Have you obtained a work and residence permit for your third-country nationals?

The employment of third-country nationals has recently become an increasingly important issue, especially due to the growing labour shortage in Denmark and the rest of Europe.

In Denmark, third-country nationals are generally required to obtain a work and residence permit. There are several schemes in Denmark that can be used to obtain such a permit. Specific requirements must be met depending on the scheme chosen.

In the following, we will highlight the three most relevant schemes to consider when hiring third country nationals:

The Pay Limit Schemes
The Positive Lists
Third-country nationals who will be posted to provide a service in Denmark

Pay Limit Schemes

The Pay Limit Schemes may be relevant, if you have established a business in Denmark, e.g. a subsidiary, branch etc., and you wish to offer a job to a third-country national.

If the job offered has an annual salary which at least corresponds to a specific pay limit, then the pay limit schemes may be used to apply for a work and residence permit. There are two pay limit schemes, the Ordinary Pay Limit Scheme, and the Supplementary Pay Limit Scheme.

The pay limit under the Ordinary Pay Limit Scheme is DKK 487,000 (2024), while the pay limit under the Supplementary Pay Limit Scheme is DKK 393,000 (2024).

The pay limit under the supplementary scheme is lower, but there are additional requirements under this scheme.

In addition to the annual salary corresponding to at least the pay limit, the following requirements must also be met, among others:

The salary must be paid into a Danish bank account (generally, a Danish bank account must be opened within 180 days from the date of issuance of the permit).
The offered salary must correspond to Danish standards (it is not enough that the offered salary exceeds the pay limit, the salary must also correspond to the standard salary in Denmark for the type of employment in question).
The offered employment terms must correspond to Danish terms, e.g. in terms of holiday, notice period etc.
In some cases, a Danish authorization or a temporary authorization for employment may be required.

The application is processed by the Danish Agency for International Recruitment and Integration (SIRI), and a fee of DKK 6,290 is charged for the application. The processing time is between 1-3 months.

Further information and requirements regarding the two pay limit schemes can be found on Ny i Danmark (the official portal for foreign nationals who wish to visit, live or work in Denmark).

Positive lists

The positive lists schemes may be relevant, if an individual has been offered a job in Denmark, which is included in the lists of professions which are currently experiencing a shortage of qualified or skilled professions in Denmark.

There is a Positive List for Skilled Work and a Positive List for People with Higher Education. If the offered job position is on one of these lists, this scheme may be used to obtain a work and residence permit.

Civil Engineers, Chemists, bricklayers, carpenters, electricians etc. are currently on the lists.

An overview of the job positions listed on the Positive List for People with Higher Education can be found on Ny i Danmark.

An overview of job positions listed on the Positive List for Skilled Work can also be found on Ny i Danmark.

Besides the requirement that the job offered is listed on one of the positive lists, the following requirements, among others, must also be met:

The salary must be paid into a Danish bank account.
The offered salary must correspond to Danish standards.
The offered employment terms must correspond to Danish terms.
In some cases, a Danish authorization or a temporary authorization for employment may be required.
Under the Positive List for People with Higher Education, it is a requirement that the individual has completed a higher educational program. The list contains information about the required educational level for each job title.
Under the Positive List for Skilled Work, it is a requirement that the employing company has fulfilled their educational obligations regarding training of apprentices, and the company must therefore be covered by Læreplads-AUB (Arbejdsgivernes Uddannelsesbidrag). There are additional requirements for the company in relation to the reached target number of trained apprentices.

The application is processed by SIRI, and a fee of DKK 6,290 is charged for the application. The processing time is between 1-3 months.

Further information and requirements regarding the two positive lists schemes can be found on Ny i Danmark.

Posted third-country workers

The last scheme can be relevant for third-country nationals, who will be posted to perform work in Denmark. If an individual is already working for a company in the EU and this individual will be posted to Denmark, this individual may be covered by specific EU regulations which will entitle the individual to work and stay in Denmark without a work and residence permit.

If the individual is expected to stay and work in Denmark for more than 3 months, an application for an EU residence document must be submitted. This means that the individual covered by these specific EU regulations can stay and work in Denmark for up to 3 months without submitting an application. However, we recommend that an application is submitted before working in Denmark.

The following conditions must be met when applying for an EU residence document as a posted third country national:

The individual must already be employed by the EU company prior to the posting.
A service agreement between the EU company and a Danish company must exist,
A posting agreement between the EU company and the individual must exist.
The posting must be temporary and for a limited period of time (under 2 years, however extension is possible)
The individual’s work must be actual and real (this will be based on the salary, information about the extent of work tasks and additional terms of employment).
The individual must be able to return to their home country or to the country from which they have been posted after finishing the posting. The individual must have a valid passport.
Intra-corporate posting, where the individual will be posted to work for a Danish subsidiary, for example, does normally not give an individual the right to reside and work under the EU regulations. The same applies for temporary agency work and hiring out of labor. In these cases, a work and residence permit is usually required.

The application is also processed by SIRI, and no fee is demanded for this application. The processing time is between 1-3 months.

Further information and requirements regarding EU residence document for third country nationals can be found on Ny i Danmark.

Our recommendations

We strongly recommend that the immigration status of third-country nationals is assessed prior to staying and working in Denmark. Working without a work permit can have serious consequences for both the employer and the third country national. The employer risks a fine or imprisonment for up to two years. The employee also risks a fine, imprisonment for up to one year and deportation with a ban on entry to Denmark for a longer period, typically two years.

We will be happy to assess the immigration status of third-country nationals and assist with the application.

For further questions, please contact us!

Your Employment Law Team