A round table of immigration, HR, business-services and chamber-of-commerce representatives, convened by relocation firm Helpers Hungary, has submitted a formal reform proposal to the Hungarian government aimed at simplifying the country's work permit system.
The core problem
Hungary's current work permit and residency framework, introduced in January 2024, created a fragmented system with no default work permit category — a basic building block every other EU country's immigration law has. In 2025, only 6% of applications qualified under the two "highly qualified" categories, leaving most routes limited to low- or unskilled work. The proposal argues this has pushed investors and skilled workers toward other European countries, hurting competitiveness in sectors like business services, which account for roughly 9-10% of Hungarian GDP.
What's being proposed
- Consolidate over 20 legal permit titles into two main tracks: a default work-purpose residence permit (with labour-market testing) and the EU Blue Card for highly qualified workers
- Retain separate seasonal work and investment-implementation permits for temporary needs
- Align with the EU's Single Permit Directive, whose transposition deadline already passed in May 2026, exposing Hungary to possible infringement proceedings
- Allow family reunification under the default work permit, and let EU Blue Card holders change employers after 12 months via simple notification rather than a fresh application
The proposal followed two round tables — the first held May 21, 2026 — and is intended as an opening move in a wider stakeholder discussion, not a finished law.
This is an industry proposal, not enacted policy — nothing changes for applicants yet. Still worth tracking: if Hungary does introduce a genuine default work-permit track, it would be a meaningfully simpler system than what exists today, and could open a pathway worth evaluating down the line.
