WRITTEN QUESTION E-2111/02 by Jorge Hernández Mollar (PPE-DE) to the Commission. Single clearing house for legal immigration into the EU.
Date: 2002-07-17
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: EU migration policy, admission of aliens, database, job vacancy, migrant worker

12.6.2003

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 137 E/49

Member States. It has to be noted that the individual decision to grant the right to enter and stay in their
territory to any of those persons falls within the competence of each receiving Member State. Such a
decision does not imply a right for the persons concerned to move freely within the territories of the
Member States.

(1) OJ L 138, 28.5.2002.

(2003/C 137 E/054)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2111/02

by Jorge Hernández Mollar (PPE-DE) to the Commission

Subject: Single clearing house for legal immigration into the EU

(17 July 2002)

In recent statements to the Spanish press the Commission President has emphasised that it must be made
clear (by means of a policy of openness, cooperation and active assistance in support of legal immigration)
that the EU wants foreign immigrants because it needs them (cid:1) hence the requirement for a clear, positive
policy to promote legal immigration.

Although it is obvious that there is a need for legal immigration and that illegal immigration (which has
always been so prevalent) should be stopped,
immigration should be
encouraged by means which enable the supply of immigrants who wish to come to work in the EU to be
channelled appropriately.

is also obvious that

legal

it

Does the Commission not think, therefore, that it should propose setting up a European database for the
purpose of channelling both the supply of vacancies and, where appropriate, the demand for the jobs
available?

Answer given by Mr Vitorino on behalf of the Commission

(23 September 2002)

In its proposal for a Council Directive on the conditions of entry and residence of third-country nationals
for the purpose of paid employment and self-employed economic activities of 11 July 2001 (1), the
Commission has proposed that the European Employment Services (EURES) network be used before filling
a vacancy in a Member State with an economic migrant. The EURES network, established by Commission
Decision 93/569/EEC (2), consists of a data base of job vacancies in the Member States and the European
Free Trade Association (EFTA) members of the European Economic Area (EEA) and of job-seekers managed
by their public employment services.

The intention of the above mentioned proposal is to provide a practical and transparent tool to make the
principle of preference for the domestic (EEA) labour market operational and to permit the recruitment of
third country workers in cases of concrete shortage on the EEA labour market. Employers who do not
succeed in filling a specific job vacancy within a given period would thus only be allowed to recruit from
outside the EEA if they have published this vacancy via the employment services of several Member States
by means of the European Employment Services Network (EURES) for at least four weeks and if they have
not received an acceptable application from within the EEA labour market. The issuing of a residence
permit to a chosen third country worker would, of course, be subject to additional specific conditions for a
residence permit in accordance with the draft Directive.

An extension of the database to include job-seekers who do not already form a part of the EEA labour
market is not envisaged.

(1) OJ C 332 E, 27.11.2001.
(2) Commission Decision 93/569/EEC of 22 October 1993 on the implementing of Council Regulation (EEC)
No 1612/68 on freedom of movement for workers within the Community as regards, in particular, a network
entitled Eures, OJ L 274, 6.11.1993.