Germany needs 1.5 million immigrants a year, according to the chairman of an independent economic advisory board working alongside the federal government. For this, it is urgently necessary to create a "culture of inclusion".

Monika Schnitzer, head of the body also known as the Council of Economic Sages (Sachverständigenrat zur Begutachtung der gesamtwirtschaftliche Entwicklung), highlighted in a newspaper interview on Monday that

considering the 400,000 emigrants from Germany per year, 1.5 million "new citizens" are needed every year to keep the labor force at the same level.

For this, the "culture of acceptance" (Wilkommenskultur) needs to be urgently created, emphasized the professor of comparative economics at the University of Munich (LMU). This kind of culture change means, among other things, that we don't need immigration enforcement offices that "scare people away, but provide services" and

it is not necessary to expect foreign applicants to have German language skills for all positions, but it is necessary to strive for all employees of immigration enforcement offices to know English

he explained.

He added that the law regulating the immigration of non-EU workers is a step in the right direction, but much more is needed. As he said, if the American Intel wants to build a semiconductor factory in Magdeburg and hire foreign specialists, then

it is necessary to ensure that these people can feel at home in the city in the province of Saxony-Anhalt, located in the territory of the former GDR.

At the same time, in addition to immigration, domestic labor supply must not be neglected, so much more attention and money must be devoted to education - the head of the advisory board emphasized, underlining:

Germany's "certificate of poverty" is that 25 percent of fourth graders cannot read properly.

It is also necessary to achieve that more girls and women choose professions related to technology, informatics and natural sciences, because these are the areas where the labor shortage is greatest, and older workers must be valued more so that they do not choose early retirement instead of work, said Monika Schnitzer .

In June, the federal parliament (Bundestag) adopted the immigration law, developed as one of the largest undertakings of the coalition government of the Social Democrats (SPD), the Greens and the Liberals (FDP), which is intended to expand the opportunities for workers from countries outside the EU.

According to the government

With the new law, Germany is introducing the most modern immigration system in the world. The main innovation is the institution of the so-called chance card, which means a point system.

In the Canadian-style system, points can be earned on the basis of professional qualifications, knowledge of German or English, age and previous ties to Germany, such as a longer stay in Germany. For example, four points are awarded for a certificate certifying a professional qualification, which can be naturalized in Germany. Those who collect at least six points receive a residence permit for one year to look for work locally. Those who have a valid certificate even without naturalization will automatically receive the chance card. For professions related to IT and digitization, instead of a diploma certifying formal school education, such as a college degree, points can also be obtained with certificates certifying professional credentials.

Among the biggest innovations is the rule that asylum seekers who have the appropriate qualifications and have already received a job offer can apply for a work residence permit. The condition for submitting the permit application is the withdrawal of the asylum application. As a result of the efforts of the FDP, this is not a universally valid rule, but a one-time relief, which only applies to asylum seekers who arrived before April this year. According to the liberals, this avoids the possibility of obtaining a work residence permit being a so-called pull or stimulating factor, i.e. further strengthening the attractiveness of the German asylum system, increasing the risk of illegal immigration.

MTI

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