Contributed by: Dalimir Jancovic (CREDIS Law)
June 2019 to May 2021
1. Country Overview
The Parliamentary election in February 2020 was won by a movement with an agenda oriented on the fight against corruption; this was the first change of government in 14 years.
The National criminal agency has become very active in the detention and investigation of high public figures.
In the biggest police intervention against judges in the history of Slovakia, 13 judges were arrested in a one day.
2. Legislative Changes
Changes related to COVID-19 measures:
extending the validity of residence permits which expired during the state of emergency, and extending the validity to two months those residence permits that expired within one month of the revocation of state of emergency
third country nationals who legally entered Slovakia and do not have residence permits may stay legally in Slovakia until one month after revocation of the state of emergency
possibility of accepting documents older than 90 days in the application proceedings
extending many periods for compliance with the obligations, including the protection periods before cancellation of permit after purpose of residence ceases to exist
extension of the deadlines for execution of the expulsion orders
Brexit related changes
The Slovak Republic has opted for a declaratory system, which means that UK citizens and their family members who exercised their right to free movement before 1 January 2021 and registered their residence in Slovakia have a right of residence directly under the law without the need to undergo the further decision-making process. Their only obligation is to apply for a residence card by 30 June 2021.
In particular:
Residence of UK citizens and their family members who had a residence registered in Slovakia before 1 January 2021 (and will prove the exercise of this right in a credible manner) shall be considered as the permanent residence for 5 years;
Residence of UK citizens and their family members who had a permanent residence registered in Slovakiabefore 1 January 2021 (and will prove the exercise of this right in a credible manner) shall be considered as the permanent residence for an unlimited time;
A UK national who resided in the territory of the Slovak Republic without registration of residence before 1 January 2021 may register permanent residence for five years if they can credibly prove that they have fulfilled (before 1 January 2021) and continue to fulfil the conditions for registration of residence of EU national.
Family members of UK nationals joining a UK national under point a) to c) above may apply for permanent residence for 5 years and will have to prove that their relationship with the UK national already existed before the end of the transition period, except for children, for whom the temporal aspect of the UK national’s relationship will not be examined.
3. Business Immigration
Business visitors
Temporary immigration categories
Employment-based immigration (work and residence permits) – July 2020 - implementation of the Directive 2018/957 amending Directive 96/71/EC concerning the posting of workers in the framework of the provision of services into Slovak Labour Code
Highly Skilled immigration (Blue Card etc)
Investment-based immigration (Investors/Entrepreneurs) - Entrepreneurs do not need to prove the minimum profit required by law in the permit renewal proceedings for the tax periods during which State of Emergency was in force.
4. Family based immigration
There have been no new legislative changes within the area of family based immigration.
5. Asylum -
There have been no new legislative changes within the asylum area.
6. Deportation
There have been no new legislative changes within the deportation area.
7. Citizenship
The Government has approved new legislation which should be soon submitted for approval by Parliament. The main proposed changes are easing the conditions for acquiring second citizenship without losing the Slovak citizenship and allowing persons who lost the Slovak citizenship by acquiring foreign citizenship to regain the citizenship of the Slovak Republic in a simpler way.