Slovakia Immigration Services

Newland Chase offers full support with all aspects of corporate immigration to Slovakia. Please find an overview of the typical corporate immigration processes below. Every situation is unique, so please do get in touch, either through your usual Newland Chase contact or using the details on the right hand side of the page. Our immigration experts will be glad to discuss your needs in greater detail.

Immigration Summary

Consular applications allow the applicant to work on arrival in Slovakia. Permit processing is slightly faster if the application is submitted post arrival, but the applicant cannot work until the permit is issued.

The Work and Residence Permit process requires a labour market test and a local contract in Slovakia.

The Intra-Company Transfer Permit (EU Directive 2014/66) is only applicable to assignees falling into management/specialist or trainee categories sent to Slovakia for over 90 days from outside the EU and has a maximum total duration of stay of three years for managers/specialists and one year for trainees, after which time the assignee must exit Slovakia. Managers and specialists must have worked for the sending company for at least six months before the start of the assignment (three months for trainees).

ICT permits under Directive 2014/66 allow mobility within EU member states - i.e. work permission is not required for EU ICT permit holders to work in other member states for less than 90 days and a streamlined Mobile ICT permit application may be applicable if working in other member states for longer than 90 days.

The Van der Elst is an immigration process whereby a non-EEA national who is employed and contracted by a home entity in the EEA country and sent on short term assignment to another EEA country no longer requires a work permit. This category is used for the provision of temporary services in Slovakia. Applicants resident in EEA countries that are not part of the Schengen area must apply for their Van Der Elst Temporary Residence Permit prior to travel to Slovakia.

The Blue Card is an EU-wide (with some exceptions) immigration process for highly-skilled employees with a concrete job offer in the destination country and a salary at least 1.5x the average gross annual salary for the specific job to be done. The Blue Card offers some concrete benefits to the applicant. This process requires a labour market search test and a local contract in Slovakia.

Some work-related Temporary Assignments are permitted on a Schengen C Visa or visa waiver stay for non-EU/EEA/Swiss nationals assigned from outside the EU/EEA to Slovakia for a period of up to 90 days in a year. Applicants should be in Slovakia to deliver goods or services, carry out installation works, warranty services and repairs, perform work related to system setup of production facilities, programming work or professional training do not need to obtain a work permit. This process usually applies where the assignee is being sent to fulfil foreign contractual obligations to a Slovakian client company or assisting with a short technical project.

EU/EEA/Swiss nationals do not require immigration documentation to live or work in Slovakia, unless accompanied by non-EU/EEA/Swiss family members, but should report their employment/assignment and document their stay within ten days of arrival. Residence cards should be applied for if staying for longer than 90 days following that.