How to Maintain Your Residence Permit in Denmark

Your residence permit can be extended if you have worked for the past 12 months for a minimum of ten hours per week.

Your residence permit can be extended for one year if you have lost your job through no fault of your own (e.g. due to cutbacks) no more than three months before applying for an extension, and if prior to this, you worked for 12 months for a minimum of ten hours per week.

When applying for an extension of your residence permit, it is crucial that you submit your application on time, i.e. before your current residence permit expires. Failure to do so will normally result in your application being rejected due to your residing illegally in Denmark. As such, an application which is submitted too late will not be processed by the Immigration Service. Instead, you will have to leave Denmark and apply for a new residence permit from your country of origin.

Your residence permit can only be granted or extended up to three months before your passport expires. This means that if your passport expires in 12 months, you can only be granted a permit for nine months, or your permit can only be extended by nine months. If you have your passport renewed after receiving your residence permit, you can apply for the full period.

You can submit your application for an extension no sooner than two months before it expires.