In response to the expectations of multinational companies, the European Commission proposed, on 13 July, to make it easier to transfer highly qualified non-European workers to branches or subsidiaries in the member states.

Confronted with 27 different national systems, international firms that have their registered office outside the EU “have been waiting for these proposals for a long time,” explained Home Affairs Commissioner Cecilia Malmström. They need to be able to send to EU member states specialists considered essential for the development of their activities. “These intra-corporate transferees bring with them specialist knowledge and skills to Europe, which in turn contributes to strengthening the European economy and attracting further investments in member states,” she added. Today, such experts are more likely to end up in the United States. According to the commissioner, the proposal is expected to concern at most 16,000 to 20,000 people a year, namely highly educated managers and specialists.

As with seasonal workers (see other article), the member states will continue to determine their annual quotas. The Council of Ministers and the European Parliament will approve common rules for admission to the EU, including the grant of a combined work/residence permit within 30 days and a clear legal status, including the same working conditions as workers posted by a company based in the EU. Candidates must be informed of entry conditions and will be entitled to simpler family reunification (two months of procedure at most). They may lodge an appeal in the case of refused entry and seek explanations from the national authorities. Mobility conditions from one EU state to another in the same multinational will also be facilitated because they will be based on the first residence permit. The second member state may nevertheless require a residence permit if this mobility exceeds three months (or more if the countries concerned agree). The EU states will also exempt these candidates from aptitude tests for entry to the labour market. The proposal also sets maximum lengths on transfers: three years for specialists and managers, and one year for trainees with a higher education qualification.

MIGRATION STRATEGY

The Commission is confident in its proposal and hopes to see it reviewed at an early date by the Council and EP, in September. Its goal is to strengthen a European migration strategy aimed at attracting highly qualified workers, in competition with the US and Asia. In May 2009, the EU Council adopted a directive creating an EU blue card that regulates the migration of highly skilled workers. A 2007 proposal for a single work and residence permit still has to be adopted.