The European Commission recently announced that it will be revamping its migration policies, easing the process for skilled migrants and labourers who seek to work and reside in the European Union (EU). The Commission will be creating a streamlined process for obtaining work and residence permits within the EU and will simplify the process for acquiring a long-term EU residence permit.
The Commission hopes to create an “EU Talent Pool” to attract talent from non-EU states and make it easier for EU employers to seek out individuals with the skills they need. The Talent Pool will contain a pilot program specifically for Ukrainian refugees, where companies can “identify and map the skills of people that have fled Ukraine and who are present in the Member States.” In addition, “Talent Partnerships” have been developed between the EU and Tunisia, Morrocco, and Egypt. Programmes will be implemented to facilitate coordinated migration between these North African states and the EU.
Non-EU nationals, if they have resided in multiple EU member states, will be able to compound their total legal residency in the EU when seeking long-term resident status. Those who hold temporary residency, including students or protected individuals, will be able to count these residence periods towards their cumulative EU residency.
These forward-thinking initiatives aim to upgrade the EU’s migration policies in light of the war in Ukraine and will ultimately serve to address gaps in the EU labour market, prevent the exploitation of irregular migrants and boost the European economy as a whole. Leiden will be a key beneficiary of these new policies as it is one of the Netherlands primary destinations for highly skilled workers from around the globe.
Read more about the policy initiatives here.
