Simpler and more secure labour migration with the “permis unique”

Foreign workers who want to reside in Belgium in order to work will from now on be issued with a single combined permit. In this regard, the federal government and the regions have concluded a cooperation agreement. With the “permis unique”, Belgium is aligning itself with the European legislation. “The combined permit makes the procedure simpler for employee and employer alike. In addition it will be easier to check whether an immigrant is in the country legally and whether he or she has access to the labour market,” State Secretary for Asylum and Migration Theo Francken explains.

Fragmented competences

Europe is requiring Member States to issue just one document to foreign workers, which regulates both residence and the aspects of work. That’s not so straightforward in Belgium, because the competences are distributed over the federal and regional levels. Labour migration is a regional matter, while residence is regulated at the federal level. “Intensive discussions have led to an agreement which simplifies things for the foreign worker who wishes to make an active contribution to our society,” State Secretary Francken says.

Thorough screening

How it works in practice is that the employee has to submit his or her request to the competent region. Within 10 days, the region checks the completeness of the file. A copy of the file goes to the Immigration Service, which has 60 days to render a decision on the right of residence. “That processing time is short enough not to endanger the competitive position of our companies, but long enough to give the Immigration Service time to screen all files thoroughly for security,” Theo Francken concludes.