Andorra will require a minimum knowledge of Catalan from people who want to obtain or renew residence permits in the country.
This is how the new law on the official language, which is being prepared by the government of the Principality and which will come into force next year, has been announced by the ‘Diari d’Andorra’ this Monday.
To make this possible, 30-hour courses will be organized which, once passed, will allow accrediting basic knowledge. People with an A2 or higher level of Catalan will not have to do this training.
The objective is that all residents can express themselves minimally in the official language of the country. The application of the new regulations will coincide with the renewal period of some 3,000 residence permits.
The text of the new law is being worked on between the ministries of Culture, Education and the Interior of the country, since it will incorporate an article to modify the Immigration law and add the new requirement for residence permits.
The regulation comes after the Andorran executive has verified that there are more and more cases in which the first attention is provided directly in Spanish, especially in the commerce and restaurant sector.
In this sense, the collaboration of the Unió Hotelera de Andorra, the Chamber of Commerce and the Andorran Business Confederation will be sought. Meanwhile, seasonal workers will be left out, although they want to find a way to encourage them to learn the language.
