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IMMIGRATION

Denmark is EU’s second most expensive country for residency application

Denmark is second in a survey which compares the costs of applying for permanent residency in EU countries, as the UK prepares to begin negotiations to leave the bloc.

Published: 12 June 2017 15:12 CEST
Denmark is EU's second most expensive country for residency application
Photo: Iris/Scanpix

For citizens of countries outside the EU, application fees for permanent residency for EU countries can represent a significant outlay when starting out in a new country.

A survey carried out by internet group CupoNation shows that Denmark is the second-most expensive country for work or study-based permanent residence applications, with fees of 5,760 kroner (772 euros) second only to Lithuania.

In comparison to its Scandinavian neighbours, Denmark is noticeably more expensive. Permanent residence fees are 1,000 Swedish kronor (102 euros) and 2,100 Norwegian kroner (222 euros) in Sweden and Norway respectively.

Criteria for permanent residency also vary significantly between each country, with various minimum periods of living and working required before non-nationals become eligible for permanent residency.

Earlier this year, the Danish parliament passed an unpopular proposal further tightening requirements for residency, with the eight-year period now required making it one of Europe’s strictest countries on the issue.

READ ALSO: Danish parliament rejects campaign to soften residence bill

Danish residency requirements also include provisions on age, employment, language, and criminal records.

The cost of applying for permanent residency in EU countries is a relevant issue in light of the expected start of negotiations between the United Kingdom and the EU on the former’s withdrawal to leave the union, CupoNation’s digital marketing manager Jeppe Jepsen told The Local.

With the UK’s future relationship with the EU uncertain, and other countries having raised the idea of leaving the EU, the economic outlook for those who may suddenly find themselves without EU citizenship is an issue that deserves accessible data, Jepsen wrote in an email.

The extent to which the UK will retain free movement and trade with EU countries has arguably become less certain after last week’s general election in the country, in which Prime Minister Theresa May, who has advocated a “Hard Brexit”, lost her parliamentary majority, leaving her future as PM in doubt.

READ ALSO: Denmark passes dual citizenship bill

A Hard Brexit would prioritise giving Britain full control over its borders, making new trade deals and applying laws within its own territory, at the possible expense of access to the EU single market.

The negotiations, which were scheduled to begin next week, may yet be delayed by the election result in the UK.

Should Britain exclude itself from the EU completely, fees for permanent residence applications could become an unwanted side effect for UK citizens basing themselves abroad.


Graphic: CupoNation

Correction: A previous version of this article erroneously stated in one paragraph that the 5,760 DKK fee was related to citizenship applications. It applies only to work or study-based residency applications.

IMMIGRATION

Danish watchdog slams ‘deteriorating’ conditions at Kærshovedgård asylum facility

Denmark’s parliamentary ombudsman has concluded that conditions at the Kærshovedgård ‘departure centre’ for rejected asylum seekers have worsened and should be improved.

Published: 26 April 2024 17:14 CEST
Danish watchdog slams 'deteriorating' conditions at Kærshovedgård asylum facility

Conditions at the centre, which is used to accommodate people who have no residency rights in Denmark, are so poor that they prevent residents from “living life”, the ombudsman said in a statement released on Friday.

The criticisms are based in an inspection of the centre by the parliamentary watchdog in autumn 2023.

Conditions are described as being “a heavy burden and limit on basic living, and this to an even greater extent than before in relation to the general security situation at the departure centre”.

Located 13 kilometres from Ikast in Jutland, the Kærshovedgård facility is one of two deportation centres in Denmark used to house rejected male and female asylum seekers who have not agreed to voluntary return, as well as persons with so-called ‘tolerated stay’ (tålt ophold) status.

The residents do not have permission to reside in Denmark but many cannot be forcibly deported because Denmark has no diplomatic relations or return agreements with their home countries.

READ ALSO: New film reveals life at Denmark’s controversial deportation centre

Kærshovedgård houses people who have not committed crimes but have no legal right to stay in Denmark, for example due to a rejected asylum claim; as well as foreign nationals with criminal records who have served their sentences but are awaiting deportation.

It first became prominent in the mid-2010s, when it received criticism for imposing conditions that could lead to mental illnesses in residents.

Current conditions at the facility were not found to breach any conventions, the ombudsman concluded.

However, the inspectors were “of the impression that residents experience greater feelings of insecurity at the departure centre [and there is] a lot of crime including the sale of narcotics.”

“Additionally, the atmosphere at the departure centre carries a sense of deterioration and a significant number of residents have addiction problems,” the ombudsman statement said.

The ombudsman also observed that, since a previous visit in 2017, “there has been a change in the composition of residents in that people who have a deportation [criminal, ed.] sentence and who did not previously live at Kærshovedgård now make up the largest group at the location”.

READ ALSO: Relocation of women from Danish expulsion centre ‘could take months’

Measures should be taken to improve the situation, the ombudsman said.

“The security situation for the residents of Kærshovedgård appears to have worsened since the ombudsman’s last visit, and this is a development that should be rectified,” the ombudsman, Niels Fenger, is quoted in the statement.

“These are people who are required by the authorities to stay at Kærshovedgård, so the departure centre must be ensured to be a safe place to stay”, he said.

A recommendation is also made in the ombudsman report for new residents at Kærshovedgård to be screened for suicide risk.

Human rights organisations Danish Institute Against Torture and the Danish Institute for Human Rights were also present at the ombudsman inspection of Kærshovedgård. 17 residents with “tolerated stay” status were interviewed and the general conditions observed.

The parliamentary ombudsman (Folketingets Ombudsmand) is a lawyer appointed by parliament to review complaints against public authorities. The full statement on the Kærshovedgård inspection can be seen (in Danish) here.

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