Even though the mobility, whether geographic or sectoral, becomes a natural part of researcher´s life, there are still some challenges associated with the relocation. Researchers working in Europe, however, have a vehicle that helps them to overcome existing barriers and thus researchers can pursue an excellent research - the activity to development of which the mobility should contribute. This vehicle is the European network of EURAXESS Service Centres.

EURAXESS – Researchers in Motion ((http://ec.europa.eu/euraxess)) is an initiative launched by the European Commission to promote research careers and to facilitate the mobility of researchers across Europe. It addresses the career development of researchers in all its stages and supports not only international mobility, but also mobility across sectors (academy/industry). The support is implemented through four specific initiatives:

EURAXESS Services – free personalised services and assistance for mobile researchers and their family to plan and organise their move to another country. Help is provided in such areas as the issue of entry and legal stay, taxation, social security, health care and the like. These services are carried out through a network of over 200 Service Centres in 40 European countries, as well as through the European and national portals;

EURAXESS Jobs – stress-free recruitment tool in the form of a database, enabling search in thousands of jobs and fellowships in all areas of research and development throughout Europe, and free of charge posting of job vacancies, fellowships and CVs;

EURAXESS Rights – information regarding the European Charter for Researchers and the Code of Conduct for the Recruitment of Researchers, and other initiatives on the rights and duties of researchers and research- and funding organisations;

EURAXESS Links – network tool for European researchers working outside Europe. It is currently established in Brazil, China, India, Japan, the Northern America and the ASEAN countries.
Slovakia has joined the EURAXESS initiative already in 2004. The programme is run by SAIA, n. o. (the Slovak Academic Information Agency). A national network of 6 Service Centres operates throughout Slovakia, settled in the regional branches of SAIA (except for Bratislava, also in Banská Bystrica, Nitra, Košice, Prešov and Žilina). By means of its services, EURAXESS Slovakia strives to simplify the processes related to the arrival of foreign researchers in Slovakia, as well as to the departure of Slovak researchers abroad.

More information on EURAXESS services in Slovakia is available at www.euraxess.sk/en. Information on the European network in 40 countries including the links to national portals of the network member states can be found at http://ec.europa.eu/euraxess/.