German regulations on the Western Balkans: a source of inspiration to facilitate the mobility of refugee workers? – Germany

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Complementary pathways offer refugees the opportunity to accept employment in another country, allowing them to use their skills to build a sustainable future and helping to meet the needs of employers and the labor market in destination countries. Germany’s Western Balkans settlement provides a model for expanding the mobility of refugee workers in Germany and other EU countries. Developed with an annual cap and a particular scope, such as a geographical focus on one or more third countries or on specific sectors of the labor market, an extension of this approach would facilitate mobility requirements for people in need of protection and having obtained a job offer. The possible extension of the Regulation’s model to reach people in need of protection is likely to introduce new ideas and positive changes to EU migration and asylum policy more generally.