The Swedish National Union of Students, SFS Doctoral Committee, Saco, SULF, SULF's Doctoral Student Association, TCO and the ST Trade Union have jointly signed a statement on the Aliens Act. The statement has been sent to political decision-makers today.
English translation below
Joint statement on the new rules for granting permanent residence permits for doctoral students and other early-career researchers
We, the undersigned, representing trade unions and student organizations that support the work and education of doctoral students, stand in solidarity with those doctoral students and other early-career researchers in Sweden whose lives and future plans are affected by the new Aliens Act.
In the summer of 2021, the requirements for obtaining a permanent residence permit in Sweden changed. This has had serious consequences for researchers at the beginning of their careers and especially for doctoral students, partly due to changes in legislation and partly due to the Swedish Migration Board's interpretation of the new regulations. The conditions for doctoral students from outside the EU/EEA to obtain a permanent residence permit have deteriorated significantly.
Since 2014, doctoral students from outside the EU/EEA have been able to obtain a permanent residence permit after four years of doctoral studies. The latest changes to the Aliens Act mean that doctoral students or other early-career researchers must be able to demonstrate that they are financially self-sufficient. The Aliens Ordinance further states that this financial self-sufficiency must have a certain duration. How long this duration should be is not specified in the legislation. However, the Swedish Migration Board has decided that there must be an employment contract that provides employment for at least 18 months. In addition, there is no transition period in the new legislation, but the new regulations entered into force on 20 July 2021 and will apply to all applications for a permanent residence permit from now on, including ongoing applications that were submitted before this date.
Doctoral students and other early-career researchers are very rarely offered such long-term employment contracts, whether they are employed by universities, companies or the state. At the same time, people with a doctoral degree are rarely unemployed, and if they do become unemployed, it is usually only for a short time. Despite the high demand for their skills and knowledge, their opportunities to obtain such long-term employment are limited in the first years after their dissertation. The new rules for permanent residence will constitute further obstacles in their pursuit of long-term career development in Sweden. Therefore, the new rules will create a situation with only losers for both individuals and for Sweden as a knowledge nation.
We demand that political decision-makers in Sweden correct this situation by:
- Decides on a return to the 2014 regulations, which give doctoral students the right to a permanent residence permit after four years of studies.
- Immediately creates an exception to the Swedish Migration Board's requirement for employment contracts of at least 18 months for doctoral students and other early-career researchers.
Furthermore, we fully support the call launched in early September demanding a change in the legislation on permanent residence. We will continue to support those affected by these changes in any way we can, continue to monitor the situation and draw the attention of those in power to these issues until the demands are met.
Bag
Sweden's University Teachers and Researchers, SULF
SULF's doctoral student association
TCO
The trade union ST
Swedish National Union of Students, SFS
Swedish National Union of Students' Doctoral Committee, SFS-DK
Joint statement on the new rules regarding permanent residency for doctoral students and other early-career researchers
We, the undersigned, representing trade unions and student organizations supporting doctoral students' work and education, stand in solidarity with the doctoral students and other early-career researchers in Sweden whose lives and future plans are affected by the new Aliens Act (Utlänningslagen).
In the summer of 2021, the requirements for being granted a permanent residence permit in Sweden were changed, and this has had severe consequences for early-career researchers, and for doctoral students in particular. These were due in part to changes in the legislation and in part to the Migration Agency's (Migrationsverket) interpretation of the new regulations, both of which markedly restricted the chances of non-EU/EEA doctoral students receiving a permanent residence permit.
Since 2014, non-EU/EEA doctoral students have been able to receive permanent residency after 4 years of doctoral studies. With the recent changes in the Aliens Act, these doctoral students or other early-career researchers need to be able to show that they are financially self-sufficient. The Aliens Ordinance further specifies that this financial self-sufficiency needs to be of a certain duration. This duration was not specified in the legislation. However, the Migration Agency has decided that there needs to be an employment contract of 18 months or more. Moreover, there was no transition period, so the legislation came into effect on the 20thth of July 2021 and applies to all applications for permanent residency processed thereafter, even those submitted before that date.
Doctoral students and other early-career researchers are very rarely offered such long-term contracts, whether employed by universities, private companies or the state. At the same time, those who hold a PhD degree are rarely unemployed and, if they are unemployed, it is usually only for a short time. However, while the demand for their skills and expertise is high, their chances of being given a long-term contract are low during the first few years after graduation. The new permanent residency rules will create additional hurdles in their pursuit of long-term career development in Sweden. Hence, the new rules will also create a lose-lose situation for Sweden as a knowledge-based nation.
We demand that the political decision-makers in Sweden rectify the situation by:
- instituting a return to the 2014 regulation, giving doctoral students the right to permanent residency after 4 years of studies.
- immediately introducing an exemption from the Migration Agency's requirement of an employment contract of at least 18 months for doctoral students and other early-career researchers.
Furthermore, we fully support the petition launched in early September that calls for a change in permanent residency law. We will continue to support those affected by these changes to the best of our abilities, to monitor the situation and to bring these issues to the attention of those in power until our demands are met.
Bag
Sweden's University Teachers and Researchers, SULF
SULF's doctoral student association
TCO
The trade union ST
Swedish National Union of Students, SFS
Swedish National Union of Students' Doctoral Committee, SFS-DK