Guidelines on Denmark Immigration

There are many good reasons for immigrate and looking for work in Denmark. Primarily, Denmark has an attractive working environment with calm and development-oriented functioning conditions. Danish corporate culture is characterized by a flat structure and an open conversation between management and employees.

Denmark’s most important competition parameter is know-how, which is reflected in both the work facilities and views on employee development. Workplaces attach considerable priority to competence development, and most offer ongoing supplementary training to their employees.

And it doesn’t just make sense to come to Denmark as a worker. Your family will also be offered good conditions here; it is a secure and safe country in which to live, and many foreigners also find there is good balance between family life and work when they come to Denmark. This is largely because the working week is only 37 hours, and because Danish employers generally respect family life.

In Denmark you are able to spend a relatively large amount of time with your family, and there are good possibilities for being professionally challenged artwork.

As a worker, how do I come to Denmark?

As a worker, you can come to Denmark either with or without a specific job offer in your hand. If you have a concrete job offer, you can obtain a work and residence permit if you meet one of the following three conditions:

• The job which you have been offered is included on the so-called Positive List.

• The salary you are being paid is min. DKK375, 000 p.a.

• You have been offered a job for which you are specially qualified.

In some cases, you may be required to first obtain Danish authorization, for example if you are employed as a nurse or doctor.

1. The Positive List:

If you have found work in one of the areas that is currently experiencing a shortage of qualified labor, e.g. as a doctor, IT specialist, engineer, lab technician etc., you will be granted a Danish residence and work permit immediately.

It is a requirement that your pay and contract of employment correspond to Danish standards, and that you have a concrete job offer.

2. Pay limit Scheme:

If you have agreed or been offered employment with an annual salary of min. DKK 375,000, you will also be granted a residence and work permit in Denmark.

3. The Green Card Scheme:

Even though you do not have a concrete job offer, it’s still possible to approach to Denmark to look for work. Here, you can be granted a residence permit exclusively on the basis of your qualifications. The residence permits granted following a personal evaluation based on a point system.

The points are awarded consistent with four criteria: Educational level, language skills, work experience and age. Bonus points are granted if you come from an acknowledged university, and if you have trained/qualified within one of the fields/professions included in the Positive list.

The residence and work permit is valid for three years and assumes you can support yourself throughout the entire period of your stay. The residence permit entitles you to both look for and accept work.

Can I study in Denmark?

Denmark is very keen to attract foreign students to the country. If you would like to study at a college of further education etc. in Denmark, you must have been granted a residence permit before your arrival in Denmark. To be granted a residence permit, you must be able to document:

• That you have been enrolled on a course of further education which is approved by a state authority or which is offered by a state approved educational institution.

• That you can support yourself during your stay, or that you have paid tuition fees.

• That you can speak and understand the language used to teach the course, and that you can speak and understand Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, English or German at a reasonable level.

Basically, as a foreign student, you can obtain a residence permit while you complete your studies/training in Denmark and for participating in part of the education/training as a guest student.

If you complete a higher educational programme in Denmark, you can also remain in the country for six months after you have finished your education/training in order to look for work. You will also be granted a permit to work 15 hours a week alongside your studies as well as for full-time work in June, July and August.

Can I bring my family in Denmark?

If you have been granted a residence permit on the basis of the Positive List, pay limit, Green Card scheme or as a student on a higher educational programme, your family can normally accompany you to Denmark. It is a requirement that your family can support itself throughout the entire period, and that you must all live at the same address.

Further information regarding Denmark Immigration:

You can find available jobs in Denmark at workindenmark.dk. From 1 October 2008, you can produce a CV which Danish employers can then use to match available jobs with your profile. You can read more about authorization for health professionals at the National Board of Health’s website; sundhedsstyrelsen.dk.

You can find more information about how you apply for a residence permit

• As a worker at newtodenmark.dk/work

• Under the Green Card scheme at newtodenmark.dk/green card

• As a student at newtodenmark.dk/studies

You can find contact information for the relevant offices at the Immigration Service at newtodenmark.dk/contact-dis.