Honorable members,
I would like to start by saying that I am very glad that we are finalizing the revision of the students and researchers Directive.
This updated Directive makes the EU more attractive for talent from abroad and therefore makes the EU more competitive on the global stage.
I would like to thank in particular Ms Wikström and the shadow rapporteurs.
Thanks to your excellent work, we have managed to keep an ambitious text.
The conclusion of the negotiations is important for several reasons:
Firstly, we have clearly improved the immigration rules for students and researchers: their rights are now more clearly defined.
Secondly, intra-EU mobility rules have been improved so that knowledge and skills can circulate more freely within the EU.
Thirdly, students can now work minimum 15 instead of 10 hours per week, which means they contribute more to our economy and can also be financially more independent.
With the new instrument, graduates and researchers have the right to look for a job or to set-up a business once they have finished studies or research.
Finally, we now also have binding EU-wide rules for trainees and volunteers within the European Voluntary Service. In parallel, for the first time, we will also have common rules for third-country national au-pairs, though only optionally.
Let me also underline that the agreement sends out important messages in these challenging times:
First of all, we welcome talent from outside of the EU to come to us to study, carry out research, learn or volunteer.
Those who would like to stay longer to work or create a business are invited to do so.
Equally importantly, we show that the EU sticks to its commitment to improve legal migration routes.
Understandably a lot of focus is now on the refugee crisis and people seeking protection.
But migration is not just about asylum, it is also about mobility and empowerment, and facilitating that through legal channels.
This is an important part of our overall migration policy, and we deliver as promised.
Overall, could we have done better?
Yes, there is almost always room for improvement.
The Commission, together with this Parliament, has insisted throughout the negotiations that Member States’ discretionary powers with regard to rejecting an application may only be used when strictly necessary and justified.
We made clear in our Joint Statement to the political compromise that such discretionary power by the Member States should only be used on a case-by-case basis.
It should take into account the specific circumstances of the third-country national and the principle of proportionality and on the basis of evidence or serious and objective reasons.
I can reiterate that the Commission will ensure that Member States implement this provision in line with this interpretation when transposing the Directive, and will inform the Parliament and the Council thereof.
Today, Europe attracts 45% of the international students worldwide but the international higher education landscape is changing rapidly.
Such students and researchers are an asset and contribution, and I welcome the agreement on the revised EU rules to facilitate that contribution even more.