Employment relations in Slovakia are regulated by the Labour Code (Act No. 311/2001) and the Act on Employment Services (Act No. 5/2004), which can be found in the online legislative and information portal www.slov-lex.sk (in Slovak only).

EU/EEA/Swiss nationals and their family members can be employed in the territory of the Slovak Republic on the same terms as Slovak nationals. The applicant has to meet employer’s requirements, e.g. required education, language skills, required work experience, etc. For information related to the employment, all mobile workers from the EU/EEA/Switzerland can consult the website of EURES (European Information Services – information network facilitating mobility of workers within the Member States of the European Union and the European Free Trade Association) www.eures.sk and http://ec.europa.eu/eures.

If you are not an EU/EEA/Swiss national, in general, you can work only if you are granted a temporary residence for the purpose of employment or a permanent residence. Nevertheless, there are some exceptions that apply to students, PhD students, university teachers or researchers.

More detailed information about administrative procedures related to the employment of a foreigner in Slovakia can be found in the brochure “Entry, stay and employment in Slovakia – guide to administrative duties” available to download at www.saia.sk/en.

In connection to the employment of a foreigner in Slovakia (either an EU/EEA/Swiss national or a non‑EU national), the employer has also some obligations to fulfil.

Who does not need a work permit or a confirmation of the possibility to fill a vacant position?

With regard to the purpose of this website, we have selected only the most important provisions from the complete list. A work permit or the confirmation of the possibility to fill a vacant position is not required in case a third country national is:

A university student with a granted temporary residence for the purpose of studies, or carrying out a study mobility in Slovakia whose employment does not exceed 20 hours per week;

    - granted a temporary residence for the purpose of research and development and carries out research or development on the basis of a Hosting Agreement concluded with a research organisation;

    - granted a temporary residence for the purpose of research and development and his/her employment related to lecturing will not exceed 50 days in a calendar year;

    - carrying out research in Slovakia within the intra‑EU mobility scheme;

A graduate of a high school or higher education institution (university) in Slovakia;

    - aged less than 26 years and will be employed in occasional and time‑limited jobs within exchanges between schools or within youth and education programmes, in which Slovakia participates;

    - granted a temporary residence in Slovakia as a person with the long‑term residency status in another EU member state, after 12 months of stay in Slovakia;

    - granted a permanent residence in Slovakia;

    - granted a temporary residence of a third country national who has a recognised status of a Slovak living abroad;

    - employed upon a commitment of the Slovak Republic under an international treaty defining that the work permit is not required for this type of employment (e.g. working holidays with Canada and New Zealand).