Care work in Europe
Europe is getting older and families and care homes need help. Care work is a real job, but it is not nursing, and the conditions vary a lot.
Care work versus nursing
Nurses hold a regulated professional qualification and must be recognised and registered.
Care workers (care assistants, home carers, elder care aides) help with daily living, mobility, hygiene and companionship. Training requirements are lower, but they are rising: many countries now expect a care assistant certificate.
Where the jobs are
- Italy: the quota decree reserves places for family care and support work, 13,600 in 2026. Many roles are live-in care for elderly people at home.
- Germany: care assistant (Pflegehelfer) roles, often a stepping stone toward nursing training.
- Other countries: care homes in the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain and the Nordic countries recruit internationally, usually requiring good language skills.
What helps
- Local language at A2–B1 at minimum; care is a talking job
- A care assistant or home health aide certificate
- Experience with elderly people, documented by an employer
- First-aid training
Questions to ask
- Is it live-in or shift work? What are the hours and days off?
- Who is the employer: a family, an agency or a care home?
- What is the pay, and how are nights and weekends paid?
- Is accommodation provided, and at what cost?
A path upward
Many care workers in Germany use care assistant roles as a route into three-year nursing training, which is paid. If you have the language and the commitment, it can lead to a full professional career.
