The employer decision sequence
The occupation classification drives everything: whether a shortage waiver applies, which salary threshold applies, and whether a labour-market test is needed. Vague role definitions cause avoidable refusals.
Confirms your obligations: quota availability, market test, threshold, and whether the employer must be an approved or recognised sponsor. Getting this wrong after issuing an offer is expensive.
The contract must state a salary that satisfies the applicable threshold, along with hours and conditions that meet statutory requirements. A well-intentioned offer below the threshold will be refused.
Where a test applies, advertising must be genuine, correctly recorded and in the required channel for the required duration. Where a quota applies, timing of the filing window can decide whether you can hire at all this year.
The employer-side application produces the document the candidate needs for their long-stay work visa. Brief the candidate properly: wrong consular jurisdiction and expired clearances are the most common causes of delay at this stage.
Register the employee, run statutory payroll and contributions, ensure duties and hours match the authorisation, and meet any employer-side reporting obligation. Poor record-keeping is what turns a routine inspection into a liability.
Common employer mistakes
Offers issued against a route that does not apply, then renegotiated or withdrawn. Costs credibility with candidates.
A genuine market offer that does not clear the statutory or route minimum cannot be approved.
Insufficient advertising evidence, wrong channel, or a duration shorter than required.
Moving an employee into a role outside the approved occupation breaches the permit.
The employer often controls the address and contract evidence the employee needs. Delays become the employer's problem.
Often a candidate already in-country on another status can convert faster than a new overseas filing.
FAQ
What is the first step before recruiting from outside the EU?
Establish which permit route applies to the role, because the route determines the labour-market test, the quota, the salary threshold and the timeline. Recruiting first and discovering the route afterwards is the most common and most expensive sequencing error. Confirm the route against the national authority for the country and role before any offer is issued.
Do we always need a labour-market test?
No. Many countries waive or streamline the test for shortage occupations, for highly skilled categories, or where the role appears on a published shortage list. Others require the employer to demonstrate that no suitable domestic or EU candidate was available. Whether it applies to you depends on the country, the occupation and the salary.
How long does the whole process take?
It splits into the employer-side authorisation and the candidate-side consular filing. Authorisation commonly takes weeks to a few months, and consular processing and appointment availability add more. Timelines are set by authorities and by appointment supply, so plan recruitment against the realistic end-to-end window, not the best-case one.
What are our obligations once they start work?
The same obligations as for any employee, plus the immigration-specific ones: payroll and social contributions at the statutory level, working conditions matching the approved authorisation, reporting of changes where required, and maintaining records that demonstrate compliance. Paying below the approved level, or employing on duties outside the authorisation, is a serious breach.
Can we hire someone already in the country on a different permit?
Often yes, but usually via a change-of-status or new authorisation rather than simply transferring them. Rules on who may change status from within the country, and on dependants, students and job-seekers converting to work, differ by country. Verify before making an offer, because an in-country conversion is often faster than filing from abroad.
Author: Nexus Point Consultants Employer Desk · Reviewer: senior immigration counsel · Last updated: 15 September 2026.