Revisions in the blue card directive : reforms, constraints and gaps

Abstract

The European Agenda on Migration presented by the European Commission (on 13 May 2015) among its key actions related to the fourth pillar – a new policy on legal migration – suggests the “modernisation and overhaul of the Blue Card scheme”. The weakness of the Blue Card in its current form as a tool to attract and retain talents in Europe is acknowledged and the need for reform is reconfirmed. On 6 June 2016 the European Commission presented a new Proposal (for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on the conditions of entry and residence of third-country nationals for the purposes of highly-skilled employment). This study aims at presenting the Blue Cards in terms of its achievements, its prospects with the proposed reforms and gaps that will remain unaddressed after revision.