Applicants for a national card must undergo the same migration and security checks as applicants for other residence permits, said Hungarian State Secretary for Government Communications Zoltán Kovács.
Kovács’ comments came a week after the deadline for a response to the Commission on concerns raised in EU countries over Hungary’s decision to include nationals of Russia and Belarus in its national card, thereby relaxing entry rules for them (Schengen.News).
According to Kovács, these cards can be applied for for a stay of between 90 days and two years for employment purposes. He stressed that applicants must have an employer and an actual job. He added that National Card holders must submit a new application if they change their job.
The Secretary of State said that the National Card Program has been in place for some time, but until recently it had not been criticized by the European Union.
If everything was fine before, why are we being attacked now when the rules and practices have not changed?
718,000 Russian citizens remain in the EU, less than 1% in Hungary
Citing figures from the European Union’s statistical office Eurostat, Kovács said that in 2023, more than 718,000 Russians were in EU countries, while less than one percent of this group lived in Hungary, stressing that the same ratio applies to Belarusian nationals.
Given these figures, Brussels’ concerns about Russian spies in Hungary seem somewhat unrealistic.
Many Russians live in the Baltics
Kovács also said that “huge masses of Russians” lived in the Baltic states, stressing that these countries were “extremely critical of the Hungarian national card system and the alleged risks associated with it.”
Hungary recently decided to extend its national card to Russians and Belarusians, a decision that sparked controversy within the bloc.
Shortly after the decision, the European Commission sent a letter to Budapest asking for an explanation for the relaxation of entry requirements for nationals of Russia and Belarus.
In addition, the heads of state and government of the Baltic and Nordic states have sent a letter to EU Home Affairs Commissioner Ylva Johansson expressing concern that recent changes in Hungary “could pose a serious security risk”.
The issue is to be discussed at the upcoming meeting of EU foreign ministers on 28 August.
The Prime Minister’s Office Chief Gergely Gulyás also recently dismissed concerns about the national cards, stressing that 6,000 Russian citizens are currently working in Hungary and 300,000 in Germany.
Gulyás said the European Commission would be informed of a decision to include Russians and Belarusians in the National Card, but added that the matter “is none of the Commission’s business”.
