(1)

Attracting and retaining third-country nationals with specialised skills or strong innovation potential, including researchers, students and graduates in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), highly qualified and skilled workers, startup founders, and innovative entrepreneurs, is essential for maintaining the Union’s economic growth, competitiveness and technological leadership.

(2)

Attracting talent for innovation is particularly important in key sectors for the Union’s competitiveness and strategic autonomy, including information and communication technologies, deep-tech and frontier innovation such as artificial intelligence (‘AI’), quantum and semiconductors, virtual worlds, clean and renewable technologies (including nuclear technology), biotechnology (including health and bioeconomy applications), advanced manufacturing and materials, and cybersecurity.

(3)

Persistent labour and skills shortages in innovation-intensive sectors weaken the Union capacity to achieve its goals. These shortages have almost doubled since 2015 and are projected to persist, with more than half of new job openings by 2035 expected to require highly skilled profiles. Gender gaps contribute to these shortages, particularly as concerns the workforce in science and engineering, and in the business enterprise sector. Shortages also reflect barriers to fully use the skills of third-country nationals already residing in the Union, including challenges with qualification recognition and limited access to employment matching their profiles. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and startups are disproportionately affected by these shortages and face difficulties in attracting the talent needed to scale up and compete globally (1).

(4)

Mobilising the potential of the Union’s own workforce remains essential. However, attracting skilled and innovative individuals from outside the Union is also necessary to ensure a sustainable talent pipeline that strengthens the Union’s competitiveness and enables progress on putting its strategic priorities into practice. In an increasingly uncertain global environment, the Union’s openness, respect for fundamental rights, academic freedom and strong democratic institutions constitute a key factor of attractiveness for skilled and innovative individuals seeking a stable and open environment that allows them to live, work and create freely.

(5)

The Pact on Migration and Asylum (2) reaffirms the importance of attracting skills and talent to the Union. In the last years, the Commission has put forward a set of legislative, operational and forward-looking measures, including a proposal to establish an EU Talent Pool (3) to promote international recruitment, and the establishment of Talent Partnerships to promote structured cooperation frameworks with partner countries.

(6)

Effective implementation of talent attraction measures should be supported by cooperation with partner countries, notably on document security, identity management and information exchange, also to address potential concerns of ‘brain drain’. Such cooperation should aim to strengthen mutual trust, contribute to the integrity of admission procedures and complement broader EU partnerships, including Talent Partnerships and engagement in the enlargement and neighbourhood context. In this context, the Pact for the Mediterranean (4) reinforces the significance of talent mobility to build comprehensive partnerships, also by fostering higher education, promoting mobility for students and proposing the establishment of a Mediterranean University.

(7)

The Union of Skills (5) outlined key deliverables at Union, national, regional and local levels with the objective of attracting and retaining skills from third countries to address shortages and develop talent in the Union. It also stressed the importance of supporting integration and family life to attract and retain skilled workers and researchers, including the necessity to develop attractive research careers as promoted by the European Charter for Researchers.

(8)

The Union of Skills aims that by 2030, the annual number of learners from outside the EU coming to study and obtain a degree at tertiary level in the EU should be at least 350 000. The Erasmus+ programme is an important enabler of the Union of Skills, including through flagship initiatives such as Erasmus Mundus, the European Universities alliances and future joint European degree/label.

(9)

The upcoming Vocational Education and Training (VET) Strategy, announced in the Union of Skills, will also contribute to the attractiveness of VET students and graduates, who can support the Union’s innovation.

(10)

The ‘Choose Europe for Science’ (6) initiative promotes Europe as a destination of excellence for international students, researchers and professionals, and the EU Startup and Scaleup Strategy (7) aims to make Europe the best place in the world to launch and grow global technology-driven companies, including deep tech companies. These initiatives, together with the AI Continent Action Plan (8), highlight the strategic importance of deep tech, AI, clean tech, health, and digital sectors for Europe’s competitiveness and sovereignty, as well as the need to ensure that the EU can attract the skilled professionals driving these sectors forward. The Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions are a key instrument for attracting and retaining international talents in Europe, supporting the training and career development of researchers from all over the world, at all stages of their careers. Finally, the EU Blue Carpet initiative, launched by the EU Startup and Scaleup Strategy, will support the attraction and retention of highly skilled and diverse talent, focusing on entrepreneurial education, tax-related aspects of employee stock options and cross-border employment.

(11)

The Commission offers support through ongoing and planned initiatives aimed at strengthening the EU’s attractiveness to talent, in particular through ‘Choose Europe’ related actions for research and innovation. These efforts will also include funding opportunities and communication activities to inform talent about employment opportunities within EU research organisations.

(12)

The upcoming European Innovation Act aims to increase and accelerate the deployment of innovation and improve the regulatory environment for innovative companies, including startups and scaleups. A Commission proposal for a European Research Area (ERA) Act will also strengthen research and development investments, align Union and national investment priorities, and support mobility of researchers towards and within the Union. The Commission Action Plan for Women in Research, Innovation and Start-ups will tackle persistent gender gaps constraining the full mobilisation of talent and innovation potential, aiming to establish the EU as the world's most attractive place for women in these fields by 2030.

(13)

Attracting international talent for innovation and competitiveness is also one of the key objectives of the EU visa policy strategy (9), which sets out a framework for a visa policy that advances Europe’s long-term interests, by strengthening security across the Schengen area, fostering EU prosperity and competitiveness, and projecting Europe’s position and resilience on the global stage.

(14)

The Union should implement the actions already launched, and step up its efforts taking additional measures to become an attractive destination for international talent whose skills, knowledge or activities can contribute to its competitiveness and innovation ecosystems. These measures should improve access to, and implementation of, the Union and national frameworks for study, research, highly qualified and skilled employment, startup founders and innovative entrepreneurs.

(15)

The flexibility provided for by the Union legal framework should be used to accelerate and facilitate the admission of international talent and increase the Union’s attractiveness. These measures should be accompanied by operational measures at both Union and national levels.

(16)

The Union acquis provides a framework to attract and retain talent from third countries. Directive (EU) 2016/801 (‘Students and Researchers Directive’) (10) harmonises the conditions of entry and residence for students and researchers, facilitating mobility and post-study and research opportunities; Directive (EU) 2021/1883 (‘EU Blue Card Directive’) (11) establishes common rules for the admission and rights of highly qualified workers. These rules are complemented by Council Directive 2003/86/EC (‘Family Reunification Directive’) (12) setting the conditions for family reunification, an element that plays an important role in attracting and retaining foreign talent and promoting long-term integration.

(17)

Lengthy procedures, difficulties for talented workers to access consulates, lack of information and complex national schemes, including those for startups founders and innovative entrepreneurs, continue to undermine the effectiveness of the Union framework, and limit its attractiveness and visibility at global level. They also reduce the impact of Union efforts in other areas, such as education, research, or innovation.

(18)

To attract international talent to the Union, it is essential to have fast, transparent, and predictable admission procedures. Specific actions can be taken to make admission processes simpler and more predictable, shorten processing times, and ensure that consular and administrative systems are adequately equipped to handle applications efficiently while ensuring safeguards against potential misuse, including through the support of Union funding.

(19)

Strengthening long-term perspectives is key to attract and retain researchers, international students, highly qualified and skilled workers, and startup founders and innovative entrepreneurs. Council Directive 2003/109/EC (the ‘Long-Term Residents Directive’) (13) gives the possibility to acquire an EU long-term resident status after five years of legal and continuous residence in a Member State, and supports highly mobile talent like researchers and highly skilled workers. The Commission proposal (14) to recast the Long-Term Residents Directive would further contribute to making the Union more attractive.

(20)

Facilitating recognition of qualifications and validation of skills of third-country nationals is also key to successful attraction and retention policies. The Skills Portability Initiative to be adopted in 2026 will explore whether to propose common rules for simpler procedures for handling the recognition and validation of qualifications and skills of third-country nationals.

(21)

Improving the provision of information to talent abroad, reinforcing coordination among education, training, research institutions and innovation actors, and ensuring adequate administrative capacity are essential to make procedures faster, more transparent and effective.

(22)

Targeted recommendations should be presented to facilitate talent’s access to the Union and Member States and streamline application procedures, reinforce measures to attract and retain international talent that can contribute to the Union’s competitiveness and growth, enhance capacity and access to information and promoting coordination mechanisms.

(23)

Beneficiaries of international protection residing in the EU or third-country nationals in need of protection displaced in a third country can also have the skills the European labour market needs or have strong innovation potential. However, they might face specific challenges to access residence permits for the purpose of study, research and highly qualified employment. This includes addressing issues with access to recognition procedures for foreign diplomas, certificates and other evidence of formal qualifications, in particular in circumstances where there is a lack of documentary evidence or an inability to meet the costs related to recognition procedures. The experience developed by complementary pathways related to work or education, in line with Commission Recommendation on legal pathways to protection in the EU (15), could be used in this regard.

(24)

Cooperation and exchange of information on attracting talent for innovation between Member States, social partners and stakeholders should be promoted, including through mutual learning and exchange of good practices. A Talent for Innovation Attraction Platform should be set up to bring together experts from existing fora on migration, employment, education and innovation in view of creating synergies, ensuring coordination, and monitoring the implementation of the Recommendation.

(25)

The Commission should take stock on a regular basis of the implementation of this Recommendation, starting in 2026, also to assess whether targeted legislative adjustments are needed to make procedures simpler and more responsive to the EU’s competitiveness and innovation ambitions. For this purpose, Member States should be invited to inform the Commission on relevant national initiatives, reforms, good practices and statistics.

(26)

This Recommendation should focus on admission and residence frameworks for stays of more than 90 days. Member States could also decide to apply the measures of this Recommendation to relevant categories of visa required third-country nationals visiting the EU for the purpose of study, research or business, for stays up to 90 days within a 180-day period, provided that this is in line with the applicable EU legal framework on short-term visas (16).

(27)

This Recommendation is without prejudice to the competence of Member States to determine the volumes of admission of third-country nationals for work purposes, in accordance with Article 79(5) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.