Increase in EU residence permits

In 2016, 125 EU citizens were granted an EU residence permit in the Faroes. In 2017, the number was 240.

So far this year, 229 people have been granted an EU residence permit in the Faroes.

European Union residence permits are issued as stand-alone documents and include the same biometric features as EU passports. These permits are work-based and are issued to EU citizens.

The majority of those who are issued EU residence permits in the Faroes come from Romania, followed by Poles, Lithuanians and Bulgarians.

The system regarding special rights for EU citizens to enter the Faroes came into effect on 1 July 2014. Under the new system, employers were in certain cases entitled to take in skilled workers for the construction industry, provided that the unemployment figure in this particular industry was below 6 percent.

For unskilled workers, the special rights only applied if the unemployment figure was below 3.5 percent at first, but from December 2014 this requirement changed to 6 percent.

The EU residence permit system is administered through direct communication between employers and the Danish Immigration Service.

An employer can apply for preapproval from the Danish Immigration Service, and the EU citizen is free to start work in the Faroes immediately after such a preapproval has been signed.