Italy is home to the largest Indian diaspora community in the European Union. More than 200,000 Indians[i] are estimated to be in Italy bulk of which are from Punjab, employed in the dairy and agriculture sector of Northern Italy. In an interview last year, the Ambassador of Italy to India acknowledged that this number is only growing.[ii] Italy issued 380 work permits in 2021 and this figure increased to 15000 work permits till October 2022.[iii] The number of Indian students opting for Italy as a destination for higher studies is also on the rise.[iv]It has been reported that around 6,000 Indian students were studying in Italy in 2022.[v] This increase in migratory flows from India to Italy have also been accompanied by certain other developments.
Italy is experiencing a declining population. It is ageing much faster as compared to other European countries.Italy’s population dropped below 59 million in 2022[vi] and this is projected to decline to 47.7 million in 2070.[vii]There has been depopulation of many towns and villages especially in Southern Italy.From 2020 onwards, the percentage of elderly as a share of population has been rising. In 2021, the age dependency ratio was around 51 per cent.[viii][ix]The high proportion of the elderly is partly due to declining birth rate and partly a result of robust public health care system in Italy. The national health service provides free/low cost healthcare to Italian citizens leading to Italy having one of the highest life expectancy rates in the world.
Another development in addition to the population ageing is labour shortages. Employers in Italy are reporting difficulties in finding skilled people to meet their labour requirements. For instance, according to the World Travel and Tourism Council, Italy is one of the most impacted economies which is expected to see a demand for 250,000 thousand workers in travel and tourism sector with one in six vacancies likely to remain unfulfilled.[x] It implies that there is a need for foreign workers in Italy beyond the domestic supply.
Such a scenario would imply favourable conditions for negotiating a Migration and Mobility Partnership Agreement (MMPA) with Italy that builds on preexisting flows of students and workers and is able to cement advantages for both origin and destination countries, in the extant case being India and Italy, for mutual benefit. However, arriving at such a conclusion necessitate a deeper understanding of labour market and regulatory framework governing entry of non-European Union (EU) workers in Italy. This paper is an effort in this direction to comprehend the conditions in Italy and assessthe potential benefits of negotiating a Migration and Mobility Partnership Agreement with Italy.
Italy’s Economic Outlook
Italy has Europe’s third largest economy nearing 2 Trillion after Germany and France. It has 12% share of the EU economy. According to the OECD interim outlook forecasts, Italy is slated to grow at a rate of 3.8 per cent.[xi] Another aspect of Italian economy worth noting is that it is characterized by regional differences,with industry output being mostly concentrated in the North while the Southern region is mostly focused on agriculture and tourism. Oil refineries are situated in Southern provinces of Sicily and Sardinia. Infrastructure such as roads, ports, rail and air links are poor and less extensive in South than the Northern parts of the country. The two regions also differ in terms of economic productivity, as well as employment scenario.
The Bank of Italy has pegged Italy’s growth projection to 0.6 %. This projection by Bank of Italy corresponds with IMF projections in the World Economic Outlook 2023. Inflation for 2023 is pegged at 6.5 % revising the figures of 7.3% predicted previously. Italy has a high debt of 145% of gross domestic product and that is expected to continue.
Labour Market Shortages
Italy submitted the highest number of shortage occupations (205) in 2022.[xii]According to the EURES portal, requirements for the period 2022-2026 are as below:
Jobs in sectors such as metalworking, wood and furniture, mechatronics, IT and communication services, textiles, clothing and footwear are still unfulfilled. In the professional work category, there is difficulty finding pharmacists, biologists, other life science specialists, doctors and healthcare specialists, managers and directors, IT, physics and chemical specialists, metalworking and electromechanical workers, beauty care workers, workers in the wood and paper industry, social welfare, specialist workers and plant operators in the textile sector. In the hospitality and tourism sector, there is need for chefs, waiters, receptionists, and customer support workers.[xiii]Additionally,many high skilled jobs in technology related positions, human resources, finance, customer service, sales and marketing are also needed in Italy. [xiv]
Entry Requirements for Italy
Entry to the Italian labour market is governed by quotas. Each year the Italian government announces the number, nationalities and professional non-EU nationals that can enter Italy for employment purposes through ‘DecretoFlussi’. However, a new law issued by the Italian government on 10 March 2023 (The Law Decree 20/2023) proposes that quotas for hiring foreigners shall be announced every three years instead of annual quotas. This will allow Italy to fulfill its worker shortages and will enable migrant workers to stay in Italy for employment for a longer period. The conversion of study residence permits to work permit shall be possible without any limitation as a result of the quotas.[xv]The government has 60 days to convert this legislative decree into law. The quota for 2023 through 2025 is expected to be published soon.
For the year 2023, Italian government has fixed the quota for 82705 workers by country of origin and sectors of employment. Out of these,
However, there is also a labour market test that any Italian employer when hiring a foreign worker must meet. An employer in Italy desirous of hiring foreign workers has to check at the employment centre, the unavailability of a worker present in the country to do the same job.[xvi] Only after demonstrating this unavailability can a foreign worker be hired. Also, as part of this quota 2000 residence permits are allowed for study/ traineeship.
A migrant worker must fulfill three main steps before entry into Italy-authorization requests by employers through Immigration Single Desk (ISD), application for Italian visa and application for Italian residence permit.In order to hire foreign worker, an employer applies for an authorization request and upon receipt of the authorization sends it to the concerned person to apply for visa in the origin country. Upon arrival in Italy, the foreign worker needs to sign the stay contract presented by the employer at ISD. Certain categories such as managers, highly skilled workers, university lecturers and professors, nurses etc. are exempt from quota limits.
Prospects for Indian Students in Italy
Italy has a substantial concentration of Indian students in Europe after Germany, France and Ireland. In response to a Parliament question, the figures cited by the Ministry of External Affairs indicated that the number of Indian students going to Italy on a study visa witnessed a dip due to Covid pandemic in 2020 and 2021.This flow is again witnessing an upward trend since 2022 (See Table 1).
Year |
Number of Students |
2018 |
4482 |
2019 |
4791 |
2020 |
3211 |
2021 |
3008 |
2022 |
3507 |
Table 1: Annual Flow of Indian Students to Italy
Source: Compiled by author based on data presented by Ministry of External Affairs 2022[xvii]
The pull factors are many. Certain universities from Italy figure prominently in the QS ranking such as Politecnico di Milano, University of Bologna, University of Rome, University of Padova, University of Milan, Politecnico di Torino, University of Pisa, University of Naples- Federico II, and University of Trento. Increasingly a wide variety of courses are being taught in English adding to the pull of Italian universities for Indian students. Added to this allure is the relatively lower level of fees for higher studies such as doctoral programmes and lower cost of living (barring expensive cities such as Rome or Milan). While public institutions charge lower fee, independent private institutions charge higher annual tuition fees. It is worth mentioning here thatwhile many OECD countries charge different fees from national and foreign students, in Italy, public institutions charge national and foreign students enrolled in master’s course similar fees.[xviii] All information pertaining to foreign students is published through Uni-italia and Study in Italy portal.
Additionally, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MAECI), Italy offers grants to foreign citizens to pursue courses and training programs in public or legally recognized Italian educational institutions. These scholarships are open to Indian nationals as India figures among the list of eligible foreign countries.[xix] Under this scholarship program, in order to enroll for Italian taught courses, applicants have to provide a certificate of proficiency in Italian, however for English taught courses, self-certification is acceptable where the official language is English or the course was taught entirely in English.
International students can work in Italy for 20 hours per week on their study visa, however in order to work beyond 20 hours, they need to convert their study visa into work visa. Further, one-year student visa extension allows foreign students to look for jobs after completing their degrees.
Concluding Remarks
An analysis of the foregoing paras indicates that Italy is making efforts in the direction of hiring foreign workers and retain them for a longer period through its policy changes. This entry of workers, however, is regulated through quotas fixed by the Italian government. This fixed quota is further sub divided to give preference to countries with which Italy is cooperating on issues of migration and mobility. India has signed a Declaration of Intent on Migration and Mobility with Italy in March 2023during the visit of the Italian PM GiorgiaMeloni to India,and is among the priority list of countries identified by Italy. 30,105 jobs are reserved for these priority countries alone. India already has a strong presence in the agriculture and dairy sector in Italy, but it can capitalize on opening in other areas as outlined in the ‘DecretoFlussi’. There are also shortages in high skilled professionals’ category in Italy which are not governed by quotas.Technology related jobs, research and teaching also remains open to be explored for greater mobility.
Given these preexisting conditions, the work for both sides now is to bridge the demand and supply gap and establish comprehensive migration and mobility partnership agreement between the two countries. Any such MMPA between the two sides should optimize the avenues of available opportunities for Indian workers available through these quotas and beyond if possible. Since labour laws have been tightened in Italy for an Italian employer to hire foreign workers, it is imperative that a modus operandi to exchange information on the availability of jobs is also built in any future agreement.Information on labour market needs, skills and qualifications needed, working and living conditions, and social security benefits should regularly be shared through mechanism established by the MMPA. This would have the effect of publicizing clear and authentic information, ease the bottlenecks in operationalizing mobility and check on the lure of using clandestine channels to migrate posed by smugglers and human traffickers. Further, post study work visas for students is another area for intervention as work opportunities play an important role in guiding mobility decisions. Education was also one of the key areas identified by Prime Minister Modi on the occasion of elevation of India-Italy relationship to strategic partnership during the visit of the Italian PM to India in March 2023.[xx]The Government of India is already in the process of negotiating MMPA with Italy[xxi] and has stressed the need for facilitating the legal movement of people. While the contours of the agreement remain to be seen, it will be an important addition to new sectors and destinations of mobility being opened up for Indian workers through conclusion of MMPA by India, and will also address concerns related to migration through irregular channels.
*****
*Dr. Surabhi Singh, Senior Research Fellow, Indian Council of World Affairs, New Delhi. She heads the Centre for Migration, Mobility and Diaspora Studies.
Disclaimer: Views expressed are personal.
Endnotes
[i]Ministry of External Affairs (2018), ‘Population of Overseas Indians’, Accessed on 12 April 2023, URL: https://mea.gov.in/population-of-overseas-indians.htm
[ii]Sharma, Manraj Grewal (2022), ‘Italy opens its gates to Indian students and migrants’, Indian Express,12 December 2022, Accessed on 13 April 2022, URL: https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/chandigarh/80-indian-immigrants-italy-punjabis-8320697/
[iii] ibid
[iv] ibid
[v] India Today (2022), ‘Why is Italy becoming a trending study abroad destination in Europe?’ 7 October 2022, Accessed on 11 April 2023, URL: https://www.indiatoday.in/education-today/study-abroad/story/why-is-italy-becoming-a-trending-study-abroad-destination-in-europe-2009321-2022-10-07
[vi]Reuters (2022), ‚ Italy ageing faster than EU peers, population drops below 59 mln’, December 5, 2022, Accessed on 17 April 2023, URL: https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/italy-ageing-faster-than-eu-peers-population-drops-below-59-mln-2022-12-05/
[vii]Istat (2022), ‘Demographic development on the way to settle down’, Accessed on 18 April 2023, URL: https://www.istat.it/it/files//2022/04/Demographic-indicators_year_2021.pdf
[viii]Age dependency ratio is the ratio of dependents--people younger than 15 or older than 64--to the working-age population--those ages 15-64. Data are shown as the proportion of dependents per 100 working-age population.
[ix] The World bank (2022), ‘Age dependency ratio (% of working-age population)’ Accessed on 11 April 2023, URL: https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.POP.DPND?locations=IT
[x] World Travel and Tourism Council (2022), ‘Quarter of a million vacancies in Travel & Tourism threaten Italy’s economic recovery, says WTTC in new report’ Accessed on 19 April 2023, URL: https://wttc.org/news-article/quarter-of-a-million-vacancies-in-travel-and-tourism-threaten-italys-economic-recovery-says-wttc-in-new-report
[xi]OECD (2023), ‘ OECD Economic Outlook, Interim Report March 2023: A Fragile Recovery’, Accessed on 20 April 2023, URL: https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/sites/d14d49eb-en/index.html?itemId=/content/publication/d14d49eb-en
[xii]EURES (2022), ‚ EURES Report on Labour Shortages and Surpluses 2022’, Accessed on 10 April 2023, URL: https://www.ela.europa.eu/sites/default/files/2023-03/eures-labour-shortages-report-2022.pdf
[xiii]EURES (2023), ‘Labour Market Information: Italy’, Accessed on 11 April 2023, URL: https://eures.ec.europa.eu/living-and-working/labour-market-information/labour-market-information-italy_en
[xiv]The Local (2022), ‘The 25 most in demand jobs in Italy”, Accessed on 19 April 2023, URL: https://www.thelocal.it/20220210/the-25-most-in-demand-jobs-and-skills-in-italy-in-2022
[xv] KPMG (2023),‘ Italy- Entry flows and New Rules for Working and Residing in Italy’, Accessed on 18 April, URL: https://kpmg.com/xx/en/home/insights/2023/04/flash-alert-2023-082.html#:~:text=The%20quotas%20of%20foreigners%20entitled,decree%20of%20the%20prime%20minister.
[xvi]GazzettaUfficiale (2023), ‘DECREE OF THE PRESIDENT OF THE COUNCIL OF MINISTERS 29 December 2022’, Accessed on 18 April 2023, URL: https://www.gazzettaufficiale.it/atto/serie_generale/caricaDettaglioAtto/originario?atto.dataPubblicazioneGazzetta=2023-01-26&atto.codiceRedazionale=23A00232&elenco30giorni=false
[xvii]Ministry of External Affairs (2023), Reply to Rajya Sabha unstarred question no 861’ Accessed on 20 April 2023, URL: https://mea.gov.in/rajya-sabha.htm?dtl/36215/QUESTION_NO861_STUDENTS_STUDYING_ABROAD
[xviii] OECD (2022), ‘Education at a Glance: OECD Indicators’ Accessed on 21 April 2023, URL: https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/docserver/3197152b-en.pdf?expires=1681802171&id=id&accname=guest&checksum=BA4857790F52DF5209A9128862ACAC23
[xix] Study in Italy (2022), ‘Grantsfor Foreign and Italian Citizens Living AbroadAwarded by The Italian Government’ Accessed on 12 April 2023, URL: https://studyinitaly.esteri.it/en/call-for-procedure
[xx]Peri, Dinakar (2023), ‘India, Italy elevate ties to strategic partnership, sign MoU on defencecooperation ‘, The Hindu, 2 March 2023, Accessed on 21 April 2023, URL: https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/india-italy-elevate-ties-to-strategic-partnership-sign-mou-on-defence-cooperation/article66572174.ece
[xxi]Ministry of External Affairs (2021),’ Ministry of External Affairs Annual Report 2020-2021, Accessed on 21 April 2023, URL: https://www.mea.gov.in/Uploads/PublicationDocs/33569_MEA_annual_Report.pdf