Immigration
A 2023 recodification with tight quotas for third-country workers
EEA nationals move freely, while third-country nationals fall under Act XC of 2023, which replaced the 2007 regime from 2024. Work-based residence is channelled into named permit types with annual government quotas, and the guest worker permit is expressly non-settling.
Key rules
- Most employment routes require a guest worker or Hungarian card style permit tied to one employer.
- Time spent as a guest worker does not count towards permanent residence.
- National permanent residence generally requires three years of continuous residence.
- The National Directorate-General for Aliens Policing decides applications and appeals internally first.
Governing law
- Act XC of 2023 on the entry and stay of third-country nationals (2023)Applies from 1 January 2024.
- Act I of 2007 on the free movement of EEA nationals (2007)
- Act LXXX of 2007 on asylum (2007)Includes the embassy pre-declaration scheme.
In practice
Since 2020 asylum claims must in principle start with a declaration of intent at a Hungarian embassy in Belgrade or Kyiv, a procedure the Court of Justice held unlawful in 2023.