New Single Permit Directive simplifies issuance of residence and work permits and extends equal treatment rights

People walking down a street

Revision of this regulation has resulted in a simplified procedure for issuing residence and work permits and a set of equal treatment rights for foreign workers and EU citizens.

The Single Permit Directive is a horizontal piece of legislation that applies to almost all residence and work permits issued in the EU to third-country nationals.

Its entry into force also means a profound modification of the current regulations, with a series of notable improvements, such as the reduction of deadlines and the simplification of the procedures for issuing permits, which will serve as an incentive for workers and companies; and the new requirement to examine applications from within the territory of a member state, preventing requests to leave the territory before applying for a new permit and reducing incentives for the irregular situations that occur.

The new directive will also improve worker protection from exploitation by limiting member states' capacity to apply restrictive rules on rights and improving information and transparency of working conditions. It will also increase the equal treatment of migrant workers with EU nationals. In this respect, the rights covered by the regulation have been notably extended and decisive action has been taken in areas such as equal access to private rental housing, as demanded by many civil society organisations.

This new directive does not form part of the recently approved Pact on Migration and Asylum, but is complementary to it, and its entry into force means modifying internal regulations to varying degrees to adapt to it. A two-year period has been established for transpositions, ending on 21 May 2026. Given that Spain already has a high standard of rights for migrant workers, only minor adaptations will have to be made, especially in the Regulation of the Law on Foreigners. It also means that progress will be made in procedural simplification, rights will be extended in terms of periods of unemployment, and statistical data collection requirements will also be improved to allow for a better evaluation of migration policies associated with the single permit.

The national legal measures to be adopted by the government will be developed through social and institutional dialogue, with the participation of the autonomous communities and social partners.

The Spanish Presidency of the Council succeeded in obtaining the backing of the member states in the Committee of Permanent Representatives of the Governments of the EU Member States to revise the Single Permit Directive, on the basis of an agreement reached with the European Parliament at the trialogue held on 18 December 2023.

Non official translation