Can I live and work in the United Kingdom?

This page explains how you can live and work in the United Kingdom if you are a Bulgarian or Romanian national.

You can move and live freely in any European Union (EU) member state as a European Economic Area (EEA) national. You do not need permission under our immigration rules to enter or remain to live in the United Kingdom. If you want to work in the United Kingdom you will need to apply for an accession worker card, unless you are exempt (see below) and your employer may have to apply for a work permit. For information on how to apply for an accession worker card and a work permit you should see the Applying section .

Work authorisation

You will need to apply for an accession worker card, which authorises you to work in the United Kingdom, unless you are exempt (see below) or if:

• you are coming to the United Kingdom under the seasonal agricultural workers scheme and hold a valid work card issued by a SAWS operator; or
• you were given leave to enter or remain in the United Kingdom before 1 January 2007 and your passport has been endorsed with a condition restricting your employment to a particular employer or category of employment. If this leave to enter or remain expires before you qualify to be exempt from work authorisation requirements, or you wish to engage in employment other than the job for which the leave was granted, you will need to obtain an accession worker card.

Most categories of employment will require your employer to obtain a work permit before you apply for an accession worker card.

However, in certain permit-free categories you will only have to apply for an accession worker card. These categories are:

• airport based operational ground staff of an overseas airline; and
• au pair placements; and
• domestic workers in a private household; and
• ministers of religion, missionaries or members of a religious order; and
• overseas government employment; and
• postgraduate doctors, dentists and trainee general practitioners; and
• private servants in a diplomatic household; and
• representatives of an overseas newspaper; news agency or broadcasting agency; and
• sole representatives; and
• teachers or language assistants on an approved exchange scheme; and
• overseas qualified nurses coming for a period of supervised practice.

Exempt from the worker authorisation requirement

You do not have to apply for a registration certificate but can do so, if you would like confirmation that there are no restrictions on you taking employment in the United Kingdom. For information on how to do this you should see the Applying section.

You will be exempt from the requirement to obtain authorisation to work in the United Kingdom if:

• you have leave to enter under the Immigration Act 1971 and that leave does not place any restrictions on taking employment in the United Kingdom, for example, you have been given leave to remain as the spouse of a British citizen or as the dependant of a work permit holder; or
• you have been working with permission, and without interruption, in the United Kingdom for a period of 12 months ending on or after 31 December 2006. For example, you are already present in the United Kingdom as a work permit holder or in some other category that confers permission to take employment (for example as a student and you have been in part-time employment continuously for 12 months); or
• you are providing services in the United Kingdom on behalf of an employer established elsewhere in the EEA; or
• you are also a citizen of the United Kingdom or another EEA state, other than Bulgaria or Romania, or Switzerland; or
• you are the family member of an EEA national exercising a Treaty right in the United Kingdom (except if you are the family member of a Bulgarian or Romanian national who is subject to work authorisation requirements or who is exempt from those requirements, but only by virtue of being a self-employed person, a self-sufficient person or a student) or
• the spouse or civil partner of a British citizen or person settled in the United Kingdom; or
• you are the family member of a Bulgarian or Romanian national who is self-employed, self-sufficient or a student. You will remain exempt provided that your sponsor remains a student, self-sufficient person or self-employed; or
• you are the spouse, civil partner, descendant under the age of 21 or the dependant of a Bulgarian or Romanian national who is subject to work authorisation and holds an Accession worker card;
• you are a member of a diplomatic mission, the family member of a diplomat or the family member of anyone who is entitled to diplomatic immunity.

Highly Skilled

If you meet the highly skilled migrant person criteria, you may be exempt from worker authorisation, but you will need to apply for a registration certificate on this basis. For information on how to apply for a registration certificate you should see the Applying section.

You can find further information on working in the United Kingdom if you are a Bulgarian or Romanian national in the guidance on the right side of this page.

Can my family members live and work in the United Kingdom?

This section explains how family members of a Bulgarian or Romanian national can live and work in the United Kingdom.

The family members of a Bulgarian or Romanian national are defined as:

• spouse / civil partner
• children who are under 21 years of age or are dependent
• dependent direct relatives in the ascending line (i.e. parents, grandparents)

Bulgarian and Romanian national family members

Bulgarian and Romanian family members of a Bulgarian or Romanian who is exempt from work authorisation requirements (see the section Can I live and work in the UK) are entitled to be issued with a registration certificate confirming that they are also exempt from those requirements.

Bulgarian and Romanian family members of a Bulgarian or Romanian national who has a work authorisation document and is legally working in the United Kingdom are exampt from work authorisation, unless the Bulgarian or Romanian nationals hold an accession worker card issued in accordance with an application as an authorised family member.

If you are a Bulgarian or Romanian relative of a Bulgarian or Romanian national whol holds a work authorisation document, but do not meet the criteria of a family member you will need permission in order to take employment in the United Kingdom. If you fall into this category, you will be an authorised family member and will need to obtain an Accession worker card.

Bulgarian and Romanian family members of A8 nationals

Family members of an EEA national who is registered under the worker registration scheme (WRS), who intend to work will be exempt from worker authorisation requirements and can apply, in their own right, for a registration certificate confirming this.

Family members of an EEA national who is not registered under the WRS and is not subject to work authorisation can apply for a registration certificate.

Non-EEA national family members of Romanian and Bulgarian nationals

Non-European Economic Area (EEA) family members of a Bulgarian or Romanian who is exempt from work authorisation requirements (see the section Can I live and work in the UK) are entitled to be issued with a residence card.

Non-EEA family members of a Bulgarian or Romanian holding a work authorisation document may apply for a family member residence stamp.

You can find further information in the guidance for Bulgarians and Romanians, which you can download from the right side of this page.