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WORKING IN DENMARK

EXPLAINED: How can people overseas get an IT job in Denmark?

So you’ve got a degree in computer science, data analytics, or something similarly technical, you’re a new graduate or someone with a couple of years of work experience under your belt, and you fancy moving to Denmark to work. Where do you begin?

Published: 7 November 2022 17:23 CET
Updated: 26 February 2023 08:56 CET
People working at laptops
The government plans to make it easier for Danish companies to recruit abroad. Photo: Headway, Unsplash

Do I need a work permit to start working in Denmark?

The rules regarding residence and work in Denmark are administered by the Danish Immigration Service and The Danish Agency for International Recruitment and Integration (SIRI) under the Ministry of Immigration and Integration.

If you are from an EU/EEA country, you can freely enter Denmark and begin to work upon arrival without needing a permit to work. The case is different for those who are not EU citizens.

For these people, there are various ways to get a work permit, which can be found at nyidanmark.dk.

For most IT and tech-related jobs, internationals are employed through the Fast-track Scheme, Pay Limit Scheme or through the Positive List for People with a Higher Education, in which an IT education is listed.

The work permit is secured through proof of employment – a signed contract – and so you must find a job before you submit your work permit application. Once you have a work permit, you can apply for a residence permit.

A residence and work permit based on a job in Denmark allows your family to come with you to Denmark.  A permit can be granted to your spouse, registered or cohabiting partner as well as children under the age of 18 living at home.

Holding a residence permit as an accompanying family member to an employee in general allows you the right to work in Denmark. Therefore, you do not need to apply for a separate work permit if you get a job.

READ MORE: How can you get a work permit in Denmark if you are not an EU national?

If you are already in Denmark and have just completed an advanced degree – master’s level or higher – your residence permit as a non EU national will remain valid for an additional six months, allowing you to seek employment in Denmark.

How do IT consultants and other tech workers end up getting jobs in Denmark?

A large amount of IT workers come to work in Denmark as employees for the big Indian and global IT consultancies, such as Infosys, TCS, or Wipro, Accenture, Deloitte, or IBM. Once they are in Denmark, some then get hired by a local Danish company.

Others come to study for a Masters degree at a Danish university and then apply for a job, while some programmers and other skilled workers are hired directly by Danish employers either from their home country, or while working in another country in the EU.

READ MORE: What’s the difference between temporary and permanent residency in Denmark

So where do I begin my job search?

“LinkedIn is where you start,” Sheetal Ashar, a senior software engineer in Aarhus told The Local.

You can use LinkedIn’s job search tool to look for positions. The website will show you jobs that match keywords on your profile, but you can also customise search parameters to show you openings in specific cities, companies, or job titles. Setting your profile to public also means recruiters can contact you.

“I think a very clear and specific resume helps and you should write a cover let that highlights what you have done. Talking to recruiters can also help. If you look for the profile of the hiring manager and ask them what they are looking for, that enhances your chance to be noticed when you interview,” Ashar advised.

LinkedIn is where Ashar found her own job in Aarhus, after living in Denmark for a year looking after her son. She said the process was smooth and she now helps recruit for the company.

“We go to universities to hire student workers and interns, so if you find an opportunity like that you should go for it. We don’t pay but it can help build your network and you can find a job that way,”  she recommended.

Other IT companies can offer work visas to hire employees from abroad.

“My company sorted out the work permit for me and my family through the Fast-track scheme. I was never concerned about my work permit and extensions and I now have permanent residency in Denmark,”  Yogesh who works as a Senior IT Architect at in Aarhus, told The Local.

He moved from northern India with his wife and two children over eight years ago and first worked for Grundfos, after seeing a job advertised on LinkedIn.

“I was working with IBM in northern India where Arla is a client. While working on a project for them I got to know Denmark and the people who worked there and I loved everything about it. So I started looking for job openings where I could be part of a Danish organisation and by chance I saw a job opening at Grundfos, which I got,” Yogesh explained.

He has found that Danish companies have become increasingly international since he started working in the country.

“It is easier now than when I tried eight years ago to get a job, because a lot of internationals are part of Danish organisations and all organisations are focussing on diversity,” Yogesh said. This is something Sheetal Ashar has also noticed, particularly in Aarhus, where there are currently a lot of job opportunities for internationals in IT and technology.
 
Where else can I search for jobs?
‘The State of Denmark’ lists IT and tech-related jobs from companies across Denmark specifically suited for international candidates.
 
‘The State of Denmark’ campaign is part of the project ‘Talent to Denmark’ and is partly funded by the European Social Fund (ESF) and the Danish Board of Business Development. Their website also gives advice about Danish work culture and life in Denmark.

READ MORE: What foreign residents need to know about Denmark’s pension rules

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POLITICS

ANALYSIS: Is left-wing party’s EU election win good news for foreigners in Denmark?   

Denmark’s EU election returned a dream result for the Socialist People’s Party (SF), a centre-left opposition party. Could it have any long-term impact for foreigners who live in Denmark?

Published: 11 June 2024 18:58 CEST
ANALYSIS: Is left-wing party’s EU election win good news for foreigners in Denmark?   

What happened in the election? 

Sunday’s EU elections can be considered a huge win for the Socialist People’s Party (SF).

The party reeived 17.4 percent of the vote, up 4.2 points from 2019, making it the largest Danish party in the EU parliament and giving it 3 of Denmark’s 15 seats.

It also means SF now has as many EU parliament seats as the goverining Social Democrats, who lost 5.9 points to end on 15.6 percent, with their mandate allocation staying at 3.

The two parties are closely aligned in domestic Danish politics, despite SF currently being in opposition and the Social Democrats being the senior partner in a tripartite coalition with the centre-right Liberals (Venstre) and centrist Moderates.

Like the Social Democrats, the Liberals also had a damaging evening. The party lost 8.8 points and is now Denmark’s third-largest in the EU on 14.7 percent and 2 seats – 2 fewer than it had in 2019. However, they remain the largest Danish right-wing party in the EU by some distance, seeing off any challenge from the libertarian Liberal Alliance (LA) along with the far right. 

The Moderates, meanwhile, took a single seat in the EU parliament for their lead candidate Stine Bosse with a 5.9 percent share in their first EU election.

READ ALSO: Four key takeaways from the EU elections in Denmark

What is the potential impact on domestic politics? 

Speaking on election night, SF leader Pia Olsen Dyhr said the party’s excellent result could be used as a “catalyst” for a new political landscape in Denmark.

The EU election result can fuel further gains for SF when the next general election comes around, Dyhr said in the midst of her party’s celebrations.

“There’s an alternative to this government. There’s an alternative that wants [more] welfare and [to do more for] the climate and we are willing to deliver this in the EU parliament,” she told broadcaster DR.

“It gives us a tailwind and enthusiasm for the party and it means people will be even more ready for local elections next year and the general election further ahead,” she said.

During a press briefing on Monday, chief political analyst at Think Tank Europe Christine Nissen said that the resounding result for SF could indeed have implications for future national elections.

“We won’t see any direct results or change in government right away but there’s no doubt that the power balances are reflected in such a result as yesterday because it was so significant,” Nissen said, highlighting in particular the poor outcome for the Social Democrats.

“I think that looking towards the next national election, the Social Democrats might well have a very strong party on the left. And this will also matter,” she said.

During Prime Minister Frederiksen’s first term between 2019 and 2022, the Social Democrats ruled as a minority government propped up by parties to its left – including SF.

Theoretically, this structure or a similar one could return but with a stronger and more influential SF, if that party can transfer its European vote return to a national one. Neither the Social Democrats nor SF have given any hint of this happening, it should be noted.

Would a more influential SF change anything for foreigners?

The answer to this question is speculative, but SF and Social Democrats are generally allies. SF says it favours a “sensible” approach to immigration and in practice agrees with the Social Democrats more often than not.

SF has, occasionally, set out areas on which it does not agree with Social Democratic policies.

This has included accepting quota refugees from the UN – a question on which the Social Democrats eventually changed stance and agreed with SF.

The smaller party has also advocated more accommodating rules for family reunification of refugees, and opposed some controversial policies such as the “Jewellery Law” which was supported by the Social Democrats (but proposed by the Liberals).

On broad issues such as citizenship and residency permits, SF has not often broken with the Social Democrats during Frederiksen’s time in office – so much so, that the party has been criticised by its own youth wing for taking too tough a line on immigration.

While other left-wing parties like the Red-Green Alliance and Social Liberals, for example, want to change citizenship rules to better accommodate Danish-born non-citizens, SF is yet to explicitly support this.

On work permits, the party sometimes votes against rule adjustments that make it easier to hire from abroad (as can be seen here), ostensibly because one of its core identities is as a workers’ party which protects Danish labour. 

It is therefore far from certain, if SF had many more seats in parliament than it does today, that the party would pursue a significantly changed approach on immigration and integration.

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