BULGARIA TO ATTRACT FOREIGN SPECIALISTS VIA BLUE CARDS

“As of today, employers can apply for the issuance of Blue Cards for highly-qualified professionals from countries outside the European Union. The document enables these workers to stay within the community in the long run,” said Vladislava Radonova from the Migration Department at the Ministry of Interior, during a discussion, organised by the Bulgarian Industrial Association (BIA). A special EU directive, which will be enforced at the beginning of the next year, regulates the migration process and Bulgarian legislation has already been synchronised via amendments to the Employment Law and the Law on Foreigners.

The Blue Card is a special instrument which resembles a passport. It will be issued by the Ministry of Interior after the Employment Agency approves the application of the respective employer. The deadlines for the issuing of the document have been shortened. With the Blue Card, specialists from countries outside the European Union will be eligible to work and reside legally in the EU for four years. Then, they will be obliged to return to their countries. After 18 months, they will again be able to apply for work in a EU member-state.

Some 42% of the companies in Bulgaria have vacant positions, 58% of employers find it hard to appoint specialists and 63% of them would take on highly-qualified workers from third countries, showed a study of the European Institute with the BIA. "In 2035, a total of 24 million professionals will be needed in the EU,” said Lubov Panayotova, Director of the Institute. According to Nadya Dimitrova, expert at the institute, EU's objective is to compete with the economies of the USA, Canada and Australia via developing a “scientific economy”. She said that Bulgarian citizens have nothing to worry about because EU citizens will have priority when applying for vacant positions.