Immigration Laws in Denmark

Denmark is constantly ranked among the world’s best performing economies. The country has a high GDP, which in turn makes life of its residents prosperous, as well as attracts people from around the world to migrate here. Apart from that, the beauty of this richest Scandinavian country also makes it a favorite destination for people who want to migrate to a foreign land.

Unlike other European Union (EU) countries, Denmark has a comparatively welcoming immigration policy. Citizens of European Union, European Economic Area (EEA) nations and Switzerland can migrate to Denmark, work and live here without a visa. Foreign nationals outside this region need to obtain work and residence permit to migrate to Denmark. Below are some routes through which foreign nationals outside EEA can migrate into Denmark, and the norms associated with them.

Family based sponsorship
As per the Danish Aliens Act, foreign nationals who have obtained permanent residence in Denmark can sponsor their family members for residence permit in Denmark. The Danish immigration service requires the sponsoring residents to submit the documents proving that they are related to the person whom they are sponsoring.

Posted Employees
Posted employees are those foreign nationals who have been expatriated by a foreign enterprise to Denmark on temporary basis. Posted employees are allowed to work in Denmark as per their enterprises’ terms of contract; however, they are required to follow certain Danish legislations as well. Additionally, migrants with posted employees’ status need to apply for residence permit like people on other migration status.

Employment based sponsorship

If an immigrant is employed in a full-time job in Denmark, he will be regarded as native Danish employee, and will be governed under all aspects mentioned in the mandatory Danish Employment laws. The government offers different work and residence permit visas for such immigrants. Here is a brief overview of these programs.

• Danish Green Card scheme: Under this scheme, foreign nationals can apply for work and residence permit in Denmark, without a job offer from a Danish employer. Danish Green Card allows immigrants to stay in Denmark for up to 3 years and find work here. The visa process requires candidates to score a minimum 100 points in a point-based selection system based on factors such as age, education, work experience, language skills, etc.
   
• Positive List scheme:  This visa is for those foreign nationals who have job offer from a Danish employer in an occupation that has a shortage of local skilled workers.
   
• Pay Limit scheme: This visa allows those foreign nationals to have work and residence permit in Denmark who have a highly paid job offer from a Danish employer, irrespective of the occupation. To become eligible under this category, an applicant must have a job offer with a minimum annual income of DKK375,000.

Apart from these, some exemptions are there, which allow internationally known researchers, artists, government representatives, businesspersons, international sports persons, and other highly valued individuals to come and work in Denmark for up to three months without a work and residence permit.