to advancing safeguarding standards at all levels of European sport. During the session, participants explored how SAFE HARBOUR reviews the GAP Report to identify […]

About us

The EOC EU Office is the House of European Sport, representing the European Olympic Committees (EOC), the IOC and other major sport organisations to the European institutions in Brussels.
CONTACT
crossmenu linkedin facebook pinterest youtube rss twitter instagram facebook-blank rss-blank linkedin-blank pinterest youtube twitter instagram