Working Holiday - extension

You are a citizen of Argentina, Australia, Canada Chile, New Zealand or South Korea and wish to extend your Working Holiday permit, as you have been granted less than 1 year’s residency.

Processing fee
DKK 2,255,-

Normal processing time
3 months

Can I extend my residence permit?

Your residence permit can only be extended if you were granted less than 1 year’s residence permit based on the Working Holiday scheme.

It is very important that you apply for an extension before your current residence permit expires.

If you submit your application for an extension in time, you can stay in Denmark while SIRI is assessing you application for an extension – even if your permit expires. You can also continue to work as far as the agreement between your home country and Denmark allows it.

You can apply for an extension of your residence permit no earlier than 3 months before your permit expires.

What are my rights if I am granted a permit?

What are you allowed to do with a Danish residence permit based on the Working Holiday scheme – and what can you not allowed to do?

A residence permit allows you to stay in Denmark for the period your permit is valid.

Moreover, a permit allows you to stay in the Schengen area for up to 90 days within the past 180 days. However, the permit does not allow you to work in other Schengen countries.

You must not give up your Danish address or stay abroad for longer than 6 successive months. A violation will result in the lapse of your permit. This means that you will lose your right to stay in Denmark.

If you need to stay abroad for a longer period of time, you can apply for dispensation to prevent your permit from lapsing.

You still have the right to work and study as far as the agreement between your home country and Denmark allows it.

If you work more than allowed it will be considered as illegal work.

Illegal work may result in a fine or revocation of your residence permit.

You must be able to support yourself during your stay. Therefore, you are not allowed to receive benefits under the terms of the Active Social Policy Act, study grants and housing benefits.

If you receive such benefits during your stay, your permit can be revoked – and you will lose the right to stay in Denmark.

If an authority, e.g. a municipality, disburses benefits to foreign nationals, SIRI will be notified.

Here you can see the list of benefits that you are not allowed to receive.

With a residence permit in Denmark, you are entitled to free Danish lessons. However, you must have turned 18 years and have your Danish address registered in the Danish National Register.

If you have a residence permit in Denmark based on work, study, etc. you have to pay a deposit before you can start receiving lessons. Be aware that you can lose your deposit if you do not pass the different modules within a specific timeframe.

Your municipality of residence is obliged to offer you Danish lessons and refer you to a language centre. If you have not been offered Danish lessons within a month after registering your address in Denmark, you can contact your municipality.

You will (typically) be taught together with other foreign nationals who have arrived in Denmark recently.

When living in Denmark, there are a number of things to acquaint yourself with. Depending on your personal situation, you might need other important information and options.

You might already have done what is necessary, but if you still have any questions, the portal lifeindenmark.dk provides you with information, links and in many cases also options concerning the most important subjects such as:

  • MitID

  • The CPR register

  • Health card

  • Tax matters

  • Holiday entitlements

  • School and daycare

  • Housing

  • Danish lessons

  • Car registration and driver's license

What are the conditions for an extension?

Your residence permit can be extended if you were granted less than 1 year’s residence permit due to the expiry date of your passport or your insurance.

Your residence permit can also be extended if your stay would last less than a year because you arrived in Denmark on a later date than the starting date of your permit, or because your permit was shortened due to the departure date of your return ticket.

If you have been granted a Working Holiday permit for less than 1 year because of the expiry date of your passport, it is a condition that you either have a new passport or have had the validity of your existing passport extended.

If you have been granted a Working Holiday permit for less than 1 year because your insurance did not cover a whole year, it is a condition that you have taken out insurance for the remaining period for up to 1 year. Please note that this does not apply to Australian citizens. This also does not apply if you are an Argentinian, Chilean, or South Korean citizen and you have been registered in the CPR.

If you show documentation of your date of entry e.g. an entry stamp in your passport, your permit can be extended so you can reside in Denmark for a whole year.

If you have been granted a Working Holiday permit for less than 1 year because your return ticket was valid for less than a year from the date of our decision, your permit can be extended so you can reside in Denmark for a whole year.

How long can I stay in Denmark?

Your residence permit can only be extended if you have not been granted 1 year’s residence permit in your initial application. The permit can only be extended to a total maximum of 1 year.

A residence permit can only be valid until 3 months before the expiry date of your passport.

If your passport has a shorter validity than the otherwise possible period of stay, your residence permit will be shortened. This means that the validity of your residence permit will be shorter than it could be. When you have renewed your passport, you can apply for an extension of your residence permit - however, this can only be done 3 months before your permit expires at the earliest. 

Read more about the passport requirements.

What more do I need to know before I apply?

An application for an extension of a Working Holiday permit is processed by the Danish Agency for International Recruitment and Integration (SIRI).

If you are a citizen of Argentina, Australia, Canada, Chile, New Zealand or South Korea, you must create an SB ID for the application before applying, and you must pay a fee to cover SIRI's case processing. This can be done on the 'How to apply' tab on the right. Here you also have access to the relevant application form, WH1. It is best to use the online form as it is both safer and more efficient. 

If SIRI needs more information during the case processing, we will contact you or your place of study.

 

Below you will find a step-by-step guide to submitting an application to the Danish Agency for International Recruitment and Integration (SIRI) 

It is important that you have carefully read the conditions for being granted a residence permit before you begin step 1. You can do this on the tab “Need to know” on the left.

You must submit

Expect to use

30 minutes

completing the application

1 person

You complete the application form yourself.

In this step you have access to the relevant application form WH1.

It is best to use the online form as it is both safer and more efficient.

All our application forms contain careful instructions on how to complete the form and what kind of documents you must submit along with the form.

 

Online application

Make sure you have all documents ready in digital form, in order to attach them as you complete the application form.

 

Use the online form WH1

 

Printable application forms

Please note that if you are an Argentinian or Chilean citizen, you can only use the printable application form. 

You must submit the necessary documents with the application.

The printable application form in Word format can be completed on screen before you print. The application form in pdf format must be printed first and then completed by hand.

Download the printable form WH1 (Word format)

Download the printable form WH1 (Pdf format)

When you apply for an extension of your residence permit, you must have your biometric features recorded.

This means that you must have a facial photo taken and your fingerprints recorded. The facial photo and your fingerprints will be stored on a microchip embedded in the residence card, which will be issued to you if you are granted a permit.

SIRI can, as a rule, only start processing your application once you have had your biometric features recorded. This must happen  no later than 14 days after you submitted your application.

If you do not agree to have your biometric features recorded, your application will be rejected. This means that your application will not be processed.

Read more about biometrics here.

You can have your biometric features recorded in one of SIRI’s branch offices.

If you plan to have your biometrics recorded in one of SIRI’s branch offices, you must remember to book an appointment.

You have submitted your application succesfully if you have:

  • submitted the application
  • had your biometric features recorded

You can see the normal case processing time to the right on this page. When we make a decision in your case, you will receive an answer.

SIRI will contact you or your employer if we need further information to process your case.

Read more about what you can expect while you are waiting for an answer.

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Last updated 26-09-2024 - Published by: SIRI