How many skilled workers have applied for Germany's 'opportunity card' visa?

The German coalition government - made up of the Social Democrats (SPD), Greens and Free Democrats (FDP) - has relaxed skilled worker laws significantly in gradual stages over the last year.

Politicians made this a priority because of concerns over the worker shortage. According to the Foreign Office, there is a shortfall of skilled workers in Germany that grows by around 400,000 workers each year, resulting in unfilled roles across the labour market, from the construction industry and IT to the health sector.

Cue the Chancenkarte (opportunity card). This points-based visa allows non-EU nationals who hold an academic degree or a professional qualification and have German or English language skills to come to Germany for a period of 12 months to find employment or to pursue additional qualifications with the aim of finding a job.

Brought into force in June this year, politicians and business leaders said they hoped the visa would provide another route for skilled workers to enter Germany involving less red tape. Other policies enacted in the last year include: relaxing family reunification rules for new skilled workers, easing conditions for international students and cutting Blue Card earning requirements.

READ ALSO: How Germany's opportunity card will allow easier entries for foreign workers from June

As many readers of The Local will know, another big change is Germany's eased rules for gaining citizenship which came into effect on June 27th this year. The government hopes that allowing dual citizenship will help to convince foreigners to settle in Germany in the long-term. 

How many people have taken advantage of the Chancenkarte?

According to estimates before the law was put into place, the government hoped to see 30,000 opportunity cards applied for each year. However, the real number may turn out to be much less.

German newspaper Bild reported recently that significantly fewer people are applying for the visa than expected. In the first four months, just under 2,350 applications have come in, which works out at 590 per month. 

Bild said: "This is evident from documents from the Ministry of the Interior, which was in charge of implementation. The ministry had expected 10,000 (2,500 applications per month)".

Despite the lower take-up of applications than expected, the Interior Ministry told Bild it "still sees a lot of potential in the opportunity map as a new instrument". 

Meanwhile, figures show that since June only around 15 percent of applicants have been rejected.

The countries with the highest number of applicants for the visa are India, followed by China, Turkey and Russia. Tunisia comes in at fifth place. 

Is skilled worker immigration increasing in Germany?

According to government figures, there hasn't been a huge spike in skilled workers coming to Germany even with the new laws in place. 

Between November 2023 and October this year, 74,000 visas were granted to skilled workers from abroad - only a thousand more than the previous year and well short of the some 120,000 visas the government was aiming for. 

But as Imogen Goodman wrote for The Local in our weekend newsletter for members it is moving forward. "It seems like the campaign to rebrand Germany as the go-to destination for skilled workers is only just getting started, and there are incremental steps forward all the time.

"From next year, applying for German residence permits should be possible online from anywhere in the world, while local immigration offices like Berlin are also trying their hand at digitalising their processes."

READ ALSO: Inside Germany - winter clocks, giant pumpkins and a year of the skilled worker law

And on Friday last week, the government announced a deal aimed at hiking the number of skilled worker visas granted to Indians from 20,000 to 90,000 per year.

So the number of workers from outside the EU may be set to significantly pick up in the coming years. At least that's what the government - and businesses - are hoping.