Effective management of the European Union’s external borders is crucial. To perform it, the services of Frontex come into place. Frontex is the European Border and Coast Guard Agency. It assists EU states in regulating the EU´s external borders and has become a crucial partner in addressing cross-border crime.
One of the major tasks of Frontex is to assist in managing migratory flows. Migration is not only a European issue but also a global one. That is why effective migration management is of primary significance.
To elaborate on the topic, migration to Europe has to be reviewed and addressed in two major directions, depending on its nature, which can be legal or irregular. The latter difference defines the strategies and procedures that need to be developed and integrated for effective management.
Legal Migration. Explore the Different Reasons for Undertaking Legal Migration
The issue of legal migration covers various aspects. If you wish to explore more, you can also find here a useful review.
The major reasons for legal migration include:
- Resettlement
- Pursuing work opportunities
- Study and research activities
- Family reunification
Resettlement is a legal and safe alternative to irregular migration. It confirms and demonstrates that Europe performs solidarity by hosting many people who find themselves in situations of danger, such as, for example, when fleeing war.
Those who are fleeing war can request asylum. This alternative provides an opportunity to resettle without risking one’s life to reach Europe illegally by using traffickers.
Work is another reason for an individual to legally migrate to a specific country. Migration for labor purposes plays a crucial role in driving economic growth and development. It helps the EU countries to face and cope with the current demographic challenges.
Therefore, the EU is developing measures to achieve flexible admissions to each EU country, depending on its individual priorities. These measures govern the entry and residence requirements for different types of immigrants.
The first category of immigrants to consider are highly skilled workers who play an essential part in economic strengthening and development. Skill shortages are of great concern for the EU’s economy. Some sectors are already experiencing the negative results of labor shortages.
Thus, it is obvious that the EU has to find a way to attract highly skilled workers. In that regard, a directive has been established, called the EU Blue Card, which governs the conditions of entry and residence for highly-qualified persons from non-EU countries.
Another important category of immigrants is seasonal workers. Seasonal workers are mainly recruited in sectors such as agriculture and tourism. To prevent exploitation and working in the EU countries without the required permits and authorizations, a Seasonal Workers Directive was developed and adopted.
The directive is of greatest importance for the transparent admission of seasonal workers from non-EU countries. The third category of immigrants is the intra-corporate transferees. The growth of multinational groups and business globalization has increased the necessity for managers and specialists to be temporarily relocated. Such transfers of people lead to a notable result in acquiring new skills and innovation, which is a major opportunity for advancements in the knowledge-based economy.
In a world of global competition for highly skilled professionals, who are of greatest importance for driving innovation, and who are of the top priority for the economies to enhance productivity and growth, Europe needs to attract these people.
The EU is aiming to become an attractive and preferable location for talented individuals. For that purpose, the EU has developed and adopted a directive for students and researchers of non-EU nationality. The directive establishes their admission conditions and rights. It has been set as an important objective to facilitate the admittance of non-EU nationals who have the intention to migrate to Europe for study and research purposes.
Lastly, family reunification is one of the major reasons for legal immigration to the EU. Non-EU nationals who are legally residing in an EU country can bring their family members as per the rules established in the Family Reunification Directive.
If you are eager to learn more about securing Europe’s external borders, here is an interesting video:
Irregular migration. Explore the different reasons for undertaking irregular migration. What are the main migration routes to Europe?
Poverty, political instability, and meeting a lot of obstacles to finding available legal routes for migration may provoke people to depend on criminal networks in their attempt to enter the EU without authorization. The journey that people undertake to the EU using criminal networks can be extremely dangerous, as it often exposes them to life risks.
For instance, the extremely dangerous smuggling of migrants, which is undertaken by sea, requires serious humanitarian assistance. Coastguards of the EU countries, with the support of Frontex, make great efforts to save the lives of the people who have embarked on a pernicious escape by sea.
