Manager and shareholder of MoveMyTalent OÜ Laura Salu, whose company counsels and helps employees from other countries, agrees: «Applying for a residence permit has definitely become simpler. It is also positive that qualified workers find it easier to come to Estonia than some other EU countries; however, there is still quite a bit of bureaucracy and running around involved.»

Sokolov said that applying for residence permits can take a long time. «It could take up to two months to process residence permit applications. When it turns out a document is missing, the entire process starts anew, even though it could continue,» she said.

She added that drawing up paperwork can also take too long as Estonian embassies are few and recommendatory notes from universities can take a long time to process. «All manner of delays could lead to the employee giving up because they don't want to waste their time,» she said.

Bigbank has hired a total of 13 people, mainly for its IT department, from third countries in the past few years.

Engineers from the east

Economist at SEB Mihkel Nestor said that entrepreneurs also require more permanent employees with specialist education. «A steep drop in the popularity of technical subjects the country experienced some time ago has robbed Estonia of a generation of engineers and technical specialists. At the same time, it is possible to find them in a number of countries east of us; however, hiring them is subject to both the migration ceiling and other relevant restrictions,» he said.

New hiring incentives for IT firms and startups are unjust toward other companies, Nestor said. «Simply being either of the two is no guarantee of value added or having a successful business model,» he emphasized.

«Companies able to pay high salaries and dividends are definitely not so limited. We have companies in the processing industry the value added per employee of which is higher than that of software developers. Even so, the legislator seems to have decided that foreign labor is not important for these companies and sectors,» Nestor said.

Companies are looking for experienced and highly qualified employees. These criteria usually apply to people in their 30s and 40s with families and children.

Laura Salu said that there is a number of unresolved issues as concerns public services. «How to find a family doctor willing to communicate in English? How to get children into kindergartens or schools? We market ourselves as a welcoming country. However, we need to work on keeping those who come from being disappointed and making them feel comfortable here,» head of MoveMyTalent OÜ believes.

Use of public services is especially difficult for people who come to work for a short time; for example the aforementioned Vietnamese cook.