According to Egyptian laws and regulations, every foreigner wishing to work in Egypt must obtain a work permit except for the categories specified in Article 2 of Ministerial Decree No. 292 of 2010.
Obtaining a work permit is carried out through the following stages:
Acceptance phase:
Submit an application to the Ministry of Manpower for its approval to accept expatriates into the country. It should be noted that expatriates must be abroad during this phase and live abroad until approval from the Ministry of Manpower is obtained.
It should be noted that citizens of the following countries will be exempt from entry requests:
1. Palestinians holding a Palestinian passport issued by the Palestinian Authority and a temporary residence permit for non-tourist purposes; or Palestinians holding Jordanian passports valid for two years and being expelled from Gaza. Furthermore, Palestinians who have travel documents issued by the Arab Republics of Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan and Syria.
2. Nationals of Sudan who hold temporary residence for non-tourist purposes and reside continuously and permanently in the country and are exempt from requests for residence and registration.
3. Foreigners who come to the country, as grants, and based on a convention to which Egypt is a party to carry out national projects declared by Presidential Decree and ratified by the People’s Assembly.
Incoming phase:
If the Ministry of Labor approves the admission request, the expatriate must enter the country to take an HIV test. After entering the country the expatriate has a maximum period of sixty days to complete the work permit procedures otherwise the application request will be null and void.
* It should be noted that expatriates married to Egyptian nationals are exempt from HIV testing.
Security clearance phase:
If the HIV test result is positive, the documents mentioned above together with the HIV test result must be submitted to the Foreigner Work Permit Office. The applicant will receive a receipt proving that the documents have been submitted and the application is currently under review. The receipt is valid for a period of six months during which the expatriate is entitled to work while waiting for a security clearance to be issued. If the security clearance result is positive, the final work permit will be issued for another six months; totaling one year. It should be noted that expatriates should not leave the country until the receipt mentioned above is obtained to avoid repeat HIV testing.
The documents that must be attached to the work permit application are as follows:
First: Documents to be submitted by Companies to be sponsored by expatriates:
– The latest version of the company’s commercial list.
– Corporate tax card.
– The latest version of the company’s Social Insurance Form No. 2. This document shows the number of Egyptian employees working in the company and registered with the Social Insurance Authority of Egypt. The document is required to verify the percentage of foreign employees with Egyptian employees. This is because the percentage of foreign workers cannot exceed 10% of the total number of Egyptian workers working in the company; meaning every nine Egyptians against one foreigner.
– A power of attorney to be issued by the company for the benefit of officials who will carry out work permit procedures on behalf of the company.
– Statement letter indicating the number of foreign expatriates currently working at the Company. The statement must be signed by the head of the company and stamped with the company’s stamp.
– A letter, based on which, the company appoints two Egyptian assistants for foreign expatriates along with their qualifications (certificate of graduation). The letter must be signed by the head of the company and stamped with the company’s stamp.
Second: Documents to be submitted by expatriates:
– Copy of expatriate passport
– 12 personal photos of expatriates.
– An experience certificate to be issued by the previous employer where the employee was employed. Past experience cannot be less than three years. The certificate must be legalized by the Egyptian Consulate.
It is worth mentioning that nationals of the following countries will be exempted from the submission of the Experience Certificate:
1. An expatriate who has been married to an Egyptian woman for five years and their marital relationship still exists.
2. Expatriates who married Egyptian men and their marital relationship still exists.
3. Foreigners residing in the country based on a special residence permit for ten or five years
4. Foreigners who are stateless and reside in the country continuously and permanently.
5. Son or daughter of a foreign employer.
6. Political refugees on condition that they have a letter of approval issued by the Office for Political Refugees of the Residency of the Republic.
7. A foreign wife whose Egyptian husband died and she had children by him.
8. Son of an Egyptian wife.
9. Palestinians holding a Palestinian passport issued by the Palestinian Authority and a temporary residence permit for non-tourist purposes; or Palestinians holding Jordanian passports valid for two years and being expelled from Gaza. Also, Palestinians who have travel documents issued by the Arab Republic of Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan, and Syria with the proviso that the expatriate must submit all documents proving the above.
– A statement issued by the expatriate stating that he has not previously worked in Egypt or a letter indicating that his old work permit has been submitted to the Ministry of Labour.
Special documents that must be submitted by expatriates in addition to the documents mentioned above:
– A copy of the Marriage Certificate and a statement proving the continuity of the marriage relationship (in the case of an expatriate marrying an Egyptian citizen. The statement must be signed by the expatriate himself in the presence of the examiner otherwise it is legalized by one of the notaries affiliated with the Ministry of Justice.