Hungary's government has put forward a new comprehensive immigration law, aimed at tightening and clarifying the legal grounds and conditions for the residence and employment of foreign nationals in the country. This proposal, detailed in a recently published law draft on the kormany.hu website, responds to the challenges of increasing migration.
"Due to increasing migration, there is a need for stricter immigration enforcement. Hungary belongs to Hungarians, and Hungarian jobs should first and foremost be for Hungarians. We must clearly regulate who can stay in Hungary and for how long. Neither working nor other forms of stay can be unlimited and cannot be extended automatically,” the document’s preamble reads.
Key aspects of the proposal include:
- Residency and employment regulation: The law seeks to more strictly regulate who can stay in Hungary and for how long. It emphasizes that neither employment nor other forms of residence can be unlimited or extended automatically.
- Sovereignty and law enforcement: The document underlines Hungary's sovereignty in determining who is allowed entry into its territory. It stresses the expectation that everyone must abide by Hungarian laws and norms of coexistence. Non-compliance with these laws and rules will necessitate immediate departure from Hungarian territory.
- Guest worker policies: The proposal states that guest workers can only be employed under strict It aims to protect Hungarian jobs by ensuring that guest workers are only hired if there is no available Hungarian worker for the job. Moreover, the number of guest workers allowed will correspond to the number of vacant job positions, and their stay in Hungary will be time-limited.
- Protection against mass immigration: By tightening employment regulations, the law intends to provide additional legal measures to safeguard Hungary from mass immigration.
- Conditions for long-term residency: The document clarifies that residing in Hungary is not a fundamental right for foreign nationals. They can reside or work in Hungary permanently only with the state's permission, and only if their presence serves the interests of Hungarian society and does not disadvantage any Hungarian citizen.
The proposed law focuses on national interests and tighter control of foreign workers' employment and residency in the country. The proposal can be expected to enter into force by the end of this year.