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Beneficiaries of international protection may be granted long-term residence if they meet the conditions set out in the Act on Residence of Foreigners, which transposed the EU Long Term Residence Directive (Directive 2003/109/EC). The main condition is a continuous residence in Slovakia for 5 years immediately prior to submitting the application for long-term residence.[1] The time from submitting the asylum application to issuance of a decision on granting asylum or subsidiary protection is counted towards the 5-year period necessary for long-term residence.[2] The application for long-term residence shall be submitted in person to the competent foreign police department or online.[3] The possibility of submitting the application for long-term residence online was enshrined in the Act on Residence of Foreigners in December 2024, and it is operational.
Applicants for long-term residence must present a valid travel document and provide proof of sufficient financial means and proof of health insurance.[4] Additionally, applicants for long-term residence older than 18 years of age must pay an administrative fee of €250.[5] As of 15 July 2025, applicants are also required to pass a Slovak language exam at the A2 level, with an exemption of:
- applicants under the age of 14 years old
- holders of a temporary residence permit as a Slovak living abroad
- applicants who completed lower secondary education at a school with Slovak as the language of instruction
- applicants who studied for at least two school years at a secondary school with Slovak as the language of instruction or completed a study program in Slovak at a university, provided that no more than five years have passed since completing the studies.[6]
The police department must examine the application for long-term residence within 90 days.[7] Long-term residence is granted for an unlimited period.[8]
Holders of subsidiary protection who have been issued a foreigner’s passport (see Movement and Mobility: Travel Document) face challenges in obtaining long-term residence. According to Article 125(3)(b) of the Act on Residence of Foreigners, a foreign passport is accepted for the purpose of applying for long-term residence only if the foreign national can credibly prove their identity using another document. However, some holders of subsidiary protection do not possess, for objective reasons, any documents from their country of origin to verify their identity. Their identity was established during the asylum procedure solely based on their statements. In such cases, they have no realistic possibility of obtaining long-term residence or even applying for Slovak citizenship (see Naturalisation).
The relevant statistics on the number of beneficiaries of international protection granted long-term residence are not publicly available. Moreover, the MoI did not provide the data following an individual request for information.
[1] Article 52(1)(a) of the Act on Residence of Foreigners.
[2] Article 52(4)(c) of the Act on Residence of Foreigners.
[3] Article 53(1) of the Act on Residence of Foreigners.
[4] Article 53(3) of the Act on Residence of Foreigners.
[5] Item 24 of the Schedule of Administrative Fees of the Act No. 145/1995 Coll. on Administrative Fees.
[6] Article 52(6) of the Act on Residence of Foreigners.
[7] Article 53(6) of the Act on Residence of Foreigners.
[8] Article 51 of the Act on Residence of Foreigners.