Last year, a record 27,000 foreigners received the EU Blue Card in Germany, nearly a thousand of them Ukrainians
The Blue Card is a document confirming the right to reside and work in one of the EU countries (except Denmark, the United Kingdom, and Ireland) and is essentially an EU program for employing qualified personnel from third countries. As Deutsche Welle recalls, this program was introduced in the EU in 2012. Since then, the lion's share of Blue Cards in the EU has been issued by Germany: in 2017, Germany issued nearly 85 percent of all Blue Cards in the EU (over 21,700). Overall, since 2012, Germany has issued over 100,000 such documents.
Applicants for the Blue Card must have a higher education degree and a job contract with a German employer guaranteeing a salary of at least 53,600 euros per year (before taxes). For doctors, engineers, and scientists from abroad, the income requirements are lower – 41,800 euros per year.
According to BAMF data, the largest number of Blue Cards in 2018 were issued to Indian citizens – over 7,500 people or 27.7%. In second place is China (nearly 2,200 people, or 8%), in third place is Russia (1,600 people, or 5.9%). Ukrainians are in ninth place: last year they received 971 Blue Cards in Germany, accounting for 3.6% of the total. The top ten also includes Turkey, Brazil, Egypt, the United States, Iran, and Syria.
Blue Cards grant their holders the right to temporary residence in EU countries to cover the shortage of skilled labor. However, most holders of such permits in Germany have chosen this country as their permanent residence. According to BAMF data, of the over 51,000 Blue Card holders living in Germany as of the end of 2018, 28,200 have already obtained the right to permanent residence in the country. Among Blue Card holders in Germany, nearly 2,200 are Ukrainian citizens.
"These figures clearly indicate that Germany is becoming increasingly attractive for highly qualified migrants from outside the EU. And we are confident that the popularity of the EU Blue Card will remain high in the future," concludes BAMF Vice President Andrea Schumacher.