Employing doctors and medical staff from non-EU countries, due to serious shortages in the EU
No, this is neither Hindi nor Burmese. If you are from an EU country, you may be thinking that the above is the prescription from your doctor, in his native tongue. And we can’t blame you. The EU is in dire need for medical personnel, including doctors. Luckily, there are still the Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi doctors and others alike, to heal the aging EU bodies.
If all this still sounds Greek to you, don’t run away yet. It’s all in plain English, just flipped over1, much like many of the EU policies. What it says is that we will be discussing today:
1AKA the “mirror cipher”, that I learned of when I was reading the Agatha Christie’s stories as a child.
Employing doctors and medical staff from non-EU countries, due to serious shortages in the EU
Hiring non-EU medical personnel is difficult
It is no secret that getting an EU work permit is difficult. Luckily for those, who aim at hiring high skilled personnel, there is the EU Blue Card solution. The requirements to get the card differ slightly between the different EU member states. In Bulgaria, one has to hold university diploma and have a labor contract. His salary must be 50% higher than the average in the country for the same position, calculated for the past 12 months. You can read more about the conditions to obtain EU Blue Card in Bulgaria.
The Bulgarian solution for hiring non-EU doctors and nurses
So is there a working, feasible procedure to employ non-EU medical personnel? There should be, at the current shortage of staff in the EU, right? Well, it really depends. It appears that the easiest way to hire non-EU medical personnel for work in western Europe is through Bulgaria. If you are confused already, then we’ve done good job, so please bear with us.
We have been having plenty of clients from western European countries with wild ideas about how to hire medical personnel through Bulgaria. But just recently, a prospective client has summarized his ideas in a very neat way. So neat, that we thought it’s worth analyzing it from a legal point of view.
Feasible or not? Legally sound or questionable?
As the procedures for hiring non-EU staff in western European countries are complicated and can take up to a year (and even more), here is the plan:
- A western European hospital opens a branch in Bulgaria. This could be a sort of a training facility for the medical personnel;
- As the wage requirement to obtain EU Blue Card in Bulgaria is relatively low (compared to Western European standards) the candidates are employed at the Bulgarian branch. This is done after obtaining EU Blue Card in Bulgaria;
- The branch provides the hired staff at the disposal of the main branch (ie in Germany, France, etc.);
- The employees’ main residence is and remains in Bulgaria and they all have accommodation in the country;
- During this period, visas for the western European countries can be arranged (see also Bulgaria joins Schengen on 01.01.2022?);
- After one year, the employees can be employed permanently at the headquarters of the main branch (ie Germany, France, etc.).
So how all that looks? Feasible or not? Legal or dubious?
The devil is in the details
All in all it looks close to a perfect plan. And it really is. Well, almost.
The first thing one will need to think of is what sort of training facility it will be. Not that it is not possible, but there are many issues to be solved. For example, as a foreign branch, the office may need to open bank account in Bulgaria, which is somewhat problematic. Or how about renting premises for this facility and also keeping it up and running. This can add up to the total cost.
Then there comes the “at the disposal of the main office” interaction. How is this going to be arranged? We know of how it should be done legally, but it’s a hell of a lot of paperwork. And it will need explaining to the authorities the EU regulations. Feasible – yes, easy – no.
Then we have to think of the tax issues between the main office and the branch in Bulgaria. Will there be payments between the two for the foreign employees services? If yes, how will be this treated fiscally? As transaction between related persons? Transfer pricing anyone?
(I still owe some taxes. Not much. 17,5 billion.)
– Jean-Pierre Van Rossem
The Bulgarian Law on obligations and contracts
Contracts that contradict the law or circumvent it, contracts that violate the good moral and contracts on undiscovered inheritances, are considered null and void.
Art. 26, par. 1 of the Law on the obligations and contracts
We have had many similar cases and sometimes, the authorities tend to think that similar arrangement is an attempt to circumvent the law. Most of the time it works out and the client is able to prove his point. But in all cases, one should be prepared for eventual legal disputes.
Еpilogue
All in all, employing medical staff in the EU from abroad is indeed best done through Bulgaria. Still, the cost and work needed is not to be underestimated. After all, it is worth trying, as most of the time, it will work out at the end.
Please contact our offices if you need further assistance.
author: Alexander Dobrinov
P.S. And greeting to all our readers with a song, which I grew up with: Πέντε στρατηγοί