The recently government-issued draft on mitigating the severity concerning permanent residence permits for foreign doctoral students is gratifying – but according to Lund Doctoral Student Union, there is room for improvement.
Photo: Privately-owned
The struggle for continuing living in Sweden after the studies has been going on for almost four years. Last Saturday, a step in the right direction was taken for foreign doctoral students’ future in Sweden. Along with Miljöpartiet (The Swedish Green Party), the government has presented a legislative draft bill on improving the possibilities to continue living in Sweden. This is exactly what has been requested.
“We started our aim for this in October in 2010, it has been a long process. We like being here, and we have our roots here – now we would like something back to the community,” Ali Soltani explains, one of the promoters of the Stockholm and Gothenburg manifestations on doctoral students’ situation.
New aims
The draft presented by the government means that the severity of the conditions for permanent residence permit for foreign doctoral students will be mitigated. Previously, the doctoral student had to possess the right of being in this country for four out of five years – a demand that now is to be changed to four out of seven years.
“We are very pleased,” says Ali Soltani, who focuses on new aims:
“We would like to have a visa that be valid throughout the course of the doctoral studies. However, the government has made it clear that there’s no need to change that rule.”
Photo: Privately-owned.
Intricate bureaucratic procedure
The matter of permanent residence permit during the course of the doctoral period has been subject to discussions for a long time. Students from countries outside the European Union have to apply for visas every year. It is a bureaucratic procedure which is not only lengthy, but it is also an infringement of the doctoral student’s rights to travel abroad. In such cases, the residence permit is declared invalid. A precondition that the president of Lund Doctoral Student Union, Florian Sallaba, does not appreciate.
“The government draft looks appealing, but there are things that could have been better. As a foreign doctoral student, you are not allowed to go abroad – it’s a very inept concept,” he says but he also makes a hidden reservation for brighter days.
“According to the new proposition, there’s only one way to get a permanent residence permit, during the entire course of the postgraduate studies. That’s good – but the doctoral students should be entitled to it. But it’s a step in the right direction.
A hundred percent increase is not enough
The government draft allows graduated doctoral students to reside in this country for up to six months after having finished their studies – a hundred percent increase from the previous condition of three months. That way the student will be given the opportunity to really become established on the Swedish labor market. But that is not enough, says Florian Sallaba.
“The six months you are allowed to stay after the graduation should be extended to twelve months. It is important to have time to properly learn the language and enter the labor market,” he says.
Text: Casper Danielsson
Translation: Maximilan Aleman-Tennell
