SLOVENIA Trends and Developments Contributed by: Jernej Jeraj and Eva Bardutzky, PFP Law
Amendments were made to the Foreigners Act and the Employment, Self-Employment and Work of For - eigners Acts, which removed some administrative obstacles to the employment of foreigners in Slovenia. To accelerate the employment process for foreigners, employment in specific professions – as defined by a decree issued by the Minister responsible for labour – is now permitted even before a final single residence and work permit is granted, based on a certificate of submission of the application for a single residence and work permit and the consent of the Employment Service of Slovenia. Recently, the territorial jurisdic - tion of administrative units for handling these appli - cations has also been abolished, contributing further to a more balanced workload among administrative authorities and shorter processing times. In addition to the aforementioned simplifications, the amended laws also introduce new obligations for employers. One of the key novelties is the introduc - tion of a mandatory Slovenian language course of at least 80 hours, which must be organised during work - ing hours, free of charge for the worker, and provided within the first six months after the foreign worker begins employment. This measure aims to facilitate the integration of foreigners into the Slovenian envi - ronment. Relatively high fines apply in cases of non- compliance, further underscoring the importance of this measure. According to Directive (EU) 2021/1883 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 October 2021 on the conditions of entry and residence of third-country nationals for the purpose of highly qualified employ - ment, and repealing Council Directive 2009/50/EC , which outlines the conditions for the entry and resi - dence of third-country nationals seeking highly quali - fied employment, the regulations for obtaining an EU Blue Card have been updated. A fixed-term employ - ment contract of six months is now sufficient, and the salary threshold has been reduced to the average yearly gross wage. A specific exception also applies to the information and communication technology sector, where a foreign national may obtain a Blue Card even without formal education, provided they demonstrate appropriate practical skills and experi - ence.
To prevent potential abuses, the amended acts con - tain additional safeguards. One key condition for the Employment Service of Slovenia to issue consent for an EU Blue Card is that the employer must not have terminated the employment agreement of a worker or workers who meet the requirements for the spe - cific position due to business reasons in the past six months. However, consent may still be granted if the employer demonstrates that the foreign highly quali - fied worker will be paid at least the average gross monthly salary or that no suitable candidate is regis - tered for the position in the unemployment records. Changes have also been introduced in the field of sea - sonal work, which is now permitted in the hospitality and tourism sectors, though limited to six months. As an additional mechanism for protecting the rights of foreign workers, a public list of employer viola - tors has also been introduced. This list, published by the Employment Service of Slovenia, serves both a preventive and informative function, allowing foreign workers to gain transparency regarding past (and potentially future) violators, while also acting as a deterrent to employers. Digital nomads In an effort to strengthen technological and economic development, attract highly mobile foreign profession - als, and boost local consumption, Slovenia has fol - lowed the example of several European countries by introducing legislative changes aimed at regulating the status of so-called digital nomads. With the amendment to the Foreigners Act, the cat - egory of digital nomads has been defined in legislation for the first time. A digital nomad is a person who: • is not a citizen of the European Union or the Euro - pean Economic Area, • performs remote work using telecommunications technology, • is employed by a foreign business entity, works for a foreign business entity under a civil law contract, or is self-employed abroad, and • does not sell or provide services or generate income in Slovenia, with the same condition apply - ing to their employer.
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