Positive viewpoint on the scientific visa

1. Positive viewpoint on the scientific visa Nathalie Orban Personnel departement Université catholique de Louvain (UCL)

2. 1. Implementation of the scientific visa within UCL 2. Current situation after 3 years of implementation: • statistics • advantages • difficulties and solutions 3. Cases which are not covered by the hosting agreement and proposed improvements

3. Implementation of the scientific visa within UCL

4. History: • 3 July 2007: publication of the « Arrêté royal du 8 juin 2007 contenant les conditions d’agrément des organismes de recherche qui souhaitent conclure, dans le cadre de projet de recherche, des conventions d’accueil avec des chercheurs hors de l’Union européenne et fixant les conditions auxquelles de telles conventions d’accueil peuvent être conclues » • July 2007: UCL requests to berecognized as a research institution • December 2007: UCL isrecognized as a research institution • January 2008: first hosting agreement signed by UCL

5. Requirements: • Hostingagreementsonlyapply to researcherswhoearn more than 2,813.85 euros gross/month (2010); • Hostingagreementscanonlybesignedwithresearcherswho have the same social security and entitlements as the Belgianresearchers; • Hostingagreementscanapply to researcherswith a sientificproject Consequences: • Hosting agreement onlyapply to researcherwith a workcontract:

6. Hostingagreements do not apply to researcherswith a grantwhichcancreateproblems to obtain a visa (cfr.infra) • Hostingagreements do not apply to visitingresearchers • Hostingagreements do not apply to youngresearchers; • Hostingagreements do not apply to all resaerchers.

7. Current situation after 3 years of implementation- Statistics -

9. Current situation after 3 years of implementation- Advantages -

10. Main advantage: • Simplification of the admission procedures for foreign researchers entering the EU Indeed: • Shorter waiting time to obtain a visa => in comparison with the work permit, it is 4 to 6 weeks shorter; => However: UCL or the research institution cannot control the follow up of the diplomatics service once the hosting agreement is sent => it differs from one service to the other.

11. No more need for a file: medical certificate (certified by the Belgian diplomatic service for people residing abroad), the « information sheet » (filled in and stamped by the city hall of the residence place for people residing in Belgium),….. • No more need for the « Région Wallonne » to aprove the delivery of the work permit => The hosting agreement therefore represents a real advantage in comparison with the work permit for researchers mobility.

12. Current situation after 3 years implementation- Diffilulties and solutions -

13. Lack of awarenessof the scope of the hosting agreement application in the diplomatic services • e.g.: request of a hosting agreement for a student with a grant (doctoral or post-doctoral) => individual contact with diplomatic services – but it isn’t the role of the employer => a document is automatically enclosed with the grant offer specifying that the student with a (post-)doctoral does not need a work permit and therefore does not need a hosting agreement => this reduces difficulties in 90 % of the cases.

14. e.g.: request of a hosting agreement for a visitingresearcher => individual contact with the diplomatic services • Minimal term of the hosting agreement: 3 months: thiscreatesproblems for short termstays or for renewals for a short time (e.g.: a researcherwhoreceivesfunds to finish hisscientificresearch for lessthan 3 months => necessity to obtain a work permit with all the problemsrelated to the waiting time; => Suggest to the professorhosting the researcher to sign a new workcontract for more than 3 monthseven if itis more complicatedwith regards to funding.

15. Cases which are not covered by the hosting agreement and proposed improvements- cases which are not covered -

16. +/- 15 % of the researchers hosted by UCL are still hosted with a work permit because of the duration of the work contract (less than 3 months) or because of their salary (not high enough) Indeed: • this is a problemabove all for the renewal of the work contract for a short time • the minimum salary to host a researcher with a hosting agreement is a salary of 2,813.85 euros gross/month=> corresponds to a researcher holding a masters degree and with 2 years of experience=> it does not apply to young researchers

17. The hosting agreement does not apply to the following categories of researchers : - temporary assistants who devote more than 50 % of time to scientific research; - academic staff in charge of both teaching and researching; - visiting researchers.

18. Cases which are not covered by the hosting agreement and proposed improvements- Proposed improvements -

19. Extend the scope of the hosting agreement to cases of short time stays (less than 3 months) – at least for the renewals of the hosting agreement; • Adjust the minimal salary limit to the standards imposed to universities, in order for the hosting agreeements to apply to all researchers with a work contract (young researchers); • Extend the scope of this law to researchers with a work contract who devote at least 50% of their time to research (professors’ asssistants, academic staff,…); • Extend the scope of the scientific visa to people who does not have the same social security and entitlements as Belgian researchers but who can prove that he is covered by an other social security system (visiting resaerchers, visiting professor,…)