Hungary: New Restrictions on Hiring Foreigners
The Hungarian government has introduced Government decree 297/2024. (X. 14.), establishing new regulations to tighten the employment of foreign workers and prioritize Hungarian job seekers. The new changes entered into force on October 16, 2024.
Here are the key points outlined in the decree:
1. Prioritizing Hungarian workers
- Employers must demonstrate genuine attempts to hire Hungarian workers before offering positions to foreign nationals. If the event employer has previously shown a preference for foreign workers without justifiable reasons, applications to hire foreign nationals may be denied.
2. Restrictions on employers with labor law violations
- Employers with recent labor or occupational safety violations are barred from applying to hire third-country nationals. Such violations include fines for hiring foreigners without necessary permits or other labor code violations within the past year;
- Companies under liquidation or inactive businesses are to be restricted from hiring foreign nationals.
3. Annual reporting requirement
- Each year by January 15 employers must report to the Government the actual number of their foreign employees, subdivided into groups by their job positions’ FEOR codes.
4. New obligations to assist Hungarian job seekers
- Employers must cooperate with government-run employment centers to ensure job opportunities are provided to Hungarian candidates;
- Employers must conduct job briefings and provide application materials in Hungarian to facilitate participation by Hungarian candidates.
5. Seasonal Work Permit restrictions
- Applications for seasonal work permits will automatically be rejected if employers have outstanding labor fines or are undergoing liquidation. Employers must also demonstrate active business operations.
6. Streamlined processes for Workforce Demand applications
- For easier and faster hiring, employers must notify the authorities about workforce demands, specifying employment requirements and salary conditions. The authorities offices will only accept applications with fair and competitive salary offers, aligned with national averages;
- Employers interview Hungarian job seekers and document their efforts before applying for permits for third-country workers.
These updated regulations are targeted to ensuring fair labor practices, reducing reliance on foreign workers, and safeguarding opportunities for Hungarian citizens.
If you have any questions or need help with applying new provisions in practice, please reach out to Intermark Immigration services team for support.