Permanent Residence Card
ELIGIBILITY
Permanent residence status shall be granted to:
· an EEA national who has resided legally and continuously in the territory of Hungary for five years;
An EEA national who is residing in Hungary to pursue occupational activity in the territory of Hungary is eligible for permanent residence status before the five-year period of residence expires if:
· he/she has resided in the territory of Hungary continuously for more than three years from the time of entry and at the time of termination of his/her occupational activity has reached the age of entitlement for old-age pension, or ceased his/her occupational activity to claim early retirement, provided that the person has been engaged in occupational activity in the territory of Hungary for at least the preceding twelve months before going into retirement with old-age pension or before taking early retirement;
· he/she has resided in the territory of Hungary continuously for more than two years from the time of entry to pursue occupational activity and he/she had to give up his/her occupational activity due to incapacity to work as the result of health impairment or accident requiring medical treatment;
· his/her incapacity to work is the result of an accident at work or an occupational disease invoking entitlement to benefits provided for in specific other legislation; or
· after three years of continuous occupational activity and residence in the territory of Hungary, he/she pursues occupational activity in another State that is a party to the Agreement on the European Economic Area, while retaining his/her place of residence in the territory of Hungary.
Where an EEA national has acquired the right of permanent residence under either of the preferential terms enumerated above, his/her family members holding the right of residence shall also have the right of long-term residence.
DEFINITIONS
INFORMATION ON SUBMITTING APPLICATIONS AND THE RELATED PROCEDURE
Requirements: the completed form, facial photograph taken not more than three months prior to date, submitting the mandatory enclosures, and payment of the procedural fee.
Please note that an application may be submitted in person at the client service of the competent NDGAP regional directorate as per the place of residence of the applicant within the territory of Hungary or electronically upon registration on the electronic platform of the immigration authority for procedure initiation (Enter Hungary). In case of a legal representative or an authorised legal entity, applications - which can otherwise be submitted electronically - can only be submitted electronically.
For more details on electronic administration, please click here.
At the time of submitting the application the copy of the applicant’s valid travel document or personal identification document must be attached, and documents and other papers specified in this Decree to verify lawful and continuous residence must also be enclosed.
In the absence of evidence to the contrary, the first day of continuous residence in the territory of Hungary is the day on which the EEA national’s stay exceeding ninety days within a one-hundred-and-eighty-day period of time is reported.
The following shall not be deemed as discontinuity of residence
· temporary absence from the territory of Hungary not exceeding six months in a year;
· absence for compulsory military service;
· a one-time absence up to a maximum of twelve consecutive months due to a material cause, such as pregnancy and childbirth, serious illness, pursuit of study or vocational training, or posting.
If an EEA national abandons to exercise his/her right of residence in the territory of Hungary, it is considered as discontinuity of residence. If an EEA national has abandoned to exercise his/her right of residence in the territory of Hungary, and returned to the territory of Hungary for a period of over ninety days within a one-hundred-and-eighty-day period of time the duration required for the right of permanent residence shall start over from this time.
The administrative service fee charged for the issuance of a permanent residence card is HUF 1,500.
The cost of the procedure is payable by way of an electronic payment instrument (bank card).
Please note that an application submitted electronically is deemed to have been received by the authority if the administrative service fee has been paid. The signed application form must be attached to the application submitted electronically.
If you wish to request an invoice of the payment of the procedural fee, please click on the link below:
Invoice request on payment of procedural fee
The regional directorate shall rule the application for a permanent residence card within 70 days.
The competent immigration authority shall deliver the document evidencing right of residence to the applicant by way of post.
The administrative service fee charged for an appeal is HUF 47,000, which is to be paid by way of an electronic payment instrument (bank card) or in the form of a bank deposit (using the cheque supplied by the regional directorate). When paying by using a yellow cheque, the client’s name and date of birth, and the case type i.e. “Permanent Residence Card Appeal” are to be indicated in the “comment” box.
If you wish to request an invoice of the payment of the procedural fee, please click on the link below:
Invoice request on payment of procedural fee
FORMS
The application shall be submitted with either one of the following forms completed and printed.
- Issuance, Renewal of Permanent Residence Card, Appendix I-II
- Application for Replacement of Permanent Residence Card
- Application for Exchange of Permanent Residence Card
Forms available for downloading in PDF format, to be filled out manually:
- Issuance, Renewal of Permanent Residence Card, Appendix I-II
- Application for Replacement of Permanent Residence Card
- Application for Exchange of Permanent Residence Card
MANDATORY ENCLOSURES
At the time of submitting the application the applicant is to present his/her valid travel document or personal identification document, and enclose documents and other papers to verify lawful and continuous residence.
Please note that an authentic instrument issued abroad or a private document certified by a foreign court, administrative body, notary public or any other person endowed with public authority, unless otherwise provided by law, international treaty or agreement, or the principle of reciprocity, has probative value under Hungarian law, only if it has been endorsed by the Hungarian diplomatic or consular mission operating in the country where it was issued. Unless otherwise provided by law, an instrument issued in a language other than Hungarian shall be accepted only with a certified Hungarian translation attached.
The competent authority may accept the authentic instrument submitted by the applicant that was issued abroad without an official Hungarian translation and without diplomatic recertification.
During the process, the immigration authority may request further documents, apart from the mandatory enclosures, for ascertaining the relevant facts of the case, and may take further procedural steps as well. The administrative time limit shall not include the length of time between the receipt of the notice for remedying deficiencies until the time of compliance.
VALIDITY PERIOD
A permanent residence card issued to an EEA national shall be valid indefinitely, together with a valid travel document or personal identification document.
ACCRUED RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS
EEA nationals exercising the right of residence exceeding ninety days within a one-hundred-and-eighty-day period of time shall report to the competent regional directorate as per their place of residence, with personal data included:
· the death of a family member residing with them;
· change of name,
· if the death or change of name occurred outside the territory of Hungary.
EEA nationals may notify the competent immigration authority if they abandon to exercise their right of residence, or if they leave the territory of Hungary definitely, including about the country of next habitual residence, and may turn in their document evidencing their right of residence in the territory of Hungary.
EEA nationals shall present their documents evidencing their right of residence when requested so by the authority vested with powers to check their identity and their right of residence.