Slovakia business visa for short trips

Use the business Schengen visa for activities that do not amount to employment in Slovakia: meeting clients and suppliers, negotiating or signing contracts, visiting a trade fair, attending a conference or inspecting a plant. Your salary continues to be paid by your employer abroad. If a Slovak employer will hire you, or you will run a business in Slovakia, you need a residence permit instead (see the work and self-employment pages).

The Act on Residence of Foreigners lists situations in which a residence permit for employment is not required during the first 90 days, provided the Schengen entry conditions are met and your residence has been reported. They include work for a significant foreign investor, delivering goods or services under a commercial contract together with installation, warranty and repair work, system set-up, programming or professional training (no more than 90 days a year), and professional training for a shared services centre. These exemptions concern residence; the employment-services rules on work permits still apply, so the Slovak partner should check them with the labour office before you travel.

Besides the standard Schengen file (form, passport, 3 x 3.5 cm photo, insurance, return reservation and funds), bring a letter from your employer describing the trip and confirming that it pays your costs, and the Slovak partner’s invitation or event registration.

A Slovak company or licensed trader may invite a foreigner who performs a similar activity. The verified business invitation is filed by the statutory body or an authorised person at the foreign police department for the company’s seat. It states the inviter’s position, trade name, seat and business activity, and the company’s commitment to cover all costs of the stay and departure, supported by a statement of the company bank account. The fee is EUR 50 per invited person and the police decide within 15 days.

Apply in person at the Slovak mission competent for your place of residence no earlier than six months and at least 15 days before the trip; the mission decides within 15 calendar days, extendable to 45. Frequent business travellers can ask for a multiple-entry visa; the mission decides on its length. At the border your fingerprints and facial image are taken in the EU Entry/Exit System. If you stay in private accommodation rather than a hotel, report your residence within three working days.

A refusal can be appealed within 15 days of delivery to the authority that issued it, in Slovak, stating why the decision is wrong. The appeal fee is EUR 120 and is refunded if the appeal succeeds. The embassy can grant the appeal itself; otherwise it forwards it within five days to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which normally delivers its decision within 60 days. An appeal does not suspend the refusal, so a new application is often the faster route once the reason has been fixed.