Xhorxhina Bami, from Tirana, has been living in Prishtina since 2015. She initially studied, while in the last two years she has been engaged as a journalist in a regional news network.
To work and stay in Kosovo, a 25-year-old woman – like any other citizen who is not a citizen of the Republic of Kosovo – must be provided with a temporary residence permit and work permit, as provided by the Law on Foreigners in Kosovo.
Speaking to Radio Free Europe, Georgia points out that the procedures for obtaining these permits are simpler in the last two years, compared to the previous period.
“A month ago, I applied for a five-year residence permit and they approved it last week. In this case, I needed an employment contract and an apartment contract, or a certificate that I am living legally in Prishtina or in another city in Kosovo “, says Xhorxhina.
According to the Law in Kosovo, a foreigner can work on the basis of a residence permit, which includes a work permit.
Georgina says that, until this year, she has had a one-year residence permit. She points out that the procedure for securing her by 2020 has been more complicated, as more documents have been required, including: proof that she possesses sufficient means of subsistence, that does not pose a threat to state security, public order or public health, health insurance and others.
The procedure seems to have started to be simplified from the time when the Governments of Kosovo and Albania signed an agreement on labor market integration.
Known as the Work Mobility Agreement, it stipulates that Albanian citizens who want to work in Kosovo do not need to obtain a residence permit, ie a work permit, and vice versa.
The agreement, however, is not implemented in the form it is, as residence permits continue to be required on both sides.
The agreement was signed at the sixth joint meeting between the two governments, which was held on October 2, 2020, in Tirana.
Thus, according to it, Kosovo and Albanian jobseekers can work or receive services in the relevant employment agencies in both countries, without the need for work permits or other legal procedures.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Kosovo confirms for Radio Free Europe only the facilitation of the procedures for obtaining the citizens of Albania with a residence permit, but does not indicate when the implementation of the Agreement on Mobility at Work, which does not require a permit at all, can start. stay.
“To obtain a temporary residence permit, citizens [of Albania] must have only a valid travel document and the correct address of stay in the territory of the other party, certified by the relevant document [lease contract, or certificate of ownership, or notarized declaration] ”, it is stated in the statement of the Ministry of Interior.
Shpëtim Kalludra, Head of the Division for Development of Active Labor Market Measures and Analysis in the Kosovo Employment Agency, says that for the full implementation of the Agreement on Mobility at Work it is necessary to eliminate some other procedures, but does not specify them .
“There is a facilitation of procedures, but there is still work … Because, the whole Mobility Agreement means a very close cooperation between the Employment Agency of Kosovo and that of Albania”, says Kalludra.
