Immigration | Germany starts scoring work-related immigrants: “It was a huge mistake that this was not done before”

Berlin

Finland is not alone in its goal of trying to attract work-based immigrants, but the competition for talent is ongoing with many other countries.

On Wednesday, the German government introduced a bill aimed at “starting over” immigration policy, according to the Social Democrat interior minister Nancy Faeser shaped. With the new bill, Germany is making itself an attractive “world for smart people,” he said.

“It was a huge mistake that this has not been done before,” Interior Minister Faeser said on Wednesday when presenting the bill.

It’s about attracting both workers and academics.

Currently, Germany is the most popular non-English speaking study country. In addition, a lot of refugees and asylum seekers come to the country. But now Germany says it is taking a new turn in attracting professionals from outside the EU.

At the same time, the new law will speed up the employment of those outside the labor force already in the country.

To become a doctor studying Sumeya Abdulla22, is exactly the kind of newcomer we wanted: young, fluent in languages ​​and career-oriented.

He arrived in Germany as a refugee in November. Now he studies German five days a week. Since the beginning of summer, he has probably reached language proficiency level B2, with which he can enter the hospital as an intern.

The language school is fully paid for by the German state.

Abdulla was born in Kenya as a Somali refugee. He started his medical studies in Ukraine, where he left to flee the war.

He wakes up at five in the morning. The day starts with remote medicine studies and continues with studying German at the language school.

He thinks that Germany is quite easy because it resembles English. The language school has a dynamic pace. The teacher is different every day of the week.

“They say it’s so we don’t get bored, but learn better.”

After five hours of daily language study, he continues working in medicine in the afternoon.

If the war in Ukraine just goes on and on, Abdulla aims to continue his medical studies at another European university. In Germany, he could enter university after reaching the German language level C1. It would be possible next year.

He has a one-year temporary right of residence in Germany.

But would he want to stay?

According to Interior Minister Faeser, in addition to the ease of the system, the decisive factor in attracting work-based immigration is the “welcoming culture”, i.e. an atmosphere where immigrants feel welcome.

The bill according to Germany is now planning to ease the permit procedures – partly also to completely remove the required permits.

After the new law comes into force, professional qualifications acquired abroad no longer need to be recognized in Germany, except in separately regulated fields.

We want to promote the study of the German language even before coming to the country.

German politicians have sought a model for reform from Canada, which has long been known specifically for attracting work-related immigrants. The Canada model also includes scoring immigrants.

In the future, non-EU countries can also come to Germany to look for work for a year if they get enough points. Points are awarded for excellent knowledge of English, basic German language skills, age under 35 and completed professional qualifications and work experience.

From the point of view of companies, the scoring has been partly criticized as being too narrow. In many workplaces, even basic English can be enough. The conservative opposition, on the other hand, has raised concerns about the negative aspects of increased and increasing immigration.

Germany’s the new bill corresponds to the same line that many experts in Finland are now recommending. Like Finland, the lack of skilled professionals is also considered a significant obstacle to growth in Germany.

According to various estimates, Germany will need hundreds of thousands of skilled professionals in the next few years. The bill aims to increase 60,000 work-related immigrants annually.

Sdp chairman Sanna Marin said on Thursday at Yle’s election exam that Finland should follow the example of attracting talent from other countries. Basic Finns Riikka Purra said he was in favor of scoring immigrants.

The model chosen by Germany requires a lot of “immigration costs”. The idea of ​​the German red-green-liberal government is that the model will pay for itself.

Finland is fresh OECD reportbased on n, now narrowly ahead of Germany when comparing which countries are attractive from the point of view of top talent.

Finland is 14th on the list and Germany is 15th. The three most attractive countries are New Zealand, Sweden and Switzerland.

According to this survey, entrepreneurs think Sweden is the most attractive country in the world, while Finland is in 11th place and Germany in 13th place. Also, as the home of start-ups, Sweden attracts talent better than Germany or Finland.

In Finland, the number of start-ups has collapsed and labor productivity has lagged behind Sweden and Germany.

The aim of Germany’s new bill is to rise rapidly in these comparisons.

Read more: The number of start-ups collapsed in Finland

Sumeya Abdulla has experience with how different countries treat people from other countries. He has a sense of proportion.

He says that he has experienced discrimination in many stages of his life and that he had to fight for access to school as early as high school in Kenya.

There, the scholarships that made school possible could get lost in the wrong pockets.

While trying to escape from Ukraine, he says that he experienced violence like other dark-skinned refugees. He had to walk from Lviv to the Polish side, he couldn’t get on the refugee buses.

In Berlin, you had to find accommodation yourself after the refugee center. According to Abdulla, accommodation was offered to people other than dark-skinned people.

He now lives with a Berlin family and says he receives 200 euros a month from the German government. If the charitable housing option ends, he must look for work.

“All countries have their good and bad sides,” says Abdulla.

“I could also come to Finland, could I continue my medical studies there in English?”

Abdulla hopes to graduate as a neurosurgeon. In addition, he would like to start a family one day.