News

During the second half of 2016, the Swedish immigration authority (Migrationsverket) has rejected a significantly large number of work permit renewal applications due to employer failings. As reported in the Swedish news media, most of the failings consist of the employer not meeting the conditions of employment as stated in one or more previous work permit applications. These conditions include:

• The salary as stated in the work permit must have been met during the entire time that the individual held a work permit. Additionally, the salary must be at least SEK 13,000 per month and must also be equivalent to what is defined in the relevant collective agreement for the profession listed in the work permit (this includes ensuring that the salary is adjusted each year to take into account changes in collective agreements relating to compensation).
• The individual must have been covered by health insurance, life insurance, occupational injury insurance and occupational pension insurance during the entire duration of the work permit.

Migrationsverket currently requires the employee (who is applying for a work permit extension) to provide copies of the insurance policies and the monthly payroll statement for the period(s) covered by past work permits. This change in policy was introduced at the beginning of the year in 2016.

When an employer wishes to sponsor an individual for a work permit, the employer must commit to a salary and benefit package which corresponds with the minimum requirements defined in the applicable collective agreement for the profession in question. These requirement always include having comprehensive insurances covering health, life and unemployment, as well as a monthly pension plan corresponding with at least 4.5% of the employee’s gross salary and a minimum of 25 vacation days per year. The salary and benefits are to be paid by the employer throughout the assignment and any increases in the minimum salary and/or benefits in relevant collective agreements must be implemented by the employer as well.

If an employer fails to provide the salary and benefits stated in the original application, Migrationsverket can reject the employee’s application to extend their work permit and can ban the employee’s application for a new work permit (under Swedish law, an employer can also be targeted for sanctions). Violations of Swedish immigration law can also negatively impact work permit, residence permit and visa applications to other countries – especially countries that participate in the Schengen Information System. It is important that while these rules have been in force for many years, strict enforcement of the rules is relatively new.

In October 2015 the Swedish Migration Court of Appeal issued a ruling which, according to the Migration Board’s interpretation, has dramatically lowered the acceptance for non-compliance with regards to salaries and benefits promised through work permit applications. This interpretation has led to a large number of denied extension applications and subsequent deportations. It is important to keep in mind that a work permit application is a legal document that binds both the employer and the employee to the terms and conditions stated and that in cases of regulatory compliance. Consequently, the Swedish authorities will often hold the individual accountable for ensuring that the terms and conditions are met (this is typically the case in immigration and tax cases that arise in Sweden).

Many of the employees affected by these new policies have had salaries and insurances well below what was claimed in their original applications, but the Migration Board has also denied renewal applications in cases where only a few months of insurance coverage or a few hundred SEK has been missing each month. Since the minimum salary requirements are set by union standards through collective agreements, there have also been a number of cases where employers without collective agreements have failed to notice changes in the minimum salaries, which leads to their employees’ salaries becoming non-compliant even though they correspond with what was stated in the original application.

This restrictive interpretation of the case law has been highly criticized, since the non-compliance in the original court case was very severe, and a large number of court appeals have already been made. While the Migration Court of Appeals might come to qualify their previous ruling by setting up acceptable margins of error it is unlikely that the present policy of tight controls will be relaxed entirely. This is in part due to the high prevalence of non-compliance with regard to providing the required insurances, pensions and even salaries.

One area of concern that many companies have raised is the difficulty in finding insurance and pension providers that will provide qualified services to individuals that do not have either a Swedish person number or coordination number. Fortunately, there are a number of Swedish insurance and pension providers that can help meet Migrationverket’s requirements. The best way to find a solution is to work with a broker that specializes in expat insurance and pension plans. Qualified plans for expat workers require a valid passport, a valid work permit, the individual’s full legal name and date of birth. The insurances and pensions are valid from the first day of work. Once the individual obtains their person number or coordination number they can update their insurance and pension information.

A government report (SOU 2016:91) prepared in response to public comments and media coverage of the increasing difficulties with renewing work permits led to a number of recommendations. The main suggestions that the committee proposed include:

• An expressed ban against fictitious employment agreements in relation to work permits
• Criminal prosecution with the potential for prison sentences of up to 1 year or fines for employers who have intentionally avoided to fulfill their obligations in such a way that their employee has been denied a renewed work permit
• Introducing an official process through which employers can on their own accord compensate employees that have received insufficient salaries and benefits, and thereby make it possible for the employee to get their work permit renewed despite previous non-compliance. This would only be allowed if the Migration Board had not yet pointed out the discrepancy.
• Give the Migration Board an increased authorization to follow up on the work permits they issue to check that the correct compensation packages are actually implemented. In cases of non-compliance the migration Board would have the right to revoke the work permit.
• Increase the use of private sector service providers to speed up the processing times.

The suggestions were turned over to 43 chosen governmental authorities, non-profit organizations and trade organizations for official evaluation on the 20th of December. They are to provide their reply no later than the 20th of February 2017, after which the legislative process will continue at the parliament level. Until further action is taken by the Swedish parliament, the following checklists should be followed to help avoid problems with work permit extension applications:

• Offer of Employment (official form)
• Union opinion (official form)
• Copy of the parts of your passport containing your personal information and any currently valid residence permits

Necessary reference documentation

• Signed employment contract (is sent to union for review and comment)
• The placement ad with a verifiable reference number from the Arbetsförmedlingen Jobb Platsbanken (Swedish Employment Authority Job Website)
• A detailed CV containing start and end dates of previous educational programs and work experience
• Information about how much time has been spent working outside Sweden each month (if working for a non-permanently established company)
• Previous Schengen Visas and residency permits, as well as the exact dates of any travels to Schengen countries during at least the last 12 months

• Offer of Employment (official form)
• Union opinion (official form)
• Copy of the parts of your passport containing your personal information and any currently valid residency permits
• Income tax summaries for each year working in Sweden (issued by Skatteverket)
• Proof of insurance covering health, life, employment and pension (issued by the insurance company)
• Pay slips for each month the applicant has worked in Sweden
• Certificates of Employment from each employer the applicant has worked for in Sweden
• Certified statements regarding any absences from work, for example due to illness or parental leave (issued by Försäkringskassan, the Swedish social insurance office)

Necessary reference documentation:

• Signed employment contract (is sent to union)
• A detailed CV containing start and end dates of previous educational programs and work experiences
• Information about how much time has been spent working outside Sweden each month (if working for a non-permanently established company)
• Previous Schengen Visas and residency permits, as well as the exact dates of any travels to Schengen countries during at least the last 12 months.
• Information about previous positions in Sweden, such as job titles and salary packages.

For more information, refer to the Swedish Migrationsverket website.