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WHAT CHANGES IN DENMARK

KEY POINTS: What changes about life in Denmark in July 2023?

Cool off to summer jazz, a lot of Denmark goes on annual leave, textiles must be recycled and possible changes to a work permit list. These are some of the things to look out for in Denmark next month.

Published: 28 June 2023 15:27 CEST
Updated: 30 June 2023 17:03 CEST
KEY POINTS: What changes about life in Denmark in July 2023?
The Copenhagen Jazz Festival should help give the capital a summery vibe this month. Photo: Kristoffer Juel Poulsen, www.jazz.dk

Recycle your old jeans and dishcloths

From July 1st, textiles are added to food, plastic and paper as types of waste which must be sorted separately for recycling.

While old dishcloths or holed socks could previously be thrown out with regular waste, they must be sorted separately from now on, the Ministry of Environment said in a press statement.

“Too many clothes and textiles end up getting burned as general waste. We can do something about this when we sort a ruined top or carpet so it can get a new life,” Environment Minister Magnus Heunicke said in the statement.

Implementation of the new sorting rules will be determined by local authorities. This may have already taken place in some municipalities.

READ ALSO: Denmark adds textiles to list of waste to be sorted for recycling

Laughing gas broadly banned

People who use laughing gas in Denmark could receive a fine from police under new rules that come into force on July 1st.

The law bans the use of nitrous oxide, commonly known as laughing gas, in public places and also forbids its sale. Police can fine people who are found to be carrying nitrous oxide at places like music festivals, night clubs or places of education.

Fines of 3,000-5,000 kroner can be given for possession of laughing gas in public under the new law while selling the substance can elicit a fine of as much as 50,000 kroner.

READ ALSO: Denmark bans sales and public use of laughing gas

Copenhagen Jazz Festival 

The streets of Copenhagen will hum with the groovy sound of summer jazz as the latest edition of the Copenhagen Jazz Festival begins on June 30th and continues for ten days until July 9th.

The annual festival is unique in that it does not have a specific location, but is played out in parks, on squares and in bars (and, of course, jazz clubs) across the capital. The size of the venues ranges equally from intimate and spontaneous to major concert halls.

Over 1,200 concerts are scheduled to take place and you can check out the programme on the event’s website.

School (and work) is out for summer 

Denmark’s primary and lower secondary schools are already on their summer holidays, with the school year having ended on Friday, June 23rd for a full seven weeks. 

Universities tend to break up a week later, with Copenhagen University’s spring semester ending on June 30th, and Aarhus University and the University of Southern Denmark both scheduling their last exams for June 30th. 

Many people who work for Danish employers also take a considerable chunk of their annual leave in July, with annual vacation rules providing for ample time off during the month.

READ ALSO: What are the rules for taking annual leave in Denmark?

DSB’s summer travel pass can be used in most of July 

The popular summer ticket scheme rejsepas from rail operator DSB is back for the fourth year in a row. The ticket gives the holder free access to all public transport in Denmark for eight consecutive days between June 24th and August 20th.

The ticket cannot be used in the very busiest summer period between July 22nd and July 30th, but the rest of the month is fair game.

The pass can be used on all DSB trains, as well as on Arriva buses and trains, one the Copenhagen Metro and S-train, on the Letbane in Aarhus and Odense, and on local rail services.

It costs 399 kroner for adults, who can bring two children under 12 with them for free. The pass costs 199 kroner for children aged 12-15 or otherwise not travelling under an adult ticket. 

Sales of the pass are limited to 75,000 but DSB’s website is still showing availability at the time of writing.

READ ALSO: How to get (almost) free travel on Danish trains in summer 2023

Update to Positive List

The Positive List is a list of professions for which immigration authorities can issue work permits because Denmark is experiencing a shortage of qualified professionals in those fields.

People who are offered a job included in the Positive List can apply for a Danish residence and work permit based on the Positive List Scheme. An educational background in the relevant field is required.

The Positive List Scheme is one of a number of business schemes used to grant work permits for non-EU and EEA nationals who are unable to move to Denmark under the EU’s right to free movement.

The list is updated twice a year, on January 1st and July 1st.

The updated lists can be viewed on the website of the Danish Agency for International Recruitment and Integration (SIRI).

Changes to Denmark’s immigration rules were meanwhile introduced by parliament earlier this year. The changes were designed to make it easier to for companies to hire internationally, and added more job titles to the Positive List for People with Higher Education.

READ ALSO: How have work permit rules been changed in Denmark?

Tax deadline for businesses

If you are a business owner in Denmark you must register your results for 2022 at the beginning of July.

Information submitted up to and including July 1st will be considered submitted on time, the tax authority SKAT states on its website.

Companies whose accounting years run to December 31st can submit 2022’s results until August 23rd, the tax authority SKAT states on its website, after the original deadline of June 30th was extended.

Self-employed people are still bound by the July 1st deadline.

READ ALSO: So you missed Denmark’s July 1st tax deadline. Now what? (2021)

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WHAT CHANGES IN DENMARK

KEY POINTS: What changes about life in Denmark in May 2024?

Sirens (including on smart phones) to be tested, deadline for tax returns, national holidays and a Copenhagen Marathon enjoying record popularity are among events and changes coming this month in Denmark.

Published: 29 April 2024 17:20 CEST
Updated: 1 May 2024 11:38 CEST
KEY POINTS: What changes about life in Denmark in May 2024?

Sirens and mobile alert to be tested on May 1st

Each May, Denmark tests the sirens that authorities can use to warn the population if there is an emergency situation.

The 2024 test is scheduled to take place as usual at noon on the first Wednesday of the month – which this year also means the first day of the month, Wednesday May 1st.

A test of a digital warning system, first introduced last year, will also be tested in 2024. The digital system allows authorities to send siren sounds and warning messages to smartphones.

Last year’s version of the digital test did not reach everyone due to it only being compatible with certain phone updates. So you may find you receive this year even if you did not in 2023.

Anyone with a smart phone connected to the Danish network can expect to receive the test siren and message on their devices on May 3rd at 12pm.

The physical and digital test sirens are sent out by the Danish Emergency Management Agency (Beredskabsstyrelen or DEMA) and the Danish National Police. More information can be found in English (and 10 other languages) on the DEMA website.

Deadline for finalising tax returns

Denmark’s tax authority SKAT opened access to annual tax returns on March 11th.

Annual tax returns (årsopgørelser) in Denmark cover calendar years. They are released in March and finalised in late spring, meaning taxpayers have this period to correct the information on their tax returns from the previous calendar year.

The tax returns encompass income over the preceding tax year as well as deductions and subsidies.

Normally, around three in four people receive money back from the tax authorities once their return is finalised. The amount paid back varies and depends on individual circumstances, and others may owe money to the tax system.

Rebates from the tax system are sent from mid-April onwards but the final deadline for updating information on the returns is May 1st. This means that, at the time of writing, you still (just about) have time to check whether your return is correct and update any information.

READ ALSO: 

Public holidays and other days off in May

Great Prayer Day or Store Bededag is no longer a national holiday (and fell in April this year anyway) but there are still a few dates to highlight in the diary for time off work.

Ascension Day, Kristi Himmelfartsdag in Danish, is less than two weeks after Great Prayer Day on Thursday May 9th.

Many Danes take the Friday after Ascension Day as annual leave, giving them a four-day weekend at the cost of only one day of leave.

Then there’s Whitsunday and Whitmonday, known in Danish as Pinsedag and 2. Pinsedag. These fall on May 19th and 20th respectively, so that’s another three-day weekend in the middle of the month.

Meanwhile, Labour Day on May 1st is not a public holiday in Denmark – unlike in the other Nordic countries – but many of Denmark’s workers do have the day off (sometimes half a day), provided by their collective bargaining agreements.

READ ALSO: Why isn’t May 1st a public holiday in Denmark but is in Sweden and Norway?

Switch to summer tyres (if you haven’t already)

Alternating between winter and summer tyres is not a legal requirement in Denmark, but is broadly recommended, including by FDM, the Danish membership organisation for motorists.

Neighbouring Sweden, Norway and Germany – where many Danish residents head on skiing and other holidays during the colder months – all have rules requiring winter tyres, meanwhile, meaning the practice is common in Denmark, not least for those who may need to take their cars over the border.

Most people switch back to summer tyres at Easter, which this year fell on April 9th. But the weather was still quite wintry during the early part of April, so some car owners may have held out a little longer.

More about the practice of using winter and summer tyres in Denmark can be found in this article.

Copenhagen Marathon ready to go amid massive spike in interest

The Copenhagen Marathon takes place on Sunday May 7th, so if you’re planning to drive or take a bus through parts of the capital that day you should plan ahead to avoid disruption.

The 42.2-kilometre route through the city includes a start and finish area at Øster Allé near Fælledparken. It will take marathoners past Tivoli, Christiansborg and Kongens Nytorv, as well as the charred remains of the old stock exchange, Børsen.

The marathon takes in each of Copenhagen’s central districts: Vesterbro, the Inner City, Østerbro, Frederiksberg and Nørrebro.

There’s usually a great energy along the route, with Nørrebrogade near Dronning Louises Bro (Bridge) and much of Østerbro, particularly around the Trianglen junction, among good places to lend your support.

This year could be a classic edition of the event: there’s been a surge in interest in the sport in recent years, and this year’s Copenhagen Marathon has been sold out for months – something that has not previously happened in the event’s history.

READ ALSO: Why has the Copenhagen Marathon seen a jump in popularity?

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