I am glad to share the news that our family today received new residence permit cards with a one and a half year extension in Bratislava! When we filed documents for extending a residence permit in Slovakia, I promised that, as soon as the new cards would be in my hand, I share with my subscribers personal experience in this process, tell you what requirements are need to be fulfilled to extend the residence permit, what documents you need to collect and what pitfalls the applicant may encounter in the process of waiting for the extension of a residence permit in Slovakia.
I recommend starting to deal with the issue of extending a residence permit at least 2-3 months before the expiration of the current situation on the visit as you need to collect a considerable list of documents and references. Applying for a renewal is desirable 2-3 weeks before the expiry of the residence permit.
It is necessary to take into account possible force majeure: weekends in Slovakia, when the police are also not working; the possible stopping of the work of the foreign police for several days for technical reasons, as it was in June 2018; possible long lines when you have to arrive the next business day, etc. On this allow the filing of documents on the last day is not worth it. If a foreigner is at least 1 day late with the extension, the residence permit is canceled, you need to start everything from the beginning, and the previous period of residence in Slovakia will no longer be taken into account in the five-year period after which permanent residence is issued. It is better to go in advance, even if you do not have all references or documents available. The police will receive a statement from you, and the rest of the information can be brought in the coming days.
List of documents for renewal of residence permit in Slovakia:
● Application in the Slovak language on a special form (žiadosť);
● A copy of the valid passport (you only need to present the original);
● Extract from the trade register (confirmation that you are still an entrepreneur in Slovakia);
● Certificate from the bank on the balance on the personal account. Since July 1, 2018, the amount of the subsistence minimum has increased, and now amounts to 205.07 euros. The balance on the account for one adult should be at least 12 living wages 205.07 * 12 = 2460.84 euros, for children under 18 years old – two times less, this is 205.07 * 6 = 1230.42. Better amounts to round up. All amounts for each family member must be in the account of the Guarantor. Before receiving a certificate from the bank, always specify what is the cost of living in Slovakia at the moment;
● Certificate from the tax service about the absence of debt and taxes paid for the previous year;
● Info from the social insurance company about the absence of debt;
● Certificate from customs about the absence of debt;
● Info from three medical insurance companies (VšZP, Dôvera, Union) about the absence of debt;
● Medical insurance;
● Rental agreement for an apartment and confirmation from apartment owners that they give a residence permit (Čestné vyhlásenie) with notarized signatures of homeowners; or a document confirming that you are the owner of residential real estate;
● One color photo 3 * 3.5 cm;
● In the case of extension for the family, you also need a statement that you will support your family members, and a statement that the family members did not change the basis for obtaining a residence permit.
For each family member a separate set of documents is formed. The guarantor signs the application for children under 18 years of age. All certificates must be no older than 90 days.
Conditions for extending a residence permit in Slovakia:
● Lack of debt to the state. To do this, take the appropriate confirmation.
● The minimum amount of profit after tax for an entrepreneur is 4,100 euros, for a company – 12,200 euros.
● According to the new changes in the law on foreigners of May 1, 2018, an additional condition now appears on the stay of a foreigner in the territory of Slovakia. According to him, the applicant for the renewal of a residence permit must be located in Slovakia (or the EU) for at least half the period for which he was given the previous residence permit. Dates are summarized. This means that it is not necessarily continuously located on the territory of Slovakia for the entire period. It can be broken, but cumulatively must be at least half.
● It is VERY desirable to have Slovak contractors with whom contracts were signed and invoiced. It is necessary to have at least 2-3 Slovak counterparties, otherwise the police may refuse to extend the residence permit due to the lack of a need for a residence permit in Slovakia, since you conduct business outside of it.
● Availability of rented or own housing. After submitting an application for renewal, the police check in 99% of the place of residence.
● A big plus would be the availability of an office and / or storage space with which you do business in Slovakia.
If all the conditions are met, and the documents are filed with the police, it remains to wait 90 days, which the police have under the law, when the residence permit is renewed and new residence permits are issued. You will learn the good news from your phone when it comes to SMS with information about the release of new cards. By the way, cards can be received by courier right at home. To do this, during the application you need to specify the delivery method by courier. After the SMS arrives, usually the courier arrives the next day.
Call for an interview with the police for foreigners
The police selectively summon applicants to extend a residence permit for an interview. I just became such a “lucky”! This is notified by registered mail one month before the date of the interview. The letter will contain information about the date and time of the interview, as well as a request to take with you all the documents confirming the actual activities of your individual entrepreneur or company: contracts, invoices, checks, etc.
At the appointed time, I arrived at the new building of the foreign police in Bratislava, Regrútska 4. I was provided with a translator from Ukrainian into Slovak. So need by law. Although I already speak a language at a level sufficient to communicate with the police representative. The interview lasted an hour and a half.
They asked a lot of questions from “What is my name?” To “What companies do you work in Slovakia with? What are their directors called? How much did you invest in the Slovak economy? ”. There were also many leading questions. At the meeting, I took copies and originals of contracts with counterparties, invoice bills, as indicated in the invitation for an interview. Copies left to the police officer to attach to my case for the extension of the residence permit. At the end of the interview, we thanked each other, signed the protocol, and I could be free. After the interview, we did not receive any messages from the police until the moment when the SMS arrived to issue new cards.
Recently, there has been an increase in the timing of consideration of both applications for the first residence permit and renewal. As already mentioned, the police have 90 days to consider the application, but in practice it may take longer. In our case, we have extended the residence permit after 3 months and 3 weeks. Not everyone knows that you can write to the police a request for familiarization with your affair. If we didn’t receive any information this week, then next I planned to write such an official request. In Slovak, such a letter is called Ziadost o nahladnutie do spisu – a statement about the review of the case. Such a letter helps to speed up the decision, as it passes through the police leadership.
In case of refusal to extend the residence permit, the police will send a registered letter with information about the reason for the refusal. But even this is not a sentence. The applicant has 5 days to appeal. Need urgently seek professional help. If everything is done correctly, then after the appeal there is a chance to extend the residence permit even up to 3 years.
Conclusion
Thanks to proper bookkeeping, preparation of all documents and certificates for an application for renewal, as well as good preparation for the interview, we were given an extension of a residence permit for one and a half years, which happens quite rarely in Bratislava.
Our own experience, knowledge of laws and skills at your disposal. If you also have to extend a residence permit, you can feel free to contact our company. We will collect all the necessary documents and certificates, accompany the police to submit an application for a renewal of a residence permit, prepare for a possible interview. You will feel confident in answering any question. If necessary, we will help you to correctly draw up an appeal against the refusal. More information about the service can be found on this page.
Our company wishes you success in your business, so that each renewal is quick and easy for you!
We offer to your attention to watching a video on the topic of extending a residence permit in Slovakia:
