Appointment to apply for a residence permit for employment can be booked beginning from Monday

Beginning from Monday, 28 November morning, it will be possible to book appointments to December for submitting applications for residence permits on the basis of the 2023 immigration quota.

To submit an application for a residence permit at the Police and Border Guard Board (PBGB), you must book an appointment on the homepage https://broneering.politsei.ee/.

In addition to the PBGB client service offices, applications for residence permits can also be submitted at Estonian embassies, we ask you to consult them in advance. An applicant for extension of a residence permit who has provided a fingerprint image to the PBGB in the last six years may also apply by mail or e-mail. Information on appointment booking options was also provided by PBGB to all employers who have joined the migration advisors’ newsletter.

The 2023 immigration quota is 1307 according to the government decision and is broken down by spheres as follows:

  • 600 temporary residence permits for employment in the processing industry sector
  • 200 temporary residence permits for employment in the construction sector
  • 100 temporary residence permits for employment in the transport and storage sector
  • 5 temporary residence permits for business
  • 5 temporary residence permits on the basis of a treaty
  • 19 temporary residence permits for employment in a performing arts institution as a creative employee within the meaning of the Performing Arts Institutions Act
  • 30 temporary residence permits for professional activities as an athlete, coach, sports referee, or sports professional at the invitation of the relevant sports federation.

The remaining part of the 2023 immigration quota, i.e., 313 temporary residence permits, remains freely distributed. ‘If a foreigner’s application for residence permit does not fall within the division of the spheres listed above, account must be taken of the fact that their applications fall within the quota for free distribution,’ said Liis Valk, Superintendent of the Identity and Status Bureau of the PBGB.

‘With effect from 1 January, an amendment to the Aliens Act will enter into force, allowing persons who have just been working in Estonia for a continuous period of at least 9 consecutive months to apply for a residence permit outside the quota. These applications can be submitted as of January. We recommend that foreigners make an informed choice as to whether to apply for a residence permit based on an immigration quota or in accordance with the entry into force of the amendment of the law, as the PBGB shall not process simultaneously two applications for a residence permit,” added Valk.

Important information for employers and foreigners arriving for work:

  • The submission of an application for a first residence permit does not give the foreigner a legal basis for stay in the country. If the foreigner’s visa or other basis for stay expires before a decision has been taken on the application for a residence permit, the foreigner must leave Estonia and wait for the decision in his or her home country. In this case, it may also be necessary to inform the PBGB and amend the application for receipt of the residence card if Estonia was initially indicated as the place of receipt of the document.
  • Russian and Belarusian citizens are still subject to a sanction imposed by the Government of the Republic and are not issued with a residence permit for employment and for business.
  • The booking is mandatory for the foreigner to submit an application for a residence permit – the booking is not intended for the employer and cannot be used by the employer for another employee.
  • The booking is only intended for the person in whose name it was registered. An application will not be accepted based on a booking registered in the name of another person.
  • You will not be able to change your booking later – if you cannot arrive at the scheduled appointment, you will have to cancel the appointment and make a new booking.
  • Cancelled bookings will be re-opened in the calendar for everyone to book after a while.
  • Further information can be obtained from the PBGB’s migration advisors at: https://www.politsei.ee/et/migratsiooninoustajad.

For persons whose applications do not fall within the immigration quota, but whose basis of stay is coming to an end, and they cannot book an appointment to file an application, please contact the PBGB.