EMN inform: ‘New and innovative ways to attract foreign talent in the EU’

EMN inform on new and innovative ways to attract talented foreign workers in the EU.

Study period - up to and including March 2024
Participating EU Member States - Austria (AT), Belgium (BE), Bulgaria (BG), Cyprus (CY), Czechia (CZ), Germany (DE), Estonia (EE), Finland (FI), France (FR), Hungary (HU), Ireland (IE), Italy (IT), Lithuania (LT), Luxembourg (LU), Latvia (LV), the Netherlands (NL), Poland (PL), Portugal (PT), Sweden (SE), Slovakia (SK), Slovenia (SI)

Background and scope

• The study provides an overview of programmes and initiatives (January 2021–March 2024) by EU Member States to attract talented workers from non-EU/EFTA countries*.
• It focuses on two groups of talented foreign workers: highly skilled workers from non-EU/EFTA countries, and workers from non-EU/EFTA countries who come to work in high-value economic sectors, regardless of their level of education.
• The study report is based on contributions from 21 EU Member States and was produced in cooperation with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

EMN publications 

• EMN inform, ‘New and innovative ways to attract foreign talent in the EU’, February 2025
• EMN press release, 'New joint EMN-OECD inform examines innovative strategies to attract foreign talent', 27 February 2025

EMN Netherlands publications 

• EMN Netherlands two-pager (comparison of Dutch policy with that of other EU Member States), ‘New and innovative ways to attract foreign talent in the EU’ (Dutch), March 2026
• News item, ‘EU wants to attract foreign talent, Member States take different approaches’, 5 March 2026

*EFTA: European Free Trade Association, commonly known by its English abbreviation EFTA. Countries: Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Switzerland