Belgium Plans 90-Day Deadline for EU Blue Card Applications to Attract Moroccan Graduates
Belgium is preparing a reform to make it easier to recruit highly skilled foreign workers, including Moroccans. The plan includes a processing deadline of no more than 90 days for the European Blue Card and more opportunities for professional mobility within the European Union.
Moroccan graduates looking to work in Belgium could soon benefit from faster procedures. On 14 October, the Interior Committee of the Chamber of Representatives approved a bill put forward by Minister for Asylum and Migration Anneleen Van Bossuyt. The aim is to make it easier for Belgian companies to recruit specialist skills from abroad.
According to the Belgian government’s official statement, the reform sets a maximum 90-day processing period for European Blue Card applications. The card allows nationals of countries outside the European Union to live and work in Belgium.
Easier business travel within Europe
Another planned change would make it easier for Blue Card holders to take temporary work assignments in other EU member states without having to apply for a new work permit each time.
Applicants will have to meet the qualification, salary and employment contract requirements for the card. Belgium hopes this will attract the specialist workers its companies are seeking.
At the same time, the government plans to step up checks to prevent sham recruitment. The Immigration Office will be able to reject applications more easily if they rely on suspicious documents or companies set up to arrange entry into the country without a genuine job.
The bill, approved at second reading by the parliamentary committee, must still be adopted definitively before the new provisions can take effect.
