New Act on the Entry and Residence of Third-Country Nationals in Hungary

The new provisions tighten and clarify the legal titles and conditions of residence and employment of foreign nationals in Hungary. The new act fully replaces the provisions on the entry and residence of third-country nationals in Hungary. Most of the provisions will be applicable from 1 March 2024, however, the rules on guest investors will enter into force only from 1 July 2024. There is also a transitional period between 1 January and 29 February 2024, during which it is not possible to submit any application for residence permit to the Immigration Authority.

The new act introduces various new residence permit and visa categories. The new rules significantly alter the current regulation in two aspects: (i) a new type of visa and residence permit is available for third-country national entrepreneurs (i.e. guest investor visa and residence permit) under beneficial conditions and (ii) the conditions under which the third-country national employees (i.e. guest workers) may stay and work in Hungary are tightened. For more information about the changes, please see our previous article.

In case of guest worker residence permit for investment purposes, during the procedure preference should be given to those employers who ensure the accommodation to the guest workers on the site of the investment and in an area separate from the local population. In this context, on 7 December 2023, the Government announced the launch of a new programme designed to support the construction of workers' housing with a budget of HUF 20 billion, which will provide housing for approx. 3,500 people. However, the conditions for this support will be tightened as it requires that at least 50% of the accommodation must be available for Hungarian workers.

By Eszter Ila-Horvath, Attorney at Law, KCG Partners Law Firm