Work visa

The lawyer Ms.Kasatkina–Kouskou Svetlana provides legal support and counseling on work visas, as well as the preparation and conclusion of the contract between the applicant-national from a third country and the employer of Greece.

One from the possible directions for obtaining a residence permit in Greece is the work visa. Work visa is the process of authorizing the entry of third country nationals who have permission to work in Greece dependent, meaning  the conclusion of a particular type of employment with a particular employer.

Policy of work visa,

Employers who wish to work with third country nationals on a permanent basis or for seasonable work, including work with rent, must first address, before June 30, to the competent department of the municipality of residence. There they can find the list with third country nationals by specialty and length of employment in a particular sector of the economy in order to meet the need of early planning of labor reserves in various sectors of the economy for the next year.

The above service sends requests to the service of foreign employers and the services of immigration, which are then sent to the relevant department of the Public Employment (Greek labor exchange), to examine the need and the job status concerning the foreigners residing legally in Greece. After examining the documents and after  relevant research “ΟΑΕΔ” sends data to the Department of immigration in the area. There are regional committees established pursuant to provisions of Law 4251/2014. The commission’s task is to prepare a report for the last quarter of each year, including the needs and vacancies in each county and there is also a reference to the duration of the project carried out by third country nationals. The commission shall evaluate and report, taking into account the data supplied by the Employment service.

The report above is under consideration by the Ministry of Labour and social security  which sets the maximum number of residence permits for work (employment or seasonable employment) issued the following year, depending on the residence, nationality, the type, and duration of work.

Moreover the joint ministerial decision is sent to the relevant prefectures, the Employment Agency, the Ministry and the competent authorities of the Greek consulate. In turn, the competent Greek consulate authority, under the joint ministerial decision, carries accepting applications from third country nationals. Full details of the identity (name, father’ s name, mother’ s name, date of birth) and the number of the passport of the applicant are necessary. In specific cases there is also reference, to the county, where the applicant intends to be employed. It should be noted that the parties (employer or applicant) must submit only one application for a particular job in a particular area. The competent Greek consulate, after collecting the applications, send then quarterly, to all Prefectures of Greece.

In every Prefecture of Greece there are lists of names of third country nationals who are interested in finding a job in the country, in the municipality for which they petitioned. These lists are placed in a prominent place and the authorities of the municipality hold a copy of the joint ministerial decision with the vacancies requiring specialised staff. Any employer who is interested in an employee who is one of the registered in the list applying for work and has a residence permit, makes an application for work for by a third country national who is selected from the list above. A list of names supplied by the municipality shows that the update takes place directly in the respective sections, not including third country nationals who have applied for the acquisition of work.

Subsequently the General Secretary of the Greek authorities conducts a preliminary examination, concerning the recruitment under contract of a third country national by a specific employer, respectively to achieve a certain level of national visas.

The competent Greek consular authorities invite the concerned third country nationals who are authorized to work in Greece. They, in turn, should contact the consular office above to sign a contract and get a national visa.