EU residence as a posted worker of a company in the EU which is to provide a service in Denmark

You are to provide a service in Denmark on behalf of a company in the EU. As a posted worker you can be either an EU citizen or citizen of a country outside the EU, the EEA or Switzerland.

Normal procesing time
0-30 days

Due to an increase in applications, you can expect a processing time of up to
4 months

Processing fee
No fee

Who can register as a posted worker?

You can be registered as a posted worker if you are to carry out actual and real work in Denmark on behalf of a company in the EU which is to provide a service in Denmark.

Your work will be considered actual and real if you carry out work for an employer established in an EU country other than Denmark, and you receive a salary for this work.

As a posted worker you can be either an EU citizen or citizen of a country outside the EU, the EEA or Switzerland.

What are the conditions for being registered as a posted worker?

When processing your application we will carry out a specific and individual assessment of your grounds for residence as a posted employee for a company in the EU which is to provide a service in Denmark.

Read below about the elements which will normally be considered in the assessment.

You must be permanently employed by a company in the EU

You must already be employed by the EU company before the posting.

In order to be a company in the EU, the company must be established and have an office in an EU country other than Denmark regardless of whether the company is owned by a company outside the EU.

The EU company must have actual and real business activities. Consequently, the main activity must not exclusively be internal management or administration.

If you are a citizen of a country outside the EU, the EEA or Switzerland, you must be able to document that you have had the right to reside in the country in which the EU company is established. You must also be able to document that you have had the right to work in this company.

An agreement on providing a service between the EU company and a Danish company or private individual must exist

You must be employed by a company that has entered into an agreement on providing a service in Denmark. The agreement can be made with a company or a private individual.

A service is defined as a service provided in return for a payment.

An agreement on posting in Denmark between the EU company and you must exist

The EU company in which you are employed must draw up an agreement on your posting in Denmark for you. The agreement must specify your work tasks and the duration of your posting.

The agreement must not be older than 30 days when you submit your application for EU residence.

Your posting must be temporary and for a limited period of time

You can be granted residence as a posted worker for the period of time it takes to provide the service.

Your stay as a posted worker cannot, however, exceed two years.

If the posting is to last longer than two years, there must be specific reasons for this. This might be, for example, if it can be documented that a project has been delayed due to unforeseen circumstances.

During your posting you are not required to reside in Denmark for the entire duration. You must, however, apply for residence for the entire period during which you will be posted to Denmark and working to provide the service.

Your work must be actual and real

The assessment of whether your work is actual and real will take into consideration your salary, information about the extent of your work tasks and additional terms of employment.

You must attach your employment contract with the EU company in addition to your posting agreement when you submit your application.

Read more about documentation under the "How to Apply" tab to the right.

An intra-corporate posting does normally not give you the right to residence under EU regulations

If, for a period of time, an employee is posted internally within a corporation in order to work for that corporation's branch office in Denmark, it will, as a rule, be considered a way to organise the company's operations rather than a matter of providing a service.

This also applies if an employee, for a period of time, is posted internally to a Danish branch office in order to work on tasks connected to an agreement entered into by the Danish branch office on providing a service to another Danish company.

A citizen of a country outside the EU, the EEA or Switzerland to be posted to a company within the same corporation, must, as a rule, apply for a residence and work permit under the regulations of the Danish Aliens Act.

If you are a citizen of a country outside the EU, the EEA or Switzerland, you must, after finishing your posting, be able to return to your home country or to the country from which you have been posted

As a citizen of a country outside the EU, the EEA or Switzerland, you must be able to leave Denmark after finishing your posting. This means that you must hold a valid passport.

What rights do an EU residence document give me?

An EU residence document is proof of a right that you have as an EU citizen or citizen of a country outside the EU, the EEA or Switzerland when you enter Denmark, if you meet the conditions for grounds for residence under EU rules as a posted worker in an EU company that has to provide a service in Denmark.

In Denmark, you will often need a Civil Registration System (CPR) number in order to exercise your rights. You must present your EU residence document to your municipality of residence to be given a CPR number (and health insurance card and the like). The information below explains the rights an EU residence document (and CPR number) conveys to you, as well as the limitations that are placed on your residence.

Residence and work

As a posted EU citizen you are free to enter Denmark and you are allowed to work from the day you enter. This means that you do not need a permit to work in Denmark. There is no limit as to how many hours you are allowed to work.

As a posted citizen of a country outside the EU, the EEA or Switzerland you must be exempt from visa requirements, hold a valid visa or hold a valid residence permit issued by another Schengen country in order to be able to enter Denmark.

As a posted citizen of a country outside the EU, the EEA or Switzerland your right to work during your stay in Denmark is limited to work connected to providing the service that forms the basis for your residence.

Public benefits

During your stay in Denmark under EU rules, you must normally be able to support yourself and your family financially. Depending on your grounds for residence, that means you, amongst other things, may not receive public assistance regulated by the Active Social Policy Act (lov om aktiv socialpolitik).

If you or a family member receive such benefits while living in Denmark, your right of residence can be terminated and you can lose your right to reside in Denmark.

Benefit payments from the municipality or any other public authority to a foreign national are reported to SIRI. SIRI will then assess whether this affects your grounds for residence.

Additional information

If you are to live and work in Denmark as a posted worker for a limited period of time, there are several things you need to consider. Depending on your situation, there may be more important information you need to be aware of.

The website lifeindenmark.dk provides information about:

MitID digital login
Obtaining a civil registration number (CPR)
Obtaining a health-insurance card
Taxation
Holiday
School and childcare
Housing
Danish-language courses
Car registration and driving licenses

How long can I stay in Denmark?

You can stay in Denmark as a posted worker as long as your grounds for residence continue to be met. However, your stay cannot exceed years

As a posted worker you can be given a residence document for a maximum of 2 years in total.

If your posting is linked to a project that is delayed due to unforeseen circumstances, you can apply to have the duration extended beyond 2 years. You must document the unforeseen delay when applying for an extension.

If you are to stay in Denmark for less than 3 months as a posted worker, you need not submit an application for an EU residence document.

Please note that you must apply for a residence document no later than 3 months after entering Denmark, if you are a citizen of a country outside the EU, the EEA or Switzerland and your stay will last longer than 3 months.

What happens if I lose my employment with the EU company?

If you have been granted a residence document based on your status as a posted worker and you lose your job with the EU company, regardless of whether you were fired or resigned yourself, your grounds for residence will normally have ended.

Be aware that your rights depend on whether you are an EU citizen or citizen of a country outside the EU, the EEA or Switzerland.

What should I do if I am a citizen of an EU country, an EEA country or Switzerland?

If you leave Denmark in connection with losing your job, you need not do anything about your grounds for residence. All you need to do is inform the Civil Registration System that you will be leaving Denmark. You can do this on-line at lifeindenmark.dk (requires MitID).

If you wish to stay in Denmark, you must contact SIRI for clarification of your grounds for residence.

If you believe that you meet the requirements for other grounds for residence, for example, as an employee or self-supporting person, you must submit an application on these grounds.

What should I do if I am not an EU citizen, but citizen of a country outside the EU, the EEA or Switzerland?

If you wish to stay in Denmark, you must contact SIRI for clarification of your grounds for residence.

As a citizen of a country outside the EU, the EEA or Switzerland, you are not covered by the EU rules and must apply for residence on different grounds (the Danish Aliens Act).

Please note that you are not allowed to work before you have received a residence and work permit from SIRI.

Can my family qualify for an EU residency document?

Yes, your family members can apply for residence according to EU regulations based on your grounds for residence as a posted employee of an EU company.

Regardless of whether you are an EU citizen or citizen of a country outside the EU, the EEA or Switzerland the same regulations apply to your family members.

What more do I need to know before I apply?

Applications for a residence document under EU rules should be submitted to the Agency for International Recruitment and Integration (SIRI).

The ‘How to Apply’ tab (at right) provides more information about the application process, as well as the application form itself.

SIRI normally makes its decision based on the information and documents you submit with the application form. In some cases, SIRI will need to contact you to request further information.

Please note that SIRI will only request information from you. Your employer, for example, will not be contacted to provide information.

Likewise, SIRI will not provide information about your application to anyone other than you. If SIRI is contacted – by telephone or in writing – by anyone other than you requesting information about your application, this request will normally be turned down.

You may grant SIRI permission to give information about your application to someone other than yourself. To grant someone else permission to receive information you must submit a power of attorney in advance. The power of attorney needs to indicate by name the individuals authorised to receive information about your application.

If you state in your application that you are being represented by a solicitor, you do not need to submit a power of attorney. Solicitors, due to their profession, are automatically granted power of attorney. If you are being represented by a solicitor, SIRI will send all correspondence about your application to your solicitor.

In this tab, you can read about the application process.

You must submit your application to the Danish Agency for International Recruitment and Integration (SIRI).

As part of the process, you must usually appear in person at one of SIRI’s branch offices in Copenhagen, Odense, Aarhus, Aalborg, Esbjerg, Sønderborg or on Bornholm.

Before reading this tab about submitting an application for EU residence, we recommend that you read about the conditions for residence as a posted worker etc. in the ‘Need to know’ tab at left.

Gather documentation and declarations

It is a good idea to gather the necessary documents before you start to complete the application form.

You can use the checklist and download declarations below.

You must bring the following to your appointment with SIRI:

Your original passport and / or your national ID card

A completed copy of application form OD1 or receipt for submitted OD1 online form

You must attach the following to your application:

Documentation of your grounds for residence as a posted service provider

As documentation of your grounds for residence as an posted service provider, you can submit the following:

Service agreement between the EU company and the Danish company or private individual in Denmark

Agreement between the EU company and its subcontractor(s), if the service to the Danish company is provided by more than one company

Employment contract between the EU company and you, who will be posted

Posting agreement to Denmark (must include the period of time you will be posted, a description of the job tasks and refer to the service agreement between the EU and the Danish company)

If you are a citizen of a country outside the EU, the EEA or Switzerland:

Proof that you have legal residence and the right to work in the country in which the company where you are employed is located (e.g. in the form of a residence and work permit or a residence card)

Download declarations:

Download Sworn declaration and information (must be signed and attached if you do not sign the application with MitID)

Complete the application form

Expect to use

30 minutes

to complete the application form

1 person

You complete the application form yourself

In this step you have access to the relevant application form OD1.

You can choose between an online form and a printable form.

Both types of application forms contain instructions on how to complete the form and what kind of documents you must submit along with the form.

Online form

If you choose to complete OD1 online, you must make sure you have all documents ready in a digital format, in order to attach them to the online application form.

Use the online form OD1 (opens in a new window)

Printable application form

If you choose the printable form OD1A, it must be completed and submitted in person at one of our branch offices together with the relevant documentation.

The application form in Word format can be completed on the screen before you print. The application form in pdf format must be printed first and then completed by hand.

Download the printable form OD1A (Pdf format)

Download the printable form OD1A (Word format)

Submit the application

You have applied online

If you are applying online for a Danish EU residence document for the first time, you must appear in person at one of SIRI's branch offices.

You must bring the receipt for your online application (containing your application's reference number) and your photo ID (passport or national ID card).

Only when you have identified yourself this way and been linked to your application, will we consider your application to be fully submitted. You must appear no later than 30 days after submitting your online application. If you do not this, SIRI will consider your application as withdrawn and close the case.

In these other instances you do not need to appear in person at SIRI.

You are applying to change the grounds for your residence under EU rules, e.g. if you have had EU residence as a student and now wish to change the grounds for your residence to EU residence as a worker.
You are appying for an extension, if you have a temporary right of residence under EU regulations that you wish extend.
You are applying for permanent residence under EU regulations.

You can appear in person at one of SIRI’s branch offices in Copenhagen, Odense, Aarhus, Aalborg, Esbjerg, Sønderborg or on Bornholm.

Find information on the addresses and opening hours of SIRI's branch offices here

Remember to book an appointment at SIRI!

Before you appear in person at SIRI, you must book an appointment

You wish to submit a printable application form

You can submit your application in person in one of SIRI’s branch offices in Copenhagen, Odense, Aarhus, Aalborg, Esbjerg, Sønderborg or on Bornholm.

Find information on the addresses and opening hours of SIRI's branch offices here

Remember to book an appointment at SIRI!

Before you submit your application at SIRI, you must book an appointment

Receive an answer

You can see the normal case processing time to the right of this tab. When we make a decision in your case, you will receive an answer.

SIRI will contact you or your employer if we need further information to process your case. In some cases, we will need to obtain further information, e.g. from other public authorities, including SKAT and the police and relevant authorities abroad.

Your residence card will automatically be sent to the address that has been registered under your name in the Civil Registration System (CPR). It is important that your name is written on your mailbox. If your name is not written on your mailbox, there is a chance that the residence card will not be delivered to you, and that it will be sent back to SIRI instead.

You have the right to reside and work in Denmark while you wait for an answer.