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IMMIGRATION

Danish parliament rejects campaign to soften residence bill

Denmark’s political parties rejected Thursday an amendment to a bill further tightening rules on permanent residency, despite a prolonged campaign by lobbyists.

Published: 4 May 2017 22:21 CEST
Danish parliament rejects campaign to soften residence bill
People queue outside the Danish parliament at Christiansborg on 'Citizen Day', April 23rd 2017. Photo: Michael Bothager/Scanpix

With the unpopular bill L154 now passed, waiting times for foreigners in Denmark to apply for permanent residency now increase to eight years.

A previous extension to the minimum period before becoming eligible for residency from five to six years was passed as recently as 2016, meaning Denmark was already one of the strictest countries in Europe on the issue.

The new law also changes to require residency hopefuls work 3.5 out of four years prior to application for residency – a tightening on the previous requirement of 2.5 out of the last three years.

Danish legislative process requires all new bills to be read three times in parliament before they can be passed.

Previous amendments, including provisions for training and education amongst newcomers; and a key amendment requesting that the eight-year requirement only be applied to residence applicants who arrive after the new law comes into effect, were rejected at Tuesday’s second hearing.

A final amendment, asking for bill L154 to apply only to those who entered Denmark after January 1st 2016, was put forward by four of Denmark’s five opposition parties for the final hearing.

But Thursday’s vote saw the Social Democrats, the largest opposition party and the only one not to put forth the final amendment, vote against the amendment as it had done at the previous hearing.

This means the bill will now be passed in its original form.

READ ALSO: 'Leave country by June 10th': Denmark to American wife of astrophysicist

Naqeeb Khan, executive member of lobby group Danish Green Card Association, which campaigned against the bill from its inception in August 2016, told The Local that he was disappointed in the lack of support for the amendments.

“Firstly, we are extremely thankful to Josephine Fock of the Alternative party, the Social Liberal [Radikale Venstre] Sofie Carsten Nielsen, Johanne Schmidt-Nielsen of the Red-Green Alliance [Enhedslisten] and Holger K. Nielsen from the Socialist People’s Party for proposing the amendments.

“We are extremely disappointed with the Social Democrats, who we feel have betrayed the red block and the whole immigrant community. They cheer for the [US] Democrats who fight for undocumented immigrants while ignoring the existing legal highly qualified immigrants in Denmark,” Khan said.

Khan has previously spoken out against the bill, criticising it for disrupting lives and deterring valuable skilled workers from entering the Danish job market.

Last month, hundreds of expats gathered outside Copenhagen's parliament to demonstrate against the proposed curbs.

“We have democratically and peacefully protested against this bill for seven months. We met MPs, demonstrated in front of parliament, wrote articles, conducted seminars around Denmark and over 40 organisations wrote to parliament but none of our legal, justifiable and human rights were protected. We actually did this for Denmark because we believe that expats are part of Denmark's future,” he added.

The Local has contacted the Social Democrats for comment.

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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