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Welcoming programme

Issuer:Minister of the Interior
Type:regulation
In force from:01.08.2015
In force until:31.07.2016
Translation published:25.06.2015

Welcoming programme

Passed 13.08.2014 No. 34
RT I, 22.08.2014, 5
Entry into force 01.08.2015

Amended by the following legal instruments (show)

PassedPublishedEntry into force
22.05.2015RT I, 27.05.2015, 201.08.2015

The regulation is established on the basis of subsection 2231 (1) of the Aliens Act, subsection 491 (2) of the Citizen of the European Union Act and subsection 471 (2) of the Act on Granting International Protection to Aliens.

Chapter 1 GENERAL PROVISIONS 

§ 1.  Scope of application

  This Regulation establishes a welcoming programme for foreign nationals, citizens of the European Union and their family members, the conditions for participating in the welcoming programme and the procedure of enrolling persons in the welcoming programme.

§ 2.  Definitions

 (1) For the purposes of this Regulation, a newly arrived immigrant is a person who has resided legally in Estonia for less than five years and is one of the following:
 1) a foreign national who has been granted a temporary Estonian residence permit pursuant to the Aliens Act or the Act on Granting International Protection to Aliens;
 2) an European Union citizen who has acquired a temporary right of residence in Estonia pursuant to the Citizen of the European Union Act;
 3) a family member of a European Union citizen who has been granted a temporary right of residence in Estonia pursuant to the Citizen of the European Union Act.

 (2) For the purposes of this Regulation, a welcoming programme is an action plan for supporting the adaptation of newly arrived immigrants in Estonia, which contains the welcoming programme training modules established in this Regulation and basic Estonian language training.

§ 3.  Purpose of the welcoming programme

  The purpose of the welcoming programme is to support the migration and subsequent integration of newly arrived immigrants by providing them information on the functioning of the state and society, daily life, working, studying and family matters, and by facilitating the acquisition of Estonian language skills.

Chapter 2 ENROLLING PERSONS IN THE WELCOMING PROGRAMME AND THE PROCEDURE FOR NOTIFYING THEM THEREOF 

§ 4.  Enrolling persons in the welcoming programme

 (1) The Police and Border Guard Board shall enrol in the welcoming programme persons who have resided legally in Estonia for less than five years and are one of the following:
 1) foreign nationals who have been granted a temporary Estonian residence permit;
 2) European Union citizens who have acquired a temporary right of residence in Estonia and have been issued an identification document;
 3) family members of a European Union citizens who have been granted a temporary right of residence in Estonia.

 (2) The Police and Border Guard Board shall enrol the persons specified in subsection (1) in the welcoming programme if they have been granted a temporary Estonian residence permit or they have acquired or have been granted a temporary right of residence in Estonia after 1 August 2015.

 (3) Where the persons specified in subsection (1) have been granted a temporary Estonian residence permit or they have acquired or have been granted a temporary right of residence in Estonia before 1 August 2015, the Police and Border Guard Board shall enrol them in the welcoming programme upon their own request.

 (4) Where a foreign national has not participated in the welcoming programme after having been granted a temporary residence permit, the Police and Border Guard Board shall enrol them in the welcoming programme when extending their temporary residence permits in accordance with the provisions of subsections (2) and (3).

 (41) Where a family member of a European Union citizen has not participated in the welcoming programme after having been granted a temporary right of residence, the Police and Border Guard Board shall enrol them in the welcoming programme when extending their temporary right of residence in accordance with the provisions of subsections (2) and (3).

 (5) The Police and Border Guard Board shall not enrol a newly arrived immigrant under the age of seven in the welcoming programme where a corresponding request is submitted by the child’s legal representative.

§ 5.  Notification

  The Police and Border Guard Board shall notify a person of having been enrolled in the welcoming programme and inform them of the options forregistering for training when:1) notifying a foreign national of the decision to grant or extend their temporary residence permit;
 2) notifying an European Union citizen of having been issued an identity card;
 3) notifying a family member of an European Union citizen of the decision to grant or extend their temporary right of residence.

Chapter 3 COMPONENTS OF THE WELCOMING PROGRAMME AND PARTICIPATION IN THE PROGRAMME 

§ 6.  Components and volume of the welcoming programme

 (1) The welcoming programme shall consist of a basic module (Annex 1), language training and the following thematic modules:
 1) working and entrepreneurship (Annex 2);
 2) studying (Annex 3);
 3) research (Annex 4);
 4) family life (Annex 5);
 5) international protection (Annex 6);
 6) children and young people (Annex 7).

 (2) The aim of the welcoming programme is for the person to acquire the general required competence of the modules they have taken, in accordance with annexes 1–7 of this Regulation.

 (3) The aim of language training is for the person to acquire Estonian language skills corresponding to the description of language skill level A1, established in Appendix 1 of the Language Act.

 (4) The expected volumes of the modules are established in Annexes 1–7 of this Regulation.

 (5) The expected volume of language training is 80 academic hours.

§ 7.  Participation in the welcoming programme

 (1) Newly arrived immigrants shall pass the basic module and language training, unless established otherwise in this section.

 (2) Newly arrived immigrants who have been granted temporary residence permits pursuant to the Act on Granting International Protection to Aliens shall pass the basic module, the module on international protection and instead of the language training established under this Regulation, language training pursuant to clause 73 (4) 3) of the Act on Granting International Protection to Aliens.

 (3) Newly arrived immigrants under 15 years of age shall pass the module on children and young people.

 (4) Newly arrived immigrants under 15 years of age who have been granted temporary Estonian residence permits pursuant to the Act on Granting International Protection to Aliens shall pass the module on children and young people and instead of the language training established under this Regulation, language training pursuant to clause 73 (4) 3) of the Act on Granting International Protection to Aliens.

 (5) Persons shall not be entitled to participate in the modules or language training that they have already passed.

 (6) Persons who, due to a health condition or disability, are unable to participate in the program without assistance may choose the parts and the extent of the welcoming programme they wish to pass.

§ 8.  Selecting additional modules

 (1) In addition to complying with the provisions of subsections 7 (1) and (2), newly arrived immigrants may choose to participate in any thematic module referred to in clauses 6 (1) 1)–4) of this Regulation.

 (2) In addition to complying with the provisions of subsection 7 (3), newly arrived immigrants aged between seven and 15 years may choose to participate in the basic module, language training and any thematic module referred to in clauses 6 (1) 1)–4) of this Regulation.

 (3) In addition to complying with the provisions of subsection 7 (4), newly arrived immigrants aged between seven and 15 years who have been granted temporary Estonian residence permits pursuant to the Act on Granting International Protection to Aliens may choose to participate in the basic module and any thematic module referred to in clauses 6 (1) 1)–5) of this Regulation.

 (4) In addition to the provisions of subsections 7 (1) and (2) and subsection 8 (1), newly arrived immigrants aged between 15 and 18 years may choose to participate in the thematic module referred to in clause 6 (1) 6) of this Regulation.

§ 9.  Certification of passing the welcoming programme modules and language training

  When a newly arrived immigrant has passed a welcoming programme module or the language training, the person contracted by the Minister of the Interior under a civil or public law contract to carry out a task established in the welcoming programme shall issue them a certificate of having passed a module or language training. The certificate shall be issued digitally or, upon request by the newly arrived immigrant, on paper. The aforementioned person shall immediately notify the Police and Border Guard Board of the fact that the newly arrived immigrant has passed the corresponding module or language training.

Chapter 4 IMPLEMENTING PROVISION 

§ 10.  Entry into force of the regulation

  This Regulation shall enter into force on 1 August 2015.

Annex 1 Basic module

Annex 2 Working and entrepreneurship

Annex 3 Studying

Annex 4 Research

Annex 5 Family life

Annex 6 International protection

Annex 7 Children and young people

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