Who will be fast-tracked for a Swedish work permit from next year?
A new work permit system expected to come into force in 2024 will cut waiting times for some professions to just 30 days. Who will this include, and how long will you have to wait if you're applying for a job in a different industry?
How is this new model different?
According to the agency, the new model which it has now presented to the government, will focus more specifically on offering a better service, simplifying the application process, and slashing waiting times – which can be as high as 14 months for non-certified employers – to just 30 days for highly-qualified applicants, if applications are complete when submitted.
"A 30-day processing time fits well with international comparisons of how long similar permit processes take," the Migration Agency regional director for the southern region, Fredrik Bengtsson, wrote in a statement.
"We're expecting to be ready to launch the full model at the beginning of next year."
How will they cut processing times?
The agency will cut processing times drastically by dividing work permit applications into four categories, ranked from A-D, of which only the first, Category A, will be handled by the new international recruitment units and encompassed by the 30-day target.
Category A applications will be those already classified as "highly qualified" under the Standard for Swedish Classification of Occupations (SSYK), and will include leadership roles, roles requiring higher university education, and roles requiring university education or equivalent. In total, this covers 238 separate roles in the SSYK system.
What about the other categories?
For jobs in other categories, the agency has pledged to process applications within four months – this also includes incomplete applications – with shorter processing times for some roles in category B.
Category B roles include seasonal work such as berry pickers (with a processing time goal of 90 days or less), country transfers within multinational companies (90 days), permits concerning holders of the EU Blue Card (90 days), researchers (two months), athletes/coaches (10 days), au pairs (90 days), and other roles such as trainees, youth exchanges, and volunteers.
This category will also include people seeking a work permit to come to Sweden to start their own business, and (if it is not phased out beforehand) applications under the so-called spårbyte, or "track change system", which allows people who have originally applied for asylum to apply for a work permit from within Sweden.
Category D roles – which the agency expects to conclude within four months – will include work permit applications within industries that the Migration Agency sees as at a higher risk of abuse and so requiring more in-depth monitoring and investigation. These include cleaning, construction, and the hotel and restaurant industry.
The final category, category C, will cover all other applications, so those which are neither for high qualified labour, nor in a high-risk industry, nor covered by special rules.
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How is this new model different?
According to the agency, the new model which it has now presented to the government, will focus more specifically on offering a better service, simplifying the application process, and slashing waiting times – which can be as high as 14 months for non-certified employers – to just 30 days for highly-qualified applicants, if applications are complete when submitted.
"A 30-day processing time fits well with international comparisons of how long similar permit processes take," the Migration Agency regional director for the southern region, Fredrik Bengtsson, wrote in a statement.
"We're expecting to be ready to launch the full model at the beginning of next year."
How will they cut processing times?
The agency will cut processing times drastically by dividing work permit applications into four categories, ranked from A-D, of which only the first, Category A, will be handled by the new international recruitment units and encompassed by the 30-day target.
Category A applications will be those already classified as "highly qualified" under the Standard for Swedish Classification of Occupations (SSYK), and will include leadership roles, roles requiring higher university education, and roles requiring university education or equivalent. In total, this covers 238 separate roles in the SSYK system.
What about the other categories?
For jobs in other categories, the agency has pledged to process applications within four months – this also includes incomplete applications – with shorter processing times for some roles in category B.
Category B roles include seasonal work such as berry pickers (with a processing time goal of 90 days or less), country transfers within multinational companies (90 days), permits concerning holders of the EU Blue Card (90 days), researchers (two months), athletes/coaches (10 days), au pairs (90 days), and other roles such as trainees, youth exchanges, and volunteers.
This category will also include people seeking a work permit to come to Sweden to start their own business, and (if it is not phased out beforehand) applications under the so-called spårbyte, or "track change system", which allows people who have originally applied for asylum to apply for a work permit from within Sweden.
Category D roles – which the agency expects to conclude within four months – will include work permit applications within industries that the Migration Agency sees as at a higher risk of abuse and so requiring more in-depth monitoring and investigation. These include cleaning, construction, and the hotel and restaurant industry.
The final category, category C, will cover all other applications, so those which are neither for high qualified labour, nor in a high-risk industry, nor covered by special rules.
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