The proposed new legislative framework is aimed to streamline residence permit procedures, a recognition of skills and migrants’ integration in the labour markets. The initiative, part of the New Pact on Migration and Asylum, targets about three million legal migrants from third countries coming to the EU to work and reside. In also concerns third-country nationals arriving in the EU following the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine.

As highlighted by the 2021 Eurofound report on ‘Tackling labour shortages in EU member states’, the European Union faces a structural scarcity of labour – already before and still after the pandemic. In particular in the context of the EU’s ageing workforces and widespread skills mismatches, migration by qualified third country nationals could be a possible short- and medium-term solution to ensure a sufficient supply of qualified labour resources in the EU.

CESI Secretary General Klaus Heeger said: “The new EU initiative on ‘Attracting skills and talent to the EU’ can be a useful solution to help strengthen cooperation on migration and the free movement of persons in the Single Market and to contribute to avoid the exploitation of irregular markets with precarious work contracts in the EU. We welcome the initiative also for its potential to reduce skills shortages in the EU. However, any new policy should be implemented in line with EU cohesion, neighbourhood and development policy targets which consider that the countries of origin which are loosing talents will be faced with structural brain drain problems.”