Blue Card vs. Green Card
Expatica.com has an interesting article out today comparing the EU Blue Card to the US Green Card. It compares the cards on the basis of permanent residency, permissions, and application criteria. Check it out.
EU Blue Card Approved
On May 25, 2009, the Council of the European Union adopted the Blue Card Directive. The aim of this directive is to make it easier for highly skilled workers to immigrate to EU countries for work by creating a fast track procedure for the EU Blue Card. EU member states have two years now to comply with the new directive. You can read a copy of the press release announcing the acceptance of this directive here.
The adoption of this directive should not only help EU countries achieve growth in the face of an aging population and lower birthrates, but also benefit foreign workers, particularly from India.
A Threat to the US? The Controversy Continues
How much of a threat will the European Union's Blue Card be to the supply of highly skilled workers for the US?
Currently, US Green Card applications can take up to 10 years, averaging 3 to 5 years. The proposed EU Blue card on the other hand will process applications in 30-90 days. For a highly skilled immigrant wanting to work abroad, why wait up to 10 years for a Green Card when you can get a Blue Card within 90 days? If US Immigration cannot get its act together before the Blue Card is made a reality (which is highly unlikely), then it's likely that the new European Union proposal will lessen the pool of foreign talent the US has to draw from.
In this Information week article, Marianne Kolbasuk McGee asks the same question. It's obvious from the comments that a great many people in the US are against immigrant workers for various reasons...lowering US salaries and unfair competition with US workers being the primary two. It seems that the root of these concerns in the US is due to abuse of the H1-b visa. Similar concerns are voiced by MCW regarding the Blue Card in Britain.
I have disagreements with the comments from US citizens and MCW's concerns with the EU Blue Card. First, it's not the H1-b or the US Green Card that creates income disparities and unfair competition. It's the companies that pay the foreign workers less than US citizens. Additionally, it's not that an H1-b visa is a bad thing...what's bad is the government allowing them to be abused. Regarding MCS's concerns, I fail to see how highly skilled workers being paid an appropriate salary and paying into the social systems, will put a strain on those social systems. Because these immigrants will be filling "higher level" jobs, they'll be paying more into the system than the average British residents. They may in fact bring family members into the country with them, but so do working British residents also have non-working family members. If each individual member state decides how many workers it needs to fill various positions, that are not able to be currently filled by native workers, I also fail to see how this will deepen competition for local jobs among native workers.
German Resistance to Blue Card
An article in Germany's Deutsche Welle, Germany Suspicious About EU Blue Card Plan, expresses a number of common worries of several EU member states. The article states that Germany's primary concern is "that the EU might eventually impose quotas on the number of immigrants who can enter individual member states". The EU Commission Vice-President Franco Frattini, has said that Brussels will not attempt to determine how many individuals member states need...member states will choose for themselves. Member states also have the option of choosing not to adopt the Blue Card rather than blocking it all together.
UK Telegraph Article off the Mark
In this UK Telegraph article the author claims that now is a bad time for Brussels to propose it's "Blue Card Scheme". The author mentions problems with illegal immigration and strain on social services due to the influx of immigrants. The problem with his analysis is the Blue Card proposal would not increase illegal immigration, and the highly qualified workers it would attract would put more into social services than they would take out, strengthening the system rather than weakening it. I'm sure we'll see more of these claims as the Blue Card gets closer to reality.
The New EU Blue Card Blog
Plans for the new EU Blue Card were just unveiled on October 23, 2007 and there is already a firestorm of controversy. As a non European Union national who spends almost half of every year in Europe, this topic is very important to me. On this blog I'll keep you up to date on the latest news and views on this exciting development. For more information check out BlueCardInfo.com.