London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Wednesday, Oct 08, 2025

German Cabinet agrees ‘massive’ immigration reform

German Cabinet agrees ‘massive’ immigration reform

Berlin presents new regulations for the immigration of skilled workers.
Skilled workers from abroad should be able to come to Germany more easily in the future as Berlin seeks to secure the country’s economic future, the government agreed Wednesday.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s Cabinet approved the key points for a draft law that will loosen the rules on skilled labor immigration from third countries outside the EU.

“Germany will need all helping hands and bright minds in the future,” said Labor Minister Hubertus Heil when presenting the plans together with the ministers for education, economy and interior affairs. Heil labeled the plans for a “massive recruitment strategy” as a “major and important step.”

The German economy is suffering from a shortage of skilled workers and employees. This shortage is particularly severe in certain sectors, such as the hospitality and IT industries. Given Germany’s relatively low birth rates and aging population, the problem is likely to worsen as baby boomers retire in the next few years.

All the necessary legislative changes are to be introduced “swiftly” and approved by the Cabinet at the beginning of 2023, Heil said.

Foreign specialists with qualifications recognized by Germany will be able to work in any qualified job in the future, according to the plan, seen by POLITICO. German officials would also no longer have to formally certify such qualifications before a foreign worker enters Germany.

The requirement to have a qualification recognized by Germany will be waived for those who have at least two years of professional experience and a professional qualification of at least two years recognized in their home country in professions not regulated by the state — for instance, academic jobs such as chemists or mathematicians.

The government also aims to attract people who do not yet have a German employment contract by introducing an “opportunity card” for non-EU nationals with “good potential.” This card would be linked to a residence permit for up to one year to seek employment and entitles holders to trial or part-time jobs.

“It will be based on a transparent and unbureaucratic points system,” the plan says. The selection criteria will include qualifications, language skills, work experience, age and “ties to Germany” — the meaning of which has yet to be specified.

“Today, the Cabinet has launched something that is long overdue,” said Education Minister Bettina Stark-Watzinger. She cited calculations by the Federal Employment Agency, according to which Germany still needs to recruit 400,000 people a year from abroad in addition to the domestic workforce to compensate for the aging population and counter the shortage of skilled workers.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
France: Less Than a Month After His Appointment, the New French Prime Minister Resigns
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stated that Hungary will not adopt the euro because the European Union is falling apart.
Sarah Mullally Becomes First Woman Appointed Archbishop of Canterbury
Mayor in western Germany in intensive care after stabbing
Australian government pays Deloitte nearly half a million dollars for a report built on fabricated quotes, fake citations, and AI-generated nonsense.
US Prosecutors Gained Legal Approval to Hack Telegram Servers
Macron Faces Intensifying Pressure to Resign or Trigger New Elections Amid France’s Political Turmoil
Standard Chartered Names Roberto Hoornweg as Sole Head of Corporate & Investment Banking
UK Asylum Housing Firm Faces Backlash Over £187 Million Profits and Poor Living Conditions
UK Police Crack Major Gang in Smuggling of up to 40,000 Stolen Phones to China
BYD’s UK Sales Soar Nearly Nine-Fold, Making Britain Its Biggest Market Outside China
Trump Proposes Farm Bailout from Tariff Revenues Amid Backlash from Other Industries
FIFA Accuses Malaysia of Forging Citizenship Documents, Suspends Seven Footballers
Latvia to Bar Tourist and Occasional Buses to Russia and Belarus Until 2026
A Dollar Coin Featuring Trump’s Portrait Expected to Be Issued Next Year
Australia Orders X to Block Murder Videos, Citing Online Safety and Public Exposure
Three Scientists Awarded Nobel Prize in Medicine for Discovery of Immune Self-Tolerance Mechanism
OpenAI and AMD Forge Landmark AI-Chip Alliance with Equity Option
Munich Airport Reopens After Second Drone Shutdown
France Names New Government Amid Political Crisis
Trump Stands Firm in Shutdown Showdown and Declares War on Drug Cartels — Turning Crisis into Opportunity
Surge of U.S. Billionaires Transforms London’s Peninsula Apartments into Ultra-Luxury Stronghold
Pro Europe and Anti-War Babiš Poised to Return to Power After Czech Parliamentary Vote
Jeff Bezos Calls AI Surge a ‘Good’ Bubble, Urges Focus on Lasting Innovation
Japan’s Ruling Party Chooses Sanae Takaichi, Clearing Path to First Female Prime Minister
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Sentenced to Fifty Months in Prison Following Prostitution Conviction
Taylor Swift’s ‘Showgirl’ Launch Extends Billion-Dollar Empire
Trump Administration Launches “TrumpRx” Plan to Enable Direct Drug Sales at Deep Discounts
Trump Announces Intention to Impose 100 Percent Tariff on Foreign-Made Films
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Singapore and Hong Kong Vie to Dominate Asia’s Rising Gold Trade
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Manhattan Sees Surge in Office-to-Housing Conversions, Highest Since 2008
Switzerland and U.S. Issue Joint Assurance Against Currency Manipulation
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Thomas Jacob Sanford Named as Suspect in Deadly Michigan Church Shooting and Arson
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
New York Man Arrested After On-Air Confession to 2017 Parents’ Murders
U.S. Defense Chief Orders Sudden Summit of Hundreds of Generals and Admirals
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
Trump Claims FBI Planted 274 Agents at Capitol Riot, Citing Unverified Reports
India: Internet Suspended in Bareilly Amid Communal Clashes Between Muslims and Hindus
Supreme Court Extends Freeze on Nearly $5 Billion in U.S. Foreign Aid at Trump’s Request
Archaeologists Recover Statues and Temples from 2,000-Year-Old Sunken City off Alexandria
China Deploys 2,000 Workers to Spain to Build Major EV Battery Factory, Raising European Dependence
Speed Takes Over: How Drive-Through Coffee Chains Are Rewriting U.S. Coffee Culture
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Ringo Starr Champions Enduring Beatles Legacy While Debuting Las Vegas Art Show
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
×