The situation
Starting January 1, 2019, Belgium’s Single Permit scheme for foreign nationals seeking to work for over 90 days will become available.
A closer look
Details on the Single Permit system include the following:
Longer processing times. Single Permit applications are expected to be processed in 60-135 calendar days, up from the current 46-100 days. Transition to the new process, including the alignment required between the institutions involved, is expected to cause delays during the transitional period of a few months.
Impact. Employers and foreign nationals should plan for longer processing times during the transition period.
Renewals of work and residence permits. Current work and residence permits must be renewed through the single application process. The application must be submitted to the Regional Employment Authorities which will decide on the work authorization, in line with the current process. The Immigration Office will decide on the residence authorization as part of the single application process. The applicant’s local town hall will deliver the approved Single Permit to them.
Impact. Renewal applicants should expect longer processing times. However, they will also benefit from an easier process since once their work and residence authorization is approved, they will have to visit the town hall only to request and to collect their Single Permit, instead of the previous process where they had to visit the town hall to collect the work permit and subsequently initiate the residence permit renewal.
Background
The Single Permit is an EU initiative that all EU countries were obligated to implement by December 2013. It offers a single application process for work and residence authorizations and creates a framework for other EU directives such as the EU Student and Researcher Directive and the EU Intracompany Transferee (ICT) Directive, which introduce specific types of single permits for these categories.
Looking ahead
Next steps. Although the introduction of the Single Permit and the single application process allows the implementation of the EU Student and Researcher Directive and the EU ICT Directive, further implementing legislation is required. The executive legislation is expected to enter into force in May 2019. Fragomen will monitor developments and will keep clients informed.
Changes in Flanders. As a reminder, Flanders will facilitate labor market access as of January 1, 2019 specifically for young talent, medium- and highly-skilled staff. Key changes include streamlining processes for shortage occupations; lowering minimum salary requirements for young talent; and increasing the initial work authorization validity period to three years, up from one.
How Fragomen can help
The policy changes in Flanders create new opportunities to attract and to retain talent in Flanders. Fragomen’s Belgian team can support clients in strategic planning, for example by setting up trainee programs, programs for talent recruitment, strategies for technical profile recruitment and by auditing employers’ internal mobility or recruitment processes.
This alert is for informational purposes only. If you have any questions, please contact the global immigration professional with whom you work at Fragomen or send an email to beneluxinfo@fragomen.com.