Facilitating migration between India and the EU : a policy perspective

Abstract

Global migration to the European Union (EU) has expanded significantly since the 1990s and is being considered as an important tool to resolve domestic labour shortages in many of its Member States. Migration from India to the EU has so far not been significant except in the case of a few Member States and a few sectors. Nonetheless, there is a growing trend of Indians emigrating to the EU and the governments on both sides have also started looking at facilitating migration between the two regions. The emigration policies of the Indian Government and the policy orientation of the EU governments towards Indian migrants are important not only in deciding the quantum of Indian emigrants going to the EU but also their choice of destination country within the EU. Policy facilitation is also important for preventing exploitation of Indian emigrants both before and after leaving India.