Everyone has their own reasons for wanting to live abroad. Staying abroad – permanently or temporarily, is a great way to get to know different cultures and gain new experiences.

The Macedonian legislation allows foreign nationals to work in Macedonia and therefore to obtain a temporary residence permit. However, trying to immigrate to Macedonia can be a long and difficult process. If your application is rejected, it can be even more frustrating and discouraging. Therefore, if you want to increase your chances of success and realize your dream of staying and working in Macedonia, you should be well prepared and familiar with the conditions that are important for a positive outcome of the procedure.

Namely, before establishing an enployment relationship with a Macedonian employer, it is necessary to receive a positive opinion about your work from the Employment Agency. When issuing such opinion, the Employment Agency conducts market research and takes into account the following criteria:

1. Are your professional knowledge and abilities suitable for the job where you plan to work?
2. Are there currently any Macedonian citizens with the same or better qualifications, who are active job seekers in Macedonia and who have real chances to establish an employment relationship on the specific job position?

It is apparent that for acquiring a positive opinion from the competent authorities, it is necessary to prove the fact that there are not enough prepared, available and qualified employees for the job position offered to the foreign citizen in the Macedonian labor market. Market research has been implemented and applied in many modern legislations as a mechanism to protect one’s own citizens in the domestic labor market.

However, there is an exception from the market research regaridng foreign nationals who are employed in their own company. In fact, if you are employed by a company of which you are the owner, Macedonian legislation allows for a derogation from the obligation to conduct market research. Thus, your education and qualifications are not taken as a relevant factor on which your work permit depends. At the same time, when employed in your own company, you will always be put before any Macedonian citizen, even if he has better qualifications than you.

Hence, if you plan to live and work in Macedonia, do not rule out the possibility of starting your own business and to work for your own company.

Read even more about the work permit process and conditions on the Agency of employment of North Macedonia website on the following link.