Denmark’s fast-track work visa option helps non-EU citizens to immigrate through different routes in 30 days. The country also needs like other EU States a skilled labor force to continue its growth economically. The fast-track work visa stream has been made as simple as possible. If a certified company in Denmark employs you, you can be granted a work permit as fast as possible in one month.
What is a fast-track work permit in Denmark?
The fast track scheme makes it faster and more flexible for certified companies to bring in foreign employees to Denmark. At the same time, the scheme allows you to work both in Denmark and abroad. The chosen employment must meet the conditions on one of the fast track scheme’s five tracks:
- The amount track
- The supplementary amount track
- The short-term track
- The research track
- The educational track
What is meant by a certified employer?
It is a requirement that your employer is certified by the Agency for International Recruitment and Integration (SIRI). You can find all certified companies in Denmark here. If you are successful in finding a job in any of these companies, you can apply through the fast-track work permit stream.
Major Visa Requirements
1- Pay Limit Track and Pay Limit and Supplementary
| Pay Limit Track | Supplementary Amount Track |
| You can choose to apply for the “Amount Track” if your annual salary for the acquired job is at least DKK 487,000. This corresponds to the amount limit on the amount scheme. | You can choose to apply under the “Supplementary Amount Track” if your annual salary is at least DKK 393,000, which corresponds to the amount limit on the supplementary amount scheme. |
For both categories, the following conditions must be met:
- The salary you are offered must not be lower than what is normal in the professional area in which you will work. The amount limit is adjusted each year on 1 January. The job must be full-time.
- It is also mandatory that you open your Danish bank account after reaching Denmark. And your salary must also be transferred into the bank account.
- It is a condition that the seasonally adjusted gross unemployment on average in the three months before the application time does not exceed 3.75 percent.
- The job you are going to do must also have been announced by the employer on the Job Net and EURES portal within six months of your hiring.
For some job types, you must also get authorization from Danish authorities. This means such as if you have been offered employment as, for example, a doctor, you must have Danish authorization from the Agency for Patient Safety.
2- Short-Term Track
If you are going to stay and work for a short time at a certified company, the short-term track may be relevant for you. On a short-term stay, you can get a residence and work permit for up to 90 days.
The requirements of the employer and application procedure are the same as the pay Limit and Supplemental pay limit track.
Short-term stays can amount to a maximum of 90 days within 365 days. At any time, you must have spent no more than 90 days on the short-term track within the last 365 days. The 90 days can be spread over several stays. It is therefore a ‘rolling’ calculation, where only the number of days of stay within 365 days counts, and where the period is calculated from and including the day your permit is to apply, and 365 days behind. This means that if you apply for a short-term permit starting on 1 May 2023, the rolling calculation will be calculated from 2 May 2022.
Permission must be applied for each stay. If you get a provisional work permit, the period of stay is calculated from the date of the provisional permit.
Stays in Denmark on a basis other than short-term stays are not included in the calculation of the period of a maximum of 90 days, which the rules on short-term stays allow for. It is important to remember that the stay must not last more than 90 days in a row, and both the entry and exit days count towards the calculation of the 90 days.
When applying for a second short-term stay (and subsequent applications) within 365 days, you must attach documentation for previous short-term stays. The salary you are offered must not be lower than what is normal in the professional area in which you will work. The position offered must not be covered by a legal labor dispute. A residence and work permit cannot be granted for a position that is covered by a legal labor dispute.
3- Researcher Track
If you have been offered a position as a researcher, you can use the researcher track. There must be research reasons why you should hold the position as a researcher. This means that the job must be closely linked to you as a person and that the main purpose of the stay must be research. You must be aware that visiting researchers and PhD students are not covered by the research track.
The requirements for the stream are the same as the first to track in terms of employer requirements and the application process. If you, as a researcher, scientist, or lecturer, are invited to teach for a shorter period than 90 days, you may not need a residence and work permit, as you may be covered by the exemption rules.
The same applies if you are to work as a researcher at a university or a company in Denmark, and the duration of your total stay is 90 days or less, calculated from your entry.
If you are subject to a visa requirement, you must have obtained a visa before your entry, which is valid for the entire period of stay. If, in addition to your primary job, you wish to be associated with several Danish universities as a researcher or have another side job, you can do so without applying for separate permission.
There is no requirement that you be employed full-time as a researcher, but you must have a contract or a concrete job offer that shows that your salary and terms of employment are customary according to Danish conditions. With a permit as a researcher under the fast-track scheme, you can change job content within the same university or company without applying to SIRI for a new work permit. This applies, for example, to promotion or a changed research project. Salary and terms of employment must continue to be customary according to Danish conditions.
4- Educational Track
If you are a highly qualified foreigner with significant work experience within a specific work area, then the education track is relevant for you. Furthermore, if the purpose of your stay in Denmark is to be trained at a highly qualified level in a certified company, or if you must train employees in the certified company at a highly qualified level. The salary, employer, and application procedure are the same as the above 3 tracks.
Your employer must describe the educational purpose of the planned stay if a permit is applied for on this track. The description must be attached to the application.
- If you must, you must be a trainee
- If you are a trainee, you cannot get permission according to the fast track scheme’s education track, as a trainee stay does not meet the condition of being an education stay at a sufficiently high level.
How to apply for the visa?
If you apply by yourself
If you do not want to be represented by the employer or a third party, you can use the application form AR1 online. When AR1 is selected online, the employer must first complete part 1 of the form. You then complete part 2 and attach the necessary documentation.
However, AR1 online cannot be immediately used for applications under the fast-track scheme. This is because it is not possible to mark that the fast-track scheme is being searched for on the page relating to the choice of scheme or type of employment in part 1 (employer’s part).
When using the AR1 online form, your employer must choose the amount scheme instead. In the field ‘Any comments’, you must state that you are applying for the fast-track scheme and which of the fast-track scheme’s four tracks you want the application to be processed according to. You should as an applicant then complete the normal process for submitting the AR1 online.
Using AR1 online to apply for the fast-track scheme will not ensure that all the necessary information and documentation is provided. The Agency for International Recruitment and Integration will, after receiving the application, obtain the missing information by contacting you or your employer. If you use AR1 online instead of AR6, it can therefore extend the total case processing time.
If you do not want to be represented by the employer or a third party, or if you want to apply for an extension of your fast-track permit, it is also possible to apply yourself. You must use the application form AR3 online.
Application submission by employer
The fast-track visa application must be submitted online. An application for a residence and work permit under the fast-track scheme must be submitted online by your employer. You must give your employer power of attorney to submit the application on your behalf and to represent you in the case.
The employer starts the application online and fills in his part of the application by completing the following tasks:
| Create case order ID | Pay the fee | Documents upload |
| Before your employer applies, an SB-ID must be created for the application. You must give your employer power of attorney to handle the application. | You or your employer must pay a fee to cover SIRI’s case processing. The visa fee is DKK 6,290. | Your employer must submit the following documents in your visa application (of course the employer submits these on his behalf): |
- Copy of all pages in your passport – including all blank pages and the front and back of the passport;
- proof that the fee has been paid;
- Power of attorney from the applicant;
- An employment contract or specific job offer;
- Any documentation for training;
- Copy of authorization, if one is required for the exercise of the employment;
- If you apply under the supplementary amount track, a copy of the job postings, showing that the job has been posted on both Jobnet and the EURES portal how long the job has been posted and the statement from the applicant regarding criminal convictions must also be submitted.
Complete and submit the application form
After that, you complete the remaining application form with your details. And at the end submit the form.
Biometrics
After the visa application submission, you need to attend the Danish mission (embassy) to have the biometric done. This is a mandatory process.
Quick job start – from abroad
You want a quick job start – you are abroad and do not have the opportunity to travel to Denmark. If the application has been submitted, but you are required to have a visa and do not have the opportunity to enter Denmark legally, your employer must send a message to SIRI stating that you wish to start work quickly.
This is done via SIRI’s contact form under “I have to ask questions or submit documentation for a specific case”. Your employer must provide the application’s case order ID (SB-ID) and the reference number that appears on the receipt.
You must provide biometrics at the nearest Danish representation as soon as possible, and no later than 14 days after the application has been submitted.
Receive an answer
If you have asked for a quick job start from abroad, SIRI will typically make a decision no later than 10 days after they have received the application with biometrics and fee. However, this assumes that they have all the necessary information.
After that, SIRI will issue a residence and work permit if the conditions are met. SIRI also authorizes the Danish representation to issue a long-term visa (visa type D) so that you can enter Denmark.
Once you have entered the country, you can immediately register your place of residence at the national register and get a health card issued.
How long can you stay in Denmark on this visa?
If you apply from abroad, you can get a residence permit which is valid for 1 month before you have to start working. This allows you to establish yourself in Denmark. When you apply, you must declare that you can support yourself and your possible family during the period. If you do not declare this, your residence permit will only be valid for 14 days before you have to start work.
Duration under the Supplementary Pay Track
For the supplementary pay limit track, depending on your employment length, you can stay for up to 5 years on this visa. If your employment contract is less in duration than that, then the length of stay will be shorter. The same is true against your passport validity length.
If you want to continue working in Denmark beyond the period of your residence permit, you must apply for an extension of your permit based on the extension of your employment.
Duration under the Pay Limit and the Educational Track
If your employment period is 4 years or more, you will normally get a residence permit for 4 years. If you are employed for a shorter period than 4 years, your residence and work permit will normally have the same duration as your employment.
You will also automatically receive a job search permit for a period of up to 6 months, during which you can apply for a new job in Denmark. You must not work during the job search period.
If you find a new job, you must submit a completely new application based on the new job – this may again be on one of the tracks of the fast track scheme, or it may be another occupational scheme. Once you have applied for the new job, you do not have to wait to work until you have received the permit. You must start the new job from the day you submit the new application.
Duration under Short-Term Track
A permit for a short-term stay can be of a maximum duration of 90 days within one year. The permit cannot be extended. However, the 90 days can be spread over several stays. A permit must be applied for each stay, and the total number of days must not exceed 90. The 90 days are calculated from entry into Denmark. If your employment contract is for less than 90 days, your permit will expire 14 days after the end of the contract, if possible within the limit of 90 days in total.
What to do if you lose the job or get a new job?
If you get permission under the scheme, your residence permit is linked to your job in Denmark. Your employment is the base for your permit. If you lose your job or change jobs, you must always notify SIRI.
Your work permit is limited to the employment that forms the basis of the permit. You must not work in positions other than the one stated in your permit. This also applies if you get a new position in the same company.
If you find a new job while you are working, you must submit an application for a new residence and work permit with information about the new employment. Once this has happened, you may start working, even if you have not yet received permission from SIRI.
Visa for family members
A residence and work permit based on a job in Denmark allows your family to come to Denmark.
A residence permit can be granted to your spouse, registered partner permanent cohabitant, and children living at home under the age of 18. Your family will also be exempt from the lapse rules, and may therefore also give up the Danish address during periods of stay abroad or stay outside Denmark for more than 6 months in a row.