01/12/2007

Bulgaria and Romania have been admitted to the European Union (EU) effective January 1, 2007. Although the EU permits free movement within the EU by citizens of member countries, it allows existing member countries to impose transitional immigration and labor market restrictions on new or "accession" countries. The majority of EU member countries have opted to impose such restrictions on nationals of Bulgaria and Romania. Of the 15 pre-enlargement EU member countries (Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom), only Finland and Sweden have granted Bulgarian and Romanian nationals unrestricted access to their labor markets. However, of the 10 countries that acceded to the EU in 2004 (Czech Republic, Cyprus, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia), only Hungary has imposed restrictions.

EU countries that impose transitional restrictions must justify their decision to the European Commission (EC) initially and at intervals thereafter. The countries are allowed an initial period of two years to decide whether restrictions should continue and may be allowed up to five more years of restrictions. Restrictions may not be imposed for more than seven years in total. Countries that initially opt not to impose restrictions may do so at a later time.

Below are brief summaries of EU member countries' current positions toward Bulgarian and Romanian national workers.

Austria: Bulgarian and Romanian nationals continue to require work authorization as they did before accession. However, they are no longer required to obtain residence permits.

Belgium: Bulgarian and Romanian nationals are still required to obtain work permits before arriving in Belgium. This requirement will be in place at least until 2009. For occupations in which there is a labor shortage, there is a simplified work permit process for nationals of ten of the EU accession countries, including Bulgaria and Romania, which takes five working days. Each region in Belgium designates and publishes a list of shortage occupations.

Czech Republic: Bulgarian and Romanian nationals have unrestricted access to the labor market-no transitional restrictions have been imposed.

Cyprus: Bulgarian and Romanian nationals have unrestricted access to the labor market-no transitional restrictions have been imposed.

Denmark: Denmark has implemented a transitional plan for nationals of ten of the EU accession countries, including Romania and Bulgaria. Bulgarian and Romanian nationals may be granted Danish work permits if they hold full time employment (at least 30 hours per week) on collective bargaining contract conditions, or under standard wage and work conditions. A specific offer of employment or a signed employment contract between the foreign national and the employer is required, and the employer must be registered in compliance with the Danish Tax at Source Act, and must not be involved in a labor strike, lockout, or blockade.

Estonia: Bulgarian and Romanian nationals have unrestricted access to the labor market-no transitional restrictions have been imposed.

Finland: Bulgarian and Romanian nationals have unrestricted access to the labor market. However, they are required to register their residency status with the local police authority within 14 days of arrival.

France: Salaried Bulgarian and Romanian nationals continue to require work permits as before accession and must obtain residence permits for stays of 90 days or more. However, work permits will be issued automatically for jobs in designated fields in which there are shortages. Bulgarian and Romanian nationals may now establish companies or work on a self-employed basis without obtaining prior authorization; however, they must still obtain residence permits in these cases. Bulgarian and Romanian nationals no longer require work permits if they are employed by a Bulgarian or Romanian company and seconded to a French company to provide services.

Germany: Bulgarian and Romanian nationals no longer require a visa to enter Germany, but they do require a "work permit-EU" to work. The work permit will be valid for up to one year, after which time Bulgarian and Romanian nationals may obtain an unlimited work permit. After entering Germany, Bulgarian and Romanian nationals must register their place of residence and obtain a confirmation of free movement.

Greece: Bulgarian and Romanian nationals continue to require work permits as they did before accession. This restriction will be in place for at least 2 years.

Hungary: Bulgarian and Romanian nationals continue to require work permits, residence permits, and domicile registration as they did before accession.

Ireland: Bulgarian and Romanian nationals continue to require work permits and any job to be filled by such a national continues to be subject to a labor market test. However those Bulgarian or Romanian nationals and/or their dependents who are already in Ireland and have held a valid employment permit for an uninterrupted period of at least 12 months as of December 31, 2006 do not need an employment permit thereafter. Employers will be expected to satisfy their labor market requirements from within the European Economic Area (EEA) first and if this is not possible they will be expected to give preference to Bulgarian and Romanian nationals over non-EEA nationals.

Italy: Bulgarian and Romanian nationals may enter Italy freely with a valid passport to work 1) as managers or highly skilled workers; 2) in the agriculture, hotel/tourism, engineering, or construction industries; or 3) as seasonal, domestic, or autonomous workers. For all other types of workers, there is a simplified work permit process that will be in place for one year in order to monitor the labor market. This process entails completing a special work permit (nulla osta) application designed for new EU states and sending it by registered mail to the Sportello Unico at the Prefecture. The Prefecture will then issue the work permit. Once the work permit has been granted, Bulgarian and Romanian nationals are no longer required to apply for work visas in their home countries to enter Italy. Like nationals of other EU countries, all Bulgarian and Romanian nationals must apply for a residence permit (Carta di Soggiorno) at the local police office (Questura) or post office within 90 days of entry.

Latvia: Bulgarian and Romanian nationals have unrestricted access to the labor market-no transitional restrictions have been imposed.

Lithuania: Bulgarian and Romanian nationals have unrestricted access to the labor market-no transitional restrictions have been imposed.

Luxembourg: Bulgarian and Romanian nationals continue to require work permits as they did before accession. This restriction will be in place for at least 2 years. The application process has not changed. There is a simplified work permit application process for certain industries in which there is a labor shortage, including farming, wine production, and some areas of finance.

Malta: Bulgarian and Romanian nationals have unrestricted access to the labor market. However, they are required to obtain Employment Licenses before commencing employment. This requirement applies to all foreign nationals, but the process is simplified for nationals of EU member countries.

The Netherlands: Bulgarian and Romanian nationals require work permits that must be arranged prior to entering the Netherlands, as they did before accession. The application process has not changed. As before, only self-employed persons who qualify under the "Knowledge Migrant" category are exempt from the work permit requirement. For stays longer than three months, Bulgarian and Romanian nationals are required to obtain entry clearance visas and to register with local authorities.

Poland: Bulgarian and Romanian nationals have unrestricted access to the labor market. However, they must complete EU residence registration.

Portugal: Bulgarian and Romanian nationals continue to require work permits as they did before accession. This restriction will be in place for at least 2 years.

Slovakia: Bulgarian and Romanian nationals have unrestricted access to the labor market. However, they must complete EU residence registration.

Slovenia: Bulgarian and Romanian nationals have unrestricted access to the labor market-no transitional restrictions have been imposed.

Spain: Bulgarian and Romanian nationals continue to require work permits as they did before accession. This restriction will be in place for at least 2 years.

Sweden: Bulgarian and Romanian nationals have unrestricted access to the labor market-no transitional restrictions have been imposed.

United Kingdom (UK): Bulgarian and Romanian nationals must either obtain the appropriate authorization from the UK authorities, in the form of a registration certificate or an accession worker card, or demonstrate that they are exempt from this requirement. Those exempt include (but are not limited to) highly skilled workers; self-employed workers; workers providing services on behalf of an employer in another EEA country; and workers who are already in the UK and have held valid employment authorization for an uninterrupted period of at least 12 months as of December 31, 2006. Bulgarian and Romanian nationals are eligible to apply for accession worker cards if they intend to undertake certain categories of employment in the UK, such as an au pair placement, or if a UK employer first obtains approval for them under the existing work permit arrangements.

In preparing this article, Fragomen has worked closely with the firm of Nunziante Magrone (Milan); Olympia Critikou, Attorney-at-Law (Athens); Sagardoy Abogados (Madrid); Frederica Campos de Carvalho Abogados (Lisbon); Cabinet d'Avocat-Karl Waheed (Paris); and Relocation Enterprises (Rome). The content of this article is provided for informational purposes only.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the global immigration professional with whom you work at Fragomen Global Immigration Services.

Source: http://pubweb.fdbl.com/news1.nsf/c8abb103352ef95a86256e3100809438/28a948f838aa7a0685257261007a34fa?OpenDocument