Short-term employment in Estonia

Who may work in Estonia short-term?

A foreign national may work short-term if they have a legal basis for a temporary stay in Estonia and their employment was registered before they started work (VMS § 106 lg 1) [2]. A legal basis for the stay is, for example, a visa issued by Estonia or by a Schengen Convention state, or a right to stay in Estonia arising directly from an international agreement (VMS § 43 lg 1) [4]. Without registration, working is prohibited, except in cases provided for by an international agreement ratified by the Riigikogu or by law (VMS § 104 lg 2) [1].

Work is not only an employment contract: under the Act it is any activity in Estonia under an employment contract or another contract, and any other activity for another person where income can be expected, whatever the type or form of the contract (VMS § 8) [5].

Employment can be registered if the foreign national has the qualifications, education, health and work experience and the professional skills and knowledge the job requires, the employer is entered in the Estonian commercial register (except a legal person in public law) and the employment is registered as full-time (VMS § 106 lg 1¹) [2]. The full-time requirement does not apply, for example, to teachers, academic staff, researchers and youth workers (VMS § 106 lg 1⁷) [2]. The conditions must remain met throughout the employment (VMS § 106 lg 1²) [2].

A right to work follows from the law (VMS § 104 lg 1) [1] for, among others, a foreign national who has a legal basis for staying in Estonia and whose work is temporary and lasts no more than five days within a 30-day period (VMS § 105 lg 4 p 3) [6].

How long can short-term employment last?

• General rule: up to 365 days within 455 consecutive days (VMS § 106 lg 1³) [2].
• Exceptions: this limit does not apply, among others, to teachers, researchers and academic staff, top specialists (tippspetsialist) and work in a start-up (VMS § 106 lg 1⁴) [2].
• Seasonal work: up to 270 days within 365 consecutive days (VMS § 106 lg 1⁵) [2].

If the work continues, the foreign national may be granted a residence permit for short-term employment for up to two years if, immediately before applying, they worked for at least nine months on the basis of registered short-term employment, they continue with the same employer, the employer is reliable and has paid a salary that meets the law (VMS § 176² lg 1) [7]. From 01.01.2027, VMS § 176² is repealed; temporary residence permits granted under it remain valid until they expire or are declared invalid (VMS § 309¹⁹ lg 1) [8], and an application submitted before 1 January 2027 is processed under the rules in force until 31 December 2026 (VMS § 309¹⁹ lg 4) [8].

What must the pay be?

The pay must be at least equal to the average annual gross monthly wage in Estonia last published by Statistics Estonia (VMS § 107 lg 1) [3]. A top specialist must be paid at least that figure multiplied by a coefficient of 1.5 (VMS § 107 lg 1¹) [3], and work in a growth company (kasvuettevõte) at least 80 percent of the average gross monthly wage (VMS § 107 lg 1³) [3]. Until the end of the employment, the pay must match the data last published at the time of the application (VMS § 107 lg 3) [3].

The pay requirement does not apply, among others, to teachers, researchers, trainees, seasonal workers, posted workers and work in a start-up (VMS § 107 lg 1²) [3]. If the pay does not meet the requirements, registration is refused (VMS § 108 lg 1 p 2) [9].

How does registration work?

The application is submitted to the Police and Border Guard Board by the employer (Välismaalase lühiajalise Eestis töötamise registreerimise kord § 1 lg 1) [10]. It must include a photo of the foreign national, proof or details of payment of the state fee, a copy of the personal data page of the travel document and a document proving the work (Välismaalase lühiajalise Eestis töötamise registreerimise kord § 5) [11]. The state fee is 140 euros, or 130 euros through the Board's self-service portal (RLS § 275) [12].

The Board registers the employment or refuses within 15 working days of accepting the application for processing or of the deficiencies being remedied (Välismaalase lühiajalise Eestis töötamise registreerimise kord § 7 lg 1) [13]. As a rule, work may start from the day the Board decided to register the employment (VMS § 107¹ lg 2) [14]; for example, for top specialists, researchers and start-up employees work is lawful from the application until the decision (VMS § 107¹ lg 1) [14].

Registration is refused, among other reasons, if a condition is not met, an entry ban applies or false information was given (VMS § 108 lg 1) [9]; it may also be refused if the employer has tax arrears that have not been rescheduled (VMS § 108 lg 1¹ p 2) [9].

What are the employer's obligations?

• Checking: the employer must check the foreign national's legal basis for staying and working; without one, concluding a contract is prohibited and an existing contract must be terminated, unless the Act provides otherwise (VMS § 286 lg 1, 2 and 3) [15].
• Keeping records: copies of the documents proving the basis must be kept during the employment and for ten years after it ends (VMS § 286 lg 4) [15].
• Notifying: the Board must be notified of the start of work, of the contract underlying the employment not being concluded, of the person not starting work, of early termination of the contract and of the actual end of the work (VMS § 285 lg 1) [16], except for data registered in the employment register (töötamise register) (VMS § 285 lg 2¹) [16].
• Inviter's obligations: the employer has the obligations of an inviter (VMS § 106² lg 1) [17] – it must receive the foreign national in Estonia, ensure their accommodation and bear the costs of their stay in Estonia and departure from Estonia (VMS § 291 lg 2) [18]. If the foreign national does not bear the procedural costs or the costs of enforcing the obligation to leave or of a stay in a detention centre or police arrest house, the inviter must cover them, up to 32 000 euros (VMS § 291 lg 3) [18].

Allowing a foreign national staying in Estonia without a legal basis to work, where the duty to notify, check or keep records was not met, is punishable by a fine of up to 300 fine units, or up to 100 000 euros for a legal person (VMS § 300) [19]; the same penalty applies to paying less than the pay required by the Act or not paying it (VMS § 302) [20].

What the law says

• „Eestis ajutiselt viibival välismaalasel on keelatud Eestis töötada, kui tööandja ei ole tema lühiajalist töötamist Politsei- ja Piirivalveametis registreerinud“ [1] (translation: a foreign national staying in Estonia temporarily is prohibited from working in Estonia if the employer has not registered their short-term employment with the Police and Border Guard Board; VMS § 104 lg 2) – as a rule, a visa alone does not give a right to work.
• „Lühiajaline Eestis töötamine on lubatud kuni 365 päeva 455 järjestikuse päeva jooksul, kui käesolev seadus ei sätesta teisiti.“ [2] (translation: short-term employment in Estonia is allowed for up to 365 days within 455 consecutive days, unless the Act provides otherwise; VMS § 106 lg 1³) – the general limit; the exceptions are in the same section.
• „võib välismaalane Eestis tööle asuda alates sellest kalendripäevast, kui Politsei- ja Piirivalveamet on teinud otsuse registreerida välismaalase lühiajaline töötamine“ [14] (translation: the foreign national may start work in Estonia from the calendar day on which the Board decided to register their short-term employment; VMS § 107¹ lg 2) – as a rule, filing the application is not enough; wait for the decision.
• „Tööandja on kohustatud kontrollima, et tema juures töötaval välismaalasel oleks Eestis viibimiseks ja töötamiseks õiguslik alus.“ [15] (translation: the employer must check that a foreign national working for it has a legal basis for staying and working in Estonia; VMS § 286 lg 1) – the duty to check lies with the employer.

What to do

1. Find out on what basis the foreign national is in Estonia, for example a visa (VMS § 43 lg 1) [4].
2. Check the registration conditions (VMS § 106 lg 1¹) [2] and the pay (VMS § 107 lg 1) [3].
3. As the employer, submit the application with the documents (Välismaalase lühiajalise Eestis töötamise registreerimise kord § 5) [11] and pay the state fee (RLS § 275) [12].
4. Do not start work before the registration decision unless an exception named in the Act applies to you (VMS § 107¹ lg 1 and 2) [14].
5. Notify the Board of the start of work and keep copies of the documents (VMS § 285 lg 1; VMS § 286 lg 4) [16] [15].
6. Keep track of the time limit (VMS § 106 lg 1³) [2]; if the work continues, consider a residence permit (VMS § 176² lg 1) [7] – from 01.01.2027 that provision is repealed, and an application submitted before 1 January 2027 is processed under the rules in force until 31 December 2026 (VMS § 309¹⁹ lg 4) [8].

Frequently asked questions

Does a visa give the right to work in Estonia?

A visa is a basis for a temporary stay (VMS § 43 lg 1) [4], but as a rule the employment must be registered before work starts (VMS § 106 lg 1) [2]. A visa for short-term employment is issued as a short-stay or long-stay visa (VMS § 110 lg 2) [21].

Can short-term employment be part-time?

As a rule, no: the employment is registered as full-time (VMS § 106 lg 1¹) [2]. Exceptions apply, for example, to teachers, academic staff, researchers and youth workers (VMS § 106 lg 1⁷) [2].

Does work under a contract for services have to be registered?

Work in Estonia is any activity under an employment contract or another contract, whatever the type or form of the contract (VMS § 8) [5]. The short-term employment rules therefore also apply to work under another contract.

What are the consequences of breaking the rules?

Without registration, a foreign national staying temporarily is prohibited from working (VMS § 104 lg 2) [1]. Breaching the conditions of working in Estonia is punishable for the foreign national by a fine of up to 300 fine units or detention (VMS § 304) [22]. An employer who allows a foreign national to breach the conditions of working in Estonia is punishable by a fine of up to 300 fine units, or up to 100 000 euros for a legal person (VMS § 301) [23].