Immigration News January 2021

7 January 2021

The Danish parliament has passed a bill which introduces a number of changes to the Danish Aliens’ Act. The changes affect several of the work schemes administered by SIRI. Please keep posted on the changes on SIRI’s website, as not all changes have been published yet.

1. From 1 January 2021, a Danish bank account is needed for most work schemes (non-EU) (exceptions apply).
2. The Danish bank account must be created no later than 90 days after the Danish residence and work permit was granted, or 90 days after the employee enters Denmark, whichever happens last. A foreign national, who already holds a residence permit valid for no less than 30 days at the point of application is not included in the 90-day deadline.
3. The requirement that salary must be paid to a Danish bank account does not apply to a foreign national, who is granted a residence permit under the Positive List for the Highly Educated, as a researcher, or under the researcher track of the Fast-track scheme, if the stay in Denmark does not exceed one stay within a period of 12 months and does not exceed 180 days from the day of entry.
4. From 1 January 2021, for non-EU nationals, it will no longer be possible to employ a family member in the same company as the main applicant, unless a separate work permit application is lodged for the family member. It is a condition that the employment is for a minimum of 30 hours per week and wages/conditions follow the standards of the Danish labour market. A governmental application fee and biometrics recording are not required for this application type.

Other relevant information

• As per 1 January 2021, the governmental application fees have been increased for the Pay Limit/Fast Track schemes for both the main applicant (DKK 4295) and accompanying family members (DKK 1680).
• The minimum salary limit in place for the Pay Limit/Fast-track schemes has been increased as per 1 January 2021 and is now set at DKK 445,000 per annum/ DKK 37,083.33 per month gross.
• SIRI has published a new Positive List for the Highly Educated and for Skilled Work. The new list is valid from 1 January 2021 to 30 June 2021.
• SIRI’s processing time for most non-EU applications is still delayed for most schemes, except for Fast Track.
• SIRI is currently implementing new residence cards due to changed EU rules. This is causing delays, which should be resolved during the month of January 2021.
• Travel and entry restrictions remain in force due to the COVID crisis – we advise that you keep updated via the police web pages as restrictions may change on a daily basis. Please also feel free to contact your Deloitte representative for travel advice.
• The online application process for the new residence status for UK nationals, who had taken up residence in Denmark prior to 31 December 2020 has now been launched. UK nationals are required to follow the guidelines sent via their e-Boks in December 2020 as to which month in 2021 they can lodge their application. Commuters that are eligible to apply will not be notified via e-Boks and can apply from January 2021, as long as they can document that they were commuters before 31 December 2020.