According to Egyptian laws and regulations, any foreigner who intends 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 will be carried out through the following phases:
input stage:
Submit an application to the Ministry of Manpower in order to obtain their approval to admit the expatriate into the country. It should be noted that the expatriate must be out of the country during this phase and remain abroad until approval is obtained from the Ministry of Manpower.
It should be noted that the following nationals will be exempt from applying for admission:
1. Palestinians holding Palestinian passports issued by the Palestinian Authority and a temporary residence permit for non-tourism purposes; or Palestinians who have Jordanian passports valid for two years and issued from Gaza. Also, Palestinians holding travel documents issued by the Arab Republic of Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan, and Syria.
2. Citizens of Sudan who have temporary residence for non-tourism purposes and are continuously and permanently residing in the country and are exempt from the application for residence and registration.
3. Foreigners who come to the country, as a concession, and based on conventions to which Egypt is a party to implement a national project declared under a Presidential Decree and authenticated by the Assembly of Peoples.
Entry phase:
If the Ministry of Labor approves the application for admission, the expatriate must enter the country to be tested for HIV. 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 without effect.
* It should be noted that the expatriate who is married to an Egyptian citizen is exempt from taking an HIV test.
Security authorization phase:
If the HIV test result was positive, the aforementioned documents together with the HIV result will be presented at the Office of Work Permits for Foreigners. The applicant will receive a receipt attesting that the documents have been submitted and that the application is currently under review. Said receipt is valid for a period of six months during which the expatriate will have the right to work pending the issuance of the security clearance. If the result of the security clearance is positive, the final work permit will be issued for another six months; totaling one year. It should be noted that the expatriate will not be able to leave the country until he obtains the aforementioned receipt to avoid repeating the HIV test.
The documents that must be attached to the work permit application are the following:
First: Documents to be presented by the Company that will sponsor the expatriate:
– An updated version of the commercial register of the company.
– The tax card of the company.
– An updated version of the Company’s Social Insurance Form No. 2. This document indicates the number of Egyptian employees working in the company and registered with the Egyptian Social Insurance Authority. Said document is required to verify the percentage of foreign employees to Egyptians. This is because the percentage of foreign employees must not exceed 10% of the total number of Egyptian employees working in the company; which means that every nine Egyptians against a foreigner.
– Power of attorney to be issued by the company in favor of the official who will carry out the work permit procedures on behalf of the company.
– A statement indicating the number of foreign expatriates currently working at the Company. Said statement must be signed by the manager of the company and stamped with the seal of the company.
– A letter, under which, the company appoints two Egyptian assistants for the foreign expatriate along with their qualifications (graduation certificates). Said letter must be signed by the manager of the company and stamped with the seal of the company.
Second: Documents to be presented by the expatriate:
– Copy of the expatriate’s passport
– 12 personal photos of expatriates.
– Certificate of experience to be issued by the previous employer for which the employee was employed. Past experience must not be less than three years. Said certificate must be legalized by the Egyptian Consulate.
It is worth mentioning that the following nationals will be exempt from presenting the Certificate of Experience:
1. The expatriate who is married to an Egyptian woman for a period of five years and their marital relationship still exists.
2. The expatriate who is married to an Egyptian man and their marital relationship still existed.
3. Foreigners residing in the country under a special residence permit for ten or five years
4. Foreigners who do not have nationality and reside in the country have continuous and permanent residence.
5. The son or daughter of the foreign employer.
6. Political refugee provided they have a letter of approval issued by the Office of Political Refugee Affairs of the Residence of the Republic.
7. The foreign wife whose Egyptian husband died and she has children by him.
8. The son of the Egyptian wife.
9. Palestinians holding Palestinian passports issued by the Palestinian Authority and a temporary residence permit for non-tourism purposes; or Palestinians who have Jordanian passports valid for two years and issued from Gaza. Likewise, Palestinians who have travel documents issued by the Arab Republic of Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan and Syria, provided that the expatriate presents all the documents that prove the above.
– A statement issued by the expatriate stating that they did not previously work in Egypt or a letter stating that their old work permit has been handed over to the Ministry of Manpower.
Special documents to be presented by the expatriate in addition to the documents mentioned above:
– Copy of the Marriage Certificate and a declaration attesting to the continuity of the marriage relationship (in case the expatriate is married to an Egyptian national. Said declaration must be signed by the expatriate himself in the presence of the examiner, otherwise authenticated by one of the notaries attached to the Ministry of Justice.