At a Glance
Effective July 15, 2024, Slovakia will introduce more relaxed EU Blue Card rules. Key changes include, among others:
- relaxed professional experience eligibility pathways;
- reduced minimum salary levels; and
- an increased validity period.
These reforms are part of Slovakia adhering to the requirements of the 2021 EU Blue Card Directive.
The situation
Effective July 15, 2024, Slovakia will introduce more relaxed EU Blue Card rules.
A close look
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Relaxed eligibility pathways:
Currently, only applicants with a Master's level education are eligible for a Slovak EU Blue Card. |
Employers can now hire highly skilled talent from a wider pool of applicants, especially in the information and communication technology sector. This is particularly pertinent given current labor shortages in Slovakia. |
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Increased validity period. EU Blue Cards will be valid for five years, as opposed to the current four years. |
This change, which will ensure EU Blue Card holders can remain in Slovakia for a longer period of time, will reduce talent management challenges for employers. |
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Lower minimum salary level. The minimum salary for an EU Blue Card will lower to 1.2 times the average gross annual salary, down from the current 1.5 times. |
This change will make it easier for foreign nationals to access a Slovakia EU Blue Card, and for employers to afford highly skilled foreign talent under the EU Blue Card pathways, effectively increasing their pool of available employees. |
Background
In 2021, the European Union issued a directive seeking to update the existing EU Blue Card scheme (which dated back to 2009). The EU Blue Card scheme has sought to establish an attractive EU-wide immigration option for highly skilled professionals. However, the 2009 iteration has suffered from fragmented and inconsistent transposition at the national levels, with many EU Member States offering more attractive skilled-labor immigration pathways under their own national, non-EU Blue Card systems.
Looking ahead
The deadline for national transposition of the revised EU Blue Card Directive was November 18, 2023, with many EU Member States domestically implementing the Directive after this deadline. Additionally, several EU Member States have not yet domestically implemented the Directive. It is expected that further instances of domestic implementation will occur across 2024. We will report on related developments.
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