To come to Hungary to work as a highly-qualified worker, you can apply for an EU Blue Card or a Hungarian Card. You should obtain your EU Blue Card or Hungarian Card before entering Hungary, as this will include authorisation to enter and reside in the country as well as to carry out highly-skilled employment activity. In certain limited cases, you can apply for the EU Blue Card or Hungarian Card while in Hungary.
The EU Blue Card and the Hungarian Card are a permit that entitles you to live in Hungary and work in a job that requires advanced skills.
You can find more information below on these links:
Please not that developments below only concern the Hungarian Card. For further information on the EU Blue Card, please consult the EU Blue Card dedicated page.
Where and how to apply | Application submission outside of Hungary If your entry into Hungary does not constitute a visa-exempt travel, your application for the issuance of a residence permit is to be submitted outside of Hungary. You may submit an application before a diplomatic or consular foreign mission of Hungary in the country of your nationality or your habitual place of residence. Please be advised to contact the competent foreign mission of Hungary to inquire for further information, if there are any other places authorised to receive applications for a residence permit. Such application receiving places are constituted by e.g., honorary consuls, trade representations, and external service providers. If there are not any consulates or other types of places receiving applications in the country of your nationality or your habitual place of residence, in exceptional cases, you may submit an application in a country where you are staying legally provided that you provide proof of the reasons of your exceptional application submission. Submitting an application for a visa separately is not required, as an application for the issuance of a residence permit comprises an application for a visa entitling its holder to collect the respective residence permit. Application submission within the territory of Hungary If you are allowed to enter the territory of Hungary visa free due to your nationality, and you are not a holder of a residence permit, you may submit an application for a residence permit during your legal stay in Hungary, within the territory of Hungary as well. Application submission in Hungary is available:
Fees If the application is submitted at a diplomatic or consular mission, the administrative service fee charged for the procedure for issuing a residence permit is EUR 110, payable at that diplomatic or consular mission primarily in EUR or other convertible currency, or in exceptional cases in the legal tender of the State where the application is submitted. The administrative service fee charged for the procedure is HUF 39,000 if submitted in Hungary in person, HUF 24.000 if submitted via the Enter Hungary platform. The fee charged for the extension of a residence permit is HUF 23,000. The following documents may serve as proof of the purpose of residence:
If the Hungarian employment was established on the basis of an agreement concluded between an employer established in a third country and a domestic employer in order to fulfil an agreement, the following documents must be attached besides the above-mentioned ones:
If you apply for a Hungarian Card because you perform actual work in relation to the activities of a company, cooperative or other legal entity -established for gainful purposes - as an owner or an executive officer, the competent authority may request additional documents to confirm the operation of the company, in particular:
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Documents required | When applying for a single permit or a residence permit, you need to:
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Further requirements | You cannot be subject to an entry ban or an alert in the Schengen Information System for the purposes of refusing entry, nor can your entry and stay threaten public policy, public health or public security in Hungary. |
Duration of validity of permits | The validity period of the document is maximised in 3 years, and it may be extended for 3 years. |
Conditions for renewal | The extension of the residence permit may also be granted even if the conditions laid down in the law are met, if the residence of the third-country national has exceeded 90 days in any 180 days before the submission of the application for a residence permit. |
Appeals | You can submit an appeal against the decision on your residence permit application within 8 days of delivery to the immigration authority, or to the Hungarian diplomatic or consular mission where the application was submitted. |
Further information |
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Change of employment | Your work permit authorises you to carry out a specific employment activity with a specific employer.
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Unemployment | Your permit authorises you to carry out a specific employment activity with a specific employer. If you terminate your employment, you have to apply for a new residence permit as soon as possible, at maximum within 5 days from termination. |
Change of status | Change of status may be possible depending on the purpose of stay and your personal circumstances. |
Family members | Family members of a third-country national who is a holder of a Hungarian Card can be granted a residence permit for family reunification.
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Long-term residence | Hungarian law distinguishes three different regimes for permanent residence and, for each, the applicant needs to have:
You cannot be subject to any ground for refusal as set out in the law, e.g. threat to public or national security, being the subject of an expulsion order, entry ban or alert in the Schengen Information System. |
National Residence Card | |
Your family member will be entitled to a National Residence Card if he/she has legally and continuously resided for at least three years in Hungary. This permit authorises him/her to reside in Hungary for an indefinite period of time. You will also be able to obtain a National Residence Card if you hold a residence permit or an Interim Residence Card and:
Your establishment has to be in accordance with the interest of Hungary. You need to present a clean criminal record. General conditions for residence permits apply. | |
EC long-term residence permit | |
Your family member is entitled to an EC long-term residence permit if he/she lived continuously and legally in Hungary for five years. This permit authorises him/her to reside in Hungary for an indefinite period of time. General conditions for residence permits apply. | |
Interim Residence Card | |
If you are a non-EU citizen holding an EC Residence Card from another EU Member State, you can obtain an Interim Residence Card:
Family members of non-EU nationals arriving for the purposes stated above (i.e. gainful employment, pursuit of studies and other justified reasons) apply for an Interim Residence Card, and the family members of non-EU nationals holding an Interim Residence Card may be issued an Interim Residence Card if their family relationship already existed in the Member State of the European Union where the EC Residence Card certifying permanent residence status was issued. This status is valid for a maximum of five years and may be extended by a maximum of five additional years at a time. |