Agreement between the Portuguese Republic and the Republic of India

An agreement between the Portuguese Republic and the Republic of India on the Recruitment of Indian Citizens for Employment in the Portuguese Republic, signed in Lisbon on September 13^th, 2021, entered into force on January 27^th, 2022.

Objectives of the agreement:

to strengthen the relations of friendship and cooperation between both States;
to define the procedures for the admission of Indian citizens for the performance of a professional activity under a work contract in the Portuguese Republic, creating a legal framework regarding the recruitment, hiring and admission of Indian citizens;
to increase migration management effectiveness and the role of legal employment in these processes, especially in the cases of skilled workers, academics, researchers, and information technology professionals;
to combat irregular migration and human trafficking, while respecting the human rights and dignity of all migrants;
regulating legal migration channels between the two States and, in particular, for salaried employees.

Entities responsible for the implementation of the agreement:

On the Portuguese side: Instituto do Emprego e da Formação Profissional, I. P. (IEFP, I. P.);
On the Indian side: Protector General of Emigrants (PGE), Ministry of External Affairs;
Joint Committee for coordination and exchange of information, comprised by authorities from both States.

Recruitment and selection process of the employees:

The employers communicate the job opportunities to IEFP, I. P.;
Employers shall register in the portal "emigrate", managed by the General Protector of Emigrants, Ministry of External Affairs;
The IEFP, I. P., confirms to the Protector General of Emigrants (PGE), Ministry of External Affairs, whether the employer is legally constituted in the Portuguese Republic;
The "emigrate" portal, publicly announces the job offer and pre-selects the candidates that comply with the criteria established by the employer;
The employer selects the candidates it wants to recruit;
The employer indicates directly to the IEFP, I. P., the candidates it intends to recruit;
The IEFP, I. P., informs the Directorate-General of Consular Affairs and Portuguese Communities (DGACCP), the Immigration and Border Services (SEF) and the Authority for Working Conditions (ACT) about the identity of the concerned employer, the employees to be recruited and the workplace;
Once the necessary conditions for the attribution of the Visas have been verified, the territorially competent Portuguese consular post will issue the appropriate Visa to the activity and duration of the work contract and inform the IEFP, I. P., and the ACT.

Employees' rights and duties:

will be entitled to the same working conditions and salary applicable to Portuguese workers in the same circumstances;
may benefit from Portuguese language courses, as well as vocational training;
may also benefit from the same rights and the same protection as Portuguese workers have regarding health and safety at work;
may request family reunification of their relatives so that they may accompany them;
will be subject to the social security regime of the Portuguese Republic.

To conclude, we believe that an important step has been taken in the pursuit of the aforementioned objectives, with the clear objective of strengthening the long and historical relationship of friendship and cooperation existing between the States.