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The Swedish authorities have said that the country wants to make it easier for visa-exempt people to show their original passport when applying for a temporary residence and work permit.
According to the Ministry of Justice of Sweden, by facilitating the passport rule for this category of foreigners, the authorities aim to avoid long distances of travel to show such a document and to attract more doctoral students, researchers, and qualified workers, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.
Back in November 2022, the Swedish Migration Agency introduced new rules, requiring all residence and work permit visa applicants to go to the relevant authorities’ offices to show their original passports.
Such a rule was introduced in order to better control the identity of those applying for temporary residence and work permits.
However, since this change means that even those who can enter Sweden visa-free now have to travel long distances just to show their original passport, the authorities want to put an end to this rule for this particular group of foreigners.
According to the Ministry of Justice, by facilitating the passport-showing rule for visa-exempt people, Sweden will become a more attractive destination for highly qualified workers. The same stressed that among others, Sweden would also be able to attract more researchers and students.
Commenting on the changes that the Swedish government intends to make, the Minister of Migration, Maria Malmer Stenergard, said that this is a necessary measure, and the right thing to do, as Sweden should not lose its competitiveness when it comes to attracting highly qualified workers, researchers, and doctoral students.
“The government does not want Sweden to lose competitiveness. We are therefore taking the necessary measures to make it easier for people who are visa-exempt to present their original passport in person,” Minister Stenergard stated.
The Minister of Education, Mats Persson, also shared the same opinion. Minister Persson said that the country should do all it can to facilitate and improve the rules as well as remain a ‘research nation’.
“In order to strengthen Sweden as a research nation, we need to contribute to making it more attractive for foreign researchers and doctoral students to study, research or work at Swedish universities. This assignment is a piece of the puzzle in the government’s work to improve the rules for highly qualified labour immigration,” the statement of Minister Persson reads.
The decision on the matter, of whether or not to facilitate the passport-showing rules for visa-exempt people applying for a temporary residence or work permit in Sweden, is to be taken during a meeting scheduled to take place today. Once a decision is taken, the authorities are expected to come out with an official statement.
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