INFORMATION
on
Residence permit for guest workers
- 1)Which third-country nationals are eligible to be granted a residence permit for guest workers?
Guest workers
- ·whose purpose of residence is to perform actual work for or under the direction of others, for remuneration, under contract for employment relationship,
- ·whose employer is registered as a preferential employer or a qualified temporary work agency (i.e. lender of labour force),
- ·who are third-country nationals as defined in the Decree by the minister responsible for employment of third-country nationals in Hungary, issued with the approval of the Protection Committee, and
- ·who undertake work under employment not precluded by the Communication by the minister responsible for employment policy.
may be granted a residence permit for guest workers.
Preferential employers are:
- ·strategic partners of the Government of Hungary,
- ·employers who are carrying out an investment of outstanding significance for the national economy of Hungary,
- ·employers who qualify as a partner under the Outstanding Exporter Partnership Programme.
Qualified temporary work agencies (i.e. lenders of labour force) are: employers who are registered in the Registry of qualified temporary work agencies as defined in Government Decree.
Definition of third-country nationals:
- ·Non-Hungarian nationals who are not persons with the right of free movement and residence, i.e. who are not EEA nationals or family members of an EEA national, and
- ·stateless persons
qualify as third-country nationals.
- 2)Where can clients submit their applications?
- I.Application for the issuance of a residence permit
- a)Application submission outside of Hungary
If your entry into Hungary does not constitute a visa-exempt travel, your application for the issuance of a residence permit is to be submitted outside of Hungary.
Your application may also be submitted only outside of Hungary, if you are allowed to enter the territory of Hungary visa free but you were a holder of a residence permit for guest workers, and the validity of your document expired; i.e. you are not applying for the issuance of a residence permit for guest workers for the first time.
You may submit an application before a diplomatic or consular foreign mission of Hungary in the country of your nationality or your habitual place of residence. Please be advised to contact the competent foreign mission of Hungary to inquire for further information, if there are any other places authorised to receive applications for a residence permit. Such application receiving places are constituted by e.g., honorary consuls, trade representations, and external service providers.
If there are not any consulates or other types of places receiving application in the country of your nationality or your habitual place of residence, in exceptional cases, you may submit an application in a country where you are staying legally provided that you provide proof of the reasons of your exceptional application submission.
Submitting an application for a visa separately is not required, as an application for the issuance of a residence permit comprises an application for a visa entitling its holder to collect a residence permit.
- b)Application submission within the territory of Hungary
When can an application for the issuance of a residence permit be submitted within the territory of Hungary?
If you are allowed to enter the territory of Hungary visa free due to your nationality, and you are not a holder of a residence permit, you may submit an application for the first time issuance of a residence permit for guest workers within the territory of Hungary as well.
You may submit an application in Hungary, as well, if you are a holder of a valid extended residence permit for guest workers, due to which the approved time of residence, maximised in three years by law, is about to expire.
Please note that in such a case, application submission is only available at least 40 days prior to the date of expiry of the residence permit concerned.
How can applications for a residence permit be submitted in Hungary?
Application submission in Hungary is available:
- ·by electronic means via the electronic information system and procedure initiation platform of Enter Hungary, which is available by clicking here, or
- ·in person, before the competent regional directorate of NDGAP as per the applicant’s place of accommodation. Contact details of the regional directorates and further information are available by clicking here.
Please note that application submission is available only via the Enter Hungary platform if your attorney-in-fact is a legal representative or a legal person.
- II.Application submission via an employer
Applications for the issuance of a residence permit for guest workers and for the extension of a residence permit for guest workers may also be lodged by an employer, if the concerned employee as applicant gives consent to such a process in a written declaration of consent and
- ·(s)he has not entered the territory of Hungary, or
- ·(s)he has entered the territory of Hungary visa free, is staying legally and is not a holder of a residence permit, or
- ·(s)he is a holder of a valid residence permit for guest workers, and wishes to apply for its extension.
Applications by an employer may be submitted only via the platform of Enter Hungary.
The platform of Enter Hungary is available by clicking here.
In cases when the application for a residence permit concerned is lodged via an employer, the client concerned is required to appear in person before the authority to facilitate taking the applicant’s facial photograph, recording his/her fingerprint and implementing other procedural conducts upon the request of the authority.
- III.Application for the extension of a residence permit
Submission of applications for the extension of a residence permit for guest workers is only available within the territory of Hungary, via the platform of Enter Hungary, which is available by clicking here.
Extension of a residence permit is only possible for a period not exceeding 3 years from the date of first issuance of the permit. If you wish to reside within the territory of Hungary with a residence permit for guest workers longer, you may submit an application for the issuance of a residence permit for guest workers in Hungary at least 40 days prior to the date of expiry of your residence permit.
Please note that if you wish to be employed by an employer other than the employer in relation to whom you were granted your currently valid residence permit, you are required to submit an application for the extension of a residence permit for guest workers.
Please be informed that the extension of the residence permit is only possible if
- ·you are a holder of a valid residence permit for guest workers at the time of application submission,
- ·you resided within the territory of Hungary with your residence permit at least for 90 days in any 180-day period.
Furthermore, please note that an application for the extension of a residence permit for guest workers is to be submitted at least 30 days prior to the date of expiry of the issued residence permit.
- 3)Additional information on application submission
For submission of an application in person, applicants are required to complete the application form correctly in full and to submit the completed document with their signature. The form is available by clicking here and the appendix here.
For submission of an application via the platform of Enter Hungary, the full and correct completion of the electronic application form is required, which is available on the platform. The platform of Enter Hungary is available by clicking here.
For the purpose of the issuance of a residence permit comprising biometric data, a facial photograph and fingerprint of the applicant will be taken.
An application submitted via the platform of Enter Hungary is deemed to have been received by the immigration authority, if the administrative service fee has been paid, and the facial photograph and fingerprint of the applicant is taken and signature specimen of the applicant is recorded within 15 days from the date of receipt. The immigration authority will send out a notification when your application is deemed to have been received.
- 4)Administrative service fee for the procedure
For information on administrative service fees for procedures, please click here.
- 5)What are the mandatory attachments/enclosures of an application?
For the approval of an application for a residence permit, the applicant is required to meet conditions for entry and residence in Hungary, during the procedures mandatory attachments/enclosures may serve as proof of meeting the set conditions.
Please make sure completion of the attachments/enclosures is in full and check all documents before submission, supporting the soonest possible processing and examination of the application.
Documents in proof of the purpose of residence
The following documents may serve as proof of the purpose of residence:
- ·a preliminary agreement on establishment of an employment relationship,
- ·a document on legal relationship of employment.
Documents in proof of means of subsistence in Hungary
One of the following documents must be submitted as proof that the applicant has sufficient resources, i.e. (s)he can cover costs related to his/her subsistence, accommodation, return/onward travel (i.e. exit from Hungary) and healthcare services from legally acquired income and savings:
- ·a preliminary agreement,
- ·a document on legal relationship of employment,
- ·a certificate from a credit institution under the applicant’s name (e.g. a bank account statement, an account statement on savings or stocks and bonds, bank balance statement),
- ·a document on regular income issued by the employer or the tax authority.
Documents proving that the applicant has a place of accommodation in Hungary
One of the following documents must be submitted as proof that the applicant is the owner of a residential property suitable for habitation, or (s)he has legal title to use such a real estate:
- ·a residential lease contract,
- ·a document on accommodation by courtesy,
- ·a document in proof of ownership of the residential property,
- ·a document in proof of the reservation of accommodation and payment for it,
- ·a certificate by the applicant’s employer declaring that the employer will provide for the applicant’s place of accommodation.
Documents proving that the applicant has health insurance
Documentary evidence must be submitted as proof that the applicant has access to comprehensive health insurance services covering all healthcare services or that (s)he can cover the costs of such services.
An applicant meets this condition in the following cases:
- ·(s)he qualifies as a person with health insurance services under social security,
- ·(s)he has access to the Hungarian health insurance services within the framework of an international convention/treaty or agreement,
- ·(s)he can cover the costs of his/her healthcare services based on documents in proof of his/her means of subsistence available in Hungary.
Documents proving that the applicant meets the conditions of exit (i.e. conditions to a return/onward travel)
Meeting the conditions of exit may be proved by:
- ·a valid passport,
- ·having a valid ticket/valid tickets for the relevant travel or the amount of money to cover the costs of the travel.
Other required documents
- ·Attaching/enclosing 1 facial photograph to/with the application is required.
In case of an extension, attaching/enclosing documents on unchanged conditions again is not required.
- 6)Other information in relation to the procedure
Applications for the issuance/extension of a residence permit for guest workers are examined under a single application procedure.
For detailed information on the single application procedure, please click here.
- 7)Time period of procedural administration
Time period for procedural administration: 21 days.
In addition to mandatory attachments/enclosures, NDGAP may request the submission of further documents for clarification of facts of the case or implement other procedural conducts.
The period for remedying deficiencies (e.g. submission of missing documents) and for the implementation of various other procedural conducts is not comprised in the time period of the procedural administration.
The authority acting on the application case adopts a decision as to merits within 60 days from the date of the submission of the application.
- 8)Receiving the residence permit document
If you submitted your application for a residence permit before a foreign diplomatic or consular mission of Hungary and the regional directorate approves your application for a residence permit, it shall constitute approval for the issuance of an entry visa entitling its holder to receive a residence permit, of which the competent Hungarian consulate shall be notified by the regional directorate.
The entry visa entitling its holder to receive a residence permit shall be issued by the competent consulate officer.
Please note that type D visa entitling their holder to receive their residence permits issued to third-country nationals are single-entry visas authorising a stay of not more than 30 days and are valid for 3 months.
Please note that if you do not enter the territory of Hungary within 3 months from the date of approval of the issuance of your residence permit and do not start your approved residence, the approved residence permit becomes invalid and the approval of your accrued right of entry and residence ceases.
A residence permit document shall be delivered by way of post to the address indicated as place of delivery in the application form.
If the application was submitted by an employer, the document shall be delivered to the employer, to the employer’s official contact address, in the absences thereof, to the employer’s place of establishment (i.e. registered address).
Please note that receiving your document before NDGAP’s regional directorate in person is only allowed, if you prove that you are not in a position to receive the document at the address indicated as place of delivery in your application.
- 9)How long is the validity period of the permit?
Validity period of the document is maximised in 2 years, and it may be extended for another year; however, its validity period may not exceed 3 years of time from the date of first issuance.
Please note that the authority shall determine the date of expiry of the residence permit in a way that the third-country national’s travel document shall be valid at least for another 3 months after the date of expiry of the approved residence.
- 10)Further information
- ·Submitting an application for a residence permit for another purpose within the territory of Hungary
During the validity period of a residence permit for guest workers and after its date of expiry, application for the issuance of a residence permit under another legal title is not allowed in Hungary.
Family members of a third-country national who is a holder of a residence permit for guest workers or an applicant for a residence permit for guest workers may not be granted a residence permit for family reunification.
Third-country nationals who are holders of a residence permit for guest workers may not be granted a national residence card.
In case of refusal, the decision may be appealed within 8 days of delivery, submitted to the authority of first instance, or at the Hungarian diplomatic or consular foreign mission where the application was submitted.
Please note that the authority shall dismiss the appeal without any examination as to merits in the following cases:
- the appeal is received after the deadline,
- the appeal is not submitted by an authorised person,
- the applicant introduces and refers to new facts of the case, of which (s)he was aware before the decision was adopted,
- the appeal is submitted without indicating its grounds or cause.
For information on reporting obligations, please click here.
