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RESIDENCY PERMITS

How to move to Denmark as a citizen of an EU country

EU citizens have the right to live and work in Denmark under EU free movement, but certain bureaucratic steps are required.

Published: 1 February 2024 15:50 CET
How to move to Denmark as a citizen of an EU country
What steps do you need to take as an EU national moving to Denmark? Photo: Mads Claus Rasmussen/Ritzau Scanpix

There are several different ways in which a foreign citizen can be granted residency in Denmark.

The broad categories are residency covered by the EU’s rules on freedom of movement; residency permits for people from third countries working or studying in Denmark or for family reunification; and asylum granted to people fleeing from war or persecution.

This article is specifically focused on the rules for EU citizens and is a broad introduction to the rules and process – we cannot make any guarantees about the outcome of applications and you should contact the relevant authorities if you have questions specific to your individual case.

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Generally, all EU nationals who exercise their EU free movement rights to move to Denmark are required to obtain an EU registration certificate (EU-registreringsbevis).

It’s worth keeping in mind that EU (or EEA, or Swiss) citizens can stay in Denmark for up to three months without the registration certificate, or for six months if applying for work. The three or six months begin from the date of entry into the country.

Citizens of Nordic countries (Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden) are not required to obtain a registration certificate.

It’s worth keeping in mind that free movement rules mean you can begin working or studying from your first day in the country, while you are waiting for the registration to be processed.

Why do I need to register in Denmark?

Generally, then, EU nationals staying in Denmark for three months or longer must apply for an EU residence document (EU-registreringsbevis in Danish), sometimes referred to as a registration certificate.

As a citizen of an EU member state, you have the right to live, work or study in Denmark and do not need the document for this. However, the document is proof that you meet the grounds for residence under EU rules.

As such, it is an important piece of because you need it to be added to Denmark’s civil registry to get CPR number, the equivalent of a social security number which allows you to register an address, use the public health system, open a bank account and more.

In order to be eligible for the EU residency document, you must fulfil one of a list of criteria: you must be in employment for at least 10-12 hours a week; run or be about to establish a business; be a registered student; have sufficient personal wealth to be able to provide for yourself; or be a family member or dependent of an EU or EEA citizen living in Denmark.

People who fall into the latter category can live in Denmark under EU rules even if they themselves are not EU citizens. 

To apply for the registration document, you must submit an application with the Danish Agency for International Recruitment and Integration (SIRI). The agency has branch offices in seven locations across Denmark: Copenhagen, Aarhus, Odense, Aalborg, Esbjerg, Sønderborg and Bornholm. 

How do I do this?

You can apply online but, if you are applying for the first time, must also attend an in-person appointment at one of SIRI’s offices.

If you prefer, you can also fill out a printable form and bring it with you to your appointment at SIRI.

Both the online application portal and printable forms can be found here, and the same page has a link through which you can book an appointment at the SIRI office of your choosing.

You will need to provide relevant documentation: both personal identification and documentation for your residence in Denmark, for example an employment agreement or university enrolment. It may be possible to submit these online if you choose the online application.

There is no fee for the application and the processing time is up to 30 days, according to SIRI’s website. This is extended to up to 90 days if you are a family member of an EU national who lives in Denmark.

Once you have received your EU registration certificate, you can apply for a personal registration (CPR) number and accompanying yellow health service card at an International Citizen Service (ICS) centre. As mentioned above, the CPR number is key to accessing Danish social and health services as well as for private matters like Danish bank accounts and phone contracts.

There are ICS centres in Copenhagen, Aarhus, Odense, Aalborg, Esbjerg and Sønderborg.

After five years’ uninterrupted, legal residence in Denmark under free movement, you become eligible for permanent residency.

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For members

WORK PERMITS

EXPLAINED: How to apply for a work permit in Denmark as an intern

Want to intern at the elite restaurant Noma, at the architecture firm Bjarke Ingels Group, as a vet or as a nurse? Here's what you need to know.

Published: 28 March 2024 14:51 CET
EXPLAINED: How to apply for a work permit in Denmark as an intern

Denmark has a special scheme for foreigners offered work in the country as interns, with different rules for those employed in architecture, healthcare, farming or veterinary jobs, or other sectors such as the natural sciences, technical fields, the pharmaceutical sector, or culture.

As an intern, you can get a permit to work in Denmark and a residency permit without having to earn any salary whatsoever, let alone secure the generous pay levels required to qualify for the Pay Limit Scheme. 

But you do have to meet the conditions put in place, to prevent unscrupulous employers using the internship permit to bring low cost labour to the country. 

You can find an English language guide to internships on the website of the Danish Agency for International Recruitment and Integration (Siri). 

READ ALSO: Danish work permit agency changes practice for hotel and restaurant interns

Who is eligible to get a work permit as an intern? 

You need to be between the ages of 18 and 35 (or 18 and 30 for some sectors), and you normally need to be studying a relevant subject in your home country or current country of residence .

In some cases you can already have recently graduated and in some cases you can be studying a subject not related to the internship, but if this is the case you need to show that you have passed a semester’s worth of courses in a relevant subject. 

If your internship is unpaid, you normally need to show that you have at least 6,820 kroner a month to support yourself over the period.

If your internship is paid, your salary must be at least 6,820 kroner per month, which has to be stated in the standard contract, and paid into a Danish bank account in a bank operating legally in Denmark.

Be aware that opening a Danish bank account can be difficult, with applicants normally needing to have a Danish address and CPR personal number. If you are having trouble you can apply for a basic payments account.

What qualifications do I need to show or paperwork do I need to provide? 

The rules are different depending on which sector you intend to carry out your internship in. 

Agricultural, horticulture, forestry or veterinary 

If you plan to intern in the agricultural, horticulture, forestry or veterinary sectors, you need to show that you have passed a language test in English, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian or German at the A2 level or higher, in Common European Framework of Reference for Languages scale.

This is a very basic level, described in the CEFR as enough to communicate “very basic personal and family information, shopping, local geography, employment”. 

For English language tests offered by IELTS, the Danish Agency for International Recruitment and Integration (SIRI) accepts test scores from 3.0, and for English tests from TOEFL, scores at Studieprøven level (C1 CEFR level). You will need to send the results certificate along with your application. 

To qualify for an internship in these sectors you also need to be studying a relevant subject in your home country, or the country where you have residency, and the internship also needs to be timed to coincide with where you are in the course, for instance as a practical element following more theoretical ones. 

“We compare the content of your educational programme with the job tasks which you will be carrying out during the internship,” Siri writes in its guide to internships. 

You cannot be more than 30 years old for an internship in these sectors. 

Interns in these sectors do not need to provide proof that they can support themselves. 

Healthcare 

There are no language requirements for an internship in the healthcare sector, and for medical interns there is no upper age limit (although an age limit of 35 applies for other healthcare interns). 

The internship must be related to the educational programme you are studying in your home or another country, and you need to submit an authorised translation of the list of courses you have studied, along with your application. 

You can receive an internship in healthcare even if your studies have recently been completed, but you must show that the internship is a continuation of your studies and relevant to the future role you intend to take on. 

If you have completed your studies, you should include documentation of any work experience you have had since completing your studies. 

If your internship is unpaid, you need to show that you have at least 6,820 kroner a month to support yourself over the period, which you can document with a bank statement or a copy of a scholarship certificate. It is not enough for someone else, such as a parent, to say they will support you. 

Architecture 

To be eligible for a work permit in the architecture sector, you cannot have completed your education and cannot be more than 35 years old. 

The internship must be related to the educational programme you are studying in your home or another country, and you need to submit an authorised translation of the list of courses you have studied, along with your application. 

If your internship is unpaid, you also need to show that you have at least 6,820 kroner a month to support yourself, which you can document with a bank statement or a copy of a scholarship certificate. It is not enough for someone else, such as a parent, to say they will support you. 

Which employers are eligible to take interns?

Employers need to be approved to take interns, either through a prior praktikpladsgodkendelse, or “place of internship approval”, or through sending detailed documentation to Siri on what the internship will consist of, including details of who will be supervising the intern, and prior experience the firm has with taking on interns or trainees. 

All public hospitals in Denmark are approved as places of internship.

If you are planning on interning at a Danish architecture firm, the firm must use the standard “Internship Agreement and Guidelines” issued by DANSKE ARK, the Danish association of Architectural Firms, and the Danish Union of Architects and Designers.

Architecture firms do not need to receive a separate praktikpladsgodkendelse but when filling in the standard contract, need to state the number of fully-trained architects and number of interns working at the firm. 

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