Interviewing candidates who are still abroad: what a video interview can and cannot tell you

What a video interview with a candidate abroad can actually settle

A video interview settles everything that is your own decision as the employer. You describe the tasks, the shift pattern, the pay, the tools and the site conditions. You hear whether you and the candidate can talk about the work. You agree who prepares which document next, and by when.

The call settles nothing that a public authority decides. Identity is established in the visa procedure at the responsible German mission abroad, where applicants appear in person and biometric data are taken. Whether a foreign document is accepted depends on the German body where it is used. Whether the employment is approved is decided by the Bundesagentur für Arbeit, the German Federal Employment Agency.

Which questions may you ask a candidate abroad in a video interview?

Ask about the job, not about the person. Applicants count as employees under the General Equal Treatment Act (AGG), so its protection applies from the first interview (§ 6 AGG). Disadvantage on grounds such as ethnic origin, gender, religion or belief, disability, age and sexual identity is prohibited (§ 1 and § 7 AGG). The prohibition also applies when the person deciding merely assumes such a ground.

A difference in treatment can be permissible in narrow cases. § 8 AGG allows it where the ground is an essential and determining occupational requirement because of the type of work or the conditions of its performance. The purpose must be legitimate and the requirement proportionate. Write your requirements down before the call and tie each one to a task, then use the same list for every candidate.

• Which machines, vehicles or tools have you worked with, and for how long?
• Describe a normal shift in your last job from start to finish.
• Which safety rules applied there, and who instructed you?
• Which documents do you already have, and who holds the originals?
• What do you expect regarding travel, accommodation and the first weeks on site?

Why a video call cannot verify a passport or a certificate

No video call proves that a document is genuine. Whether a foreign document is accepted without further proof, or whether legalisation is required, is decided by the German body where the document is to be used. Legalisation by a German mission confirms the authenticity of the signature, the capacity of the signatory and, where applicable, the authenticity of the seal. Where legalisation is not carried out, a mission can verify a document by way of administrative assistance, as a decision aid for German authorities.

Treat a document held up to the camera as a starting point, not as proof. Note which document you saw, who holds the original and who will obtain the translation. Identity itself is checked later in the visa procedure, where the applicant appears in person at the mission or visa centre and biometric data such as fingerprints and a photograph are recorded. The decision on the visa lies with the German mission abroad.

Does a video interview prove that a candidate speaks enough German?

A video interview shows whether you and the candidate can communicate about the work, and nothing more. It does not produce a language certificate. It does not release you from the duties that start on the first working day in Germany. You must instruct employees on safety and health at work (§ 12 ArbSchG).

Instructions and operating instructions must be given in a form and language that the employees understand. The employer has to satisfy himself that the content was understood (§ 12 BetrSichV). The same requirement applies to operating instructions and instruction on hazardous substances (§ 14 GefStoffV).

Use the call to test that in a practical way. Ask the candidate to explain a work step back to you in the language you plan to use on site. Then decide who will instruct, in which language, and with which written material. More on language levels at work is on our page do employees need to speak German.

Can the interview replace recognition of a foreign qualification?

No. Recognition of a foreign qualification is carried out by the body responsible for that occupation, and the application can also be filed from abroad. For higher education degrees, the Central Office for Foreign Education (ZAB) assesses comparability in a statement of comparability. Such a statement does not replace the recognition procedure that regulated professions require.

German language skills are not required for the recognition application itself. For admission to a regulated profession, further conditions can apply in addition to equivalence, including language skills; the required level is named by the competent body. Ask in the interview which body is responsible, whether an application has been filed and who holds the original certificates. That is information you can use, unlike a guess about the outcome.

What to agree in the call because you will need it later

Fix the terms of employment during the interview, then put them in writing. Under the Nachweisgesetz you must record the essential terms of the contract and hand the record over. The Act staggers which details must be available by the first day of work and which follow within the further statutory periods (§ 2 NachwG). If you hand over a written employment contract containing those details, the separate record is not needed to that extent.

For third-country nationals, the Bundesagentur für Arbeit must in most cases approve access to the labour market. Nationality, qualification and the type of employment are among the decisive points. For an advance approval, employers enter data on the person and on the employment relationship online, download the declaration on the employment relationship in the logged-in area and forward it together with the advance approval to the future employee. If a third party files the application, the agency additionally requires a power of attorney from the company.

Which steps stay with you and which belong to the authorities is set out on what you decide and what the authorities decide. The order of the steps is described on how the process works.

Recording the video interview and sharing notes: settle it before you dial in

Say before the call whether you record, why, who will see the recording and how long it is kept. German law permits the processing of employee data where it is necessary for the decision on entering into an employment relationship; applicants expressly count as employees for this purpose (§ 26 BDSG). Where you rely on consent, the voluntary nature has to be assessed with care, taking the dependency and the circumstances into account.

Your interview notes fall under the same principles: purpose limitation, data minimisation and factual accuracy (Regulation (EU) 2016/679). Keep what relates to the job and drop the rest. Whether a particular recording is lawful depends on the individual case, so clarify it with the person responsible for data protection in your company.

Hirenord sources and pre-selects candidates in Albania and Kosovo, checks basic applicant documents and organises interviews with employers in Germany. If that fits your vacancy, you can register as an employer and tell us what the job requires.