If you want to move to this country for permanent residence, get ready to go through several successive stages:

1. Get a visa: tourist, student, work or any other. It is issued at the embassy of the country of your destination. In a couple of months, you will understand if Slovenia is right for you.
2. Get a temporary residence permit. It is usually valid for a year, after which it will have to be renewed.
3. To obtain a permanent residence permit, you need to live in the country for at least five years with a temporary residence permit. It is valid indefinitely.
4. Apply for citizenship if eligible. Ordinary naturalisation generally requires 10 years of actual residence in Slovenia, including the last 5 years continuously before applying, with a regulated foreigner status. For graduates of at least a higher education programme in Slovenia, a separate route may be available after 7 years of actual residence, including at least the final year continuously, subject to the remaining requirements. Applicants generally need to demonstrate basic Slovenian for everyday communication, sufficient means for themselves and their dependants, and compliance with requirements concerning criminal convictions, taxes and public security. Release from previous citizenship, or proof that release will follow, is generally required; exceptions apply. Citizenship is not automatic: the competent authority decides on the application.

A package of documents is prepared for each stage of the process. The number of documents increases at every stage. In order to avoid additional difficulties on your way to immigration to Slovenia, apply for our professional services.

The following benefits of living in this European country attract immigrants from all over the world. You will like:

• respect for nature, clean environment, mild climate;
• safety (5th place in the world);
• visa-free travel in the Schengen area;
• high-quality, environmentally friendly food;
• people are calm and organized;
• comfortable lifestyle;
• the opportunity to communicate in English, which Slovenians know well;
• high-quality healthcare based on free insurance;
• high quality of education, free public schools;
• good transport infrastructure;
• waste sorting and recycling system;
• loyalty towards business.

Entrepreneurs in Slovenia get an opportunity to quickly obtain a residence permit, enjoy simple real estate procedures, have access to the information about business entities, and can enter the EU market.

Those who move to the country note some pitfalls. This applies to both living and running a business.

The disadvantages are:

• wages below the European average;
• expensive housing rent;
• high unemployment rate;
• difficulties with formal employment;
• long residence permit approval procedure.

For children under three years old, it is difficult to find a place in a nursery. Private nurseries cost 300-500 euros per month. Under the general temporary-residence route, family reunification normally involves a one-year residence requirement and other conditions. Exceptions apply, including eligible digital nomads, who are not subject to this waiting period. Immigration of retired people to Slovenia is also difficult. Elderly parents go through the whole procedure, regardless of the children.

To top it off, it is difficult to break into the small domestic market. Only a high level of services and quality of goods will help. Then, with a word of mouth, it will work out and Slovenians will appreciate your effort.

There are several ways of legalization in Slovenia. The easiest is to open a company. You buy a ready-made company or invest in the development of your own. This will allow you to apply for a residence permit in the first six months. In addition to business immigration, there are the following opportunities:

1. Employment in a Slovenian company. You need to obtain a work permit. Highly qualified personnel is in demand in Slovenia: doctors, telecommunications specialists, engineers. It is possible to get the EU Blue Card if you have higher education and relevant experience.

2. Marriage. After getting married to a Slovenian citizen, a foreigner applies for a residence permit and gets a preferential treatment for obtaining a permanent residence. A fictitious marriage is not an option, the couple is being watched closely.

3. Education. By enrolling in a local university, you get an opportunity to apply for a residence permit. The university must have a license to teach a foreign citizen.

4. Family reunification. This is possible for children and spouses of an already legalized person. For the general temporary-residence route, a one-year residence period normally applies, together with the other conditions; exceptions include eligible digital nomads, for whom no one-year waiting period applies.

5. Refugee. If your life and freedom are threatened, you should contact the relevant government commission. Each case is carefully checked, so if the basis turns out to be fictional, you will be deported.

A permanent residence permit does not confer Slovenian or EU citizenship or a Slovenian passport. Citizenship requires a separate application and fulfilment of the applicable conditions. If you have any questions about the terms of legalization, please contact our specialists.

We will help at all stages, prepare the documents for the consulate and carry out all the necessary procedures in Slovenia.