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RESIDENCY PERMITS

Danish residence cards promised to ‘no surname’ foreign nationals

A number of foreign residents of Denmark have not been issued residence permit cards despite having legal status in the country, due to a technical issue related to the printing of their names.

Danish residence cards promised to 'no surname' foreign nationals
A detail from a Danish residence card. Photo: Michael Barrett/The Local

The Danish Agency for International Recruitment and Integration (SIRI) confirmed to The Local it has been unable to print residence permit cards when the applicants do not have a last name.

The agency also said that it has now found a solution to the problem and was working to clear a backlog of unissued residence cards.

The issue can affect foreign residents including people from regions of south India where naming conventions can mean a last name or family name is not given. As such, a significant number of legal residents of Denmark are currently without the correct documentation.

“I have lived in Denmark for more than six years, obtaining my PhD here too,” Raghavendra Selvan, an assistant professor and Computer Science researcher at the University of Copenhagen, told The Local.

“I am originally from south India, where a large portion of us do not have a last name or family name,” he said.

“We mainly have a given name and in some cases use the first name of our fathers as the last name. For instance, my given name is Raghavendra and my last name is my father’s given name ‘Selvan’. However, in my passport the field for last name is empty,” he explained.

“All my official records in Denmark now explicitly state this. So, my name is ‘Raghavendra Selvan Ej Efternavn’ [“no surname” in Danish, ed.],” he said.

A Statistics Denmark search shows over 500 Danish residents with their last name registered as Ej Efternavn.

A screenshot showing a search for “Ej Efternavn” (‘No Surname’) in Denmark’s national statistics base.

SIRI confirmed to The Local that technical problems had prevented residence cards from being produced in cases in which surnames are not stated on passports.

However, SIRI said a solution had now been found and that residents who remain without cards will be issued with them “as soon as possible”.

“There has been challenges with issuing residence cards to foreigners with no surname,” SIRI said in a written statement.

“SIRI has now in cooperation with our supplier, Thales, found a solution, which is currently being implemented,” the agency said.

No specific timeline was given by the agency for delivery of residence cards to those affected by the issue.

“Due to a backlog, we still expect some further delay before all cards can be ordered, printed and issued,” SIRI said. 

“In cooperation with Thales, we will do our best to ensure that all cards will be issued as soon as possible,” the agency told The Local.

The issue with the residence cards means affected persons are required to apply for a re-entry permit whenever they leave Denmark, which can complicate travel.

READ ALSO: Danish authority warns of delivery delays on residence cards

“I have been waiting for my card since December 2020, that’s close to 18 months since I received my decision and about 20 months since the application itself,” Raghavendra Selvan said.

“I am now having to apply for a re-entry permit every three months to be able to travel outside Denmark,” he added.

“Having to get a re-entry permit every three months is annoying, and traveling outside Denmark when the re-entry permit is about to expire is extremely stressful,” he said.

The computer science researcher said that he had previously been advised to change his name in his passport in order to fix the issue.

“While I understand it is uncommon to not have a last name… asking all of us to change our name is not the best solution to this problem. This also reflects poorly on how Denmark is unable to accommodate diversity in names into its systems,” Raghavendra Selvan said.

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RESIDENCY PERMITS

Denmark confirms new residence scheme for students in key labour areas

New rules are set to be introduced in Denmark allowing continued residence in the country for students in some cases, if a previous permit expires.

Denmark confirms new residence scheme for students in key labour areas

Parliament on Tuesday adopted new rules which pave the way for a new residence scheme related to enrolment in education, the Agency for International Recruitment and Integration (SIRI) said in a statement.

The scheme allows foreign nationals to continue their residence and education in Denmark in some cases if they lose their residence rights.

Under the new rules, students in subjects where Denmark is experiencing a labour shortage will be able to remain in Denmark using the scheme, even if the original basis for their residence rights no longer applies.

It comes into effect on July 1st, SIRI said in the statement.

Foreign nationals who could benefit from the scheme but have already lost their residence rights, or will lose them before July 1st, could also be given permission to remain in the country if they were enroled on a qualifying course at the time their previous residence permit expires.

One of the conditions for eligibility under the scheme is that the extension of the original residence permit was rejected or revoked, or the student’s right of residence in Denmark under EU rules was found to have expired, in the period between July 1st 2020 and June 30th 2024, SIRI states.

People granted new residence permits under the scheme will be given a maximum of six months’ continued residence after they complete their studies in order to find a job.

Although SIRI does not specify in the statement the job types which would qualify as being in areas of labour shortage, this is usually a matter for the  Arbejdsmarkedsbalancen or “labour market balance”, prepared biannually by the Danish Agency for Labour Market and Recruitment.

The Arbejdsmarkedsbalancen lists which job titles are currently experiencing severe labour shortages, labour shortages, which are employable, and which are less employable.

READ ALSO: The new job titles which could get you a residency permit in Denmark

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