Germany wants to make it easier for non-European Union (EU) citizens to work in Germany with a practice similar to the US Green Card.
In Germany, the world’s fourth largest economy, trade unions and employers’ associations have been complaining about the labor force problem for a long time. The Ministry of Labor also states that the shortage of labor is hampering economic growth.
According to DW Turkish to Turkish ‘opportunity card’ can be translated as ‘ChancenkarteWith ‘, it is preparing to put into effect an application that will make it possible for qualified workforce from outside the EU to work in Germany. This is the USA’sGreen Card‘ or in English ‘green card‘ application is similar.
Labor Minister Hubertus Heil said that Germany’s plans ‘opportunity cardHe announced his plans for . Thanks to the said card, foreign qualified employees will have the chance to work in Germany without any concrete job offers. In this context, candidates who will be subject to a scoring system will be required to have fulfilled at least three of the following four conditions:
- University degree or professional skills
- At least three years of professional experience
- Knowledge of German or previous experience in Germany
- Being under the age of 35.
Labor Minister Heil also underlined that there will be certain restrictions on the distribution of cards. Accordingly, a certain number of cards will be issued each year according to the needs of the job market. Therefore ‘opportunity cardThere will be no unlimited distribution of .
Speaking to West German public broadcaster WDR on Wednesday, Heil said:We are talking about a process free from skilled immigration and bureaucracy. Therefore, it is very important that those who receive the opportunity card will be able to cover their own expenses when they come to Germany.” he said.
The obstacles do not end with the new card.
Some experts said that Heil’s announcement and met with great interest. ‘opportunity card’He thinks it won’t solve the problems.
Holger Bonin, research director at the Bonn-based Institute for Labor Economics, “The new system complicates the system even more by creating unnecessarily high barriers” said. According to Bonin, Minister Heil’s scoring system will bring more bureaucracy.
Germany wants to defeat the ‘bureaucracy monster’
One of the obstacles that prevents Germany from being an attractive country for skilled labor compared to other Western countries is some cultural realities. For example, English is spoken less in Germany than in many other countries. Thyagarajan said that skilled workers prefer countries where they can speak English. “Of course, this is Germany, so it is important that our employees learn German at least to a working level” said.
Another problem is that German employers are very selective about diplomas, certificates and other documents. Some of the documents accepted in many other countries are not recognized in Germany or applications for recognition take months to complete. bonin, “These issues are impossible to resolve with the introduction of an opportunity card.” in his opinion.
Another of Germany’s problems is the systemic problems facing employers. For example, local authorities decide on the validity of an employee’s qualifications and documents within the framework of the German federal system. Therefore, a diploma recognized in one state may not be recognized in another state. With Germany’s paper-based bureaucracy struggling with digitization, candidates often have to notarize translations of their diplomas.
Physicians in Turkey ‘run away’ abroad
While many physicians resigned from the public sector due to the heavy working conditions and the inability to solve the problem of violence in Turkey, many young physicians collect documents primarily to find work abroad. While document applications break records every month, young physicians are particularly interested in German courses. This card put into practice by Germany ‘physician migration’ can speed up the process.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan already has these doctors. “Let them go if they go” he said.