Italy to expand legal migration, granting 500,000 work visas to non-EU workers

Italy plans to grant approximately 500,000 work visas to non-EU nationals between 2026 and 2028, as announced in a cabinet statement. The initiative aims to address labor shortages by expanding legal immigration pathways

A total of 164,850 people will be admitted next year, with the goal of reaching a cumulative 497,550 new entries by 2028.

It is the second such move Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has made since she took office nearly three years ago as the head of a right-wing coalition. The government had already decided to issue more than 450,000 permits to migrants between 2023 and 2025.

While easing legal entry for foreign workers, Prime Minister Meloni has maintained a tough stance on irregular migration, accelerating deportations and limiting the activities of humanitarian organizations in the Mediterranean.

"The quotas were determined taking into account the needs expressed by the social partners and the actual applications for work permits submitted in previous years, with the aim of a programme that responds to the needs of businesses and is also realistic," the statement said.

An ageing population and a sagging birthrate highlight the need to attract foreign workers in the euro zone's third largest economy. There were some 281,000 more deaths than births in 2024 and the population fell by 37,000 to 58.93 million, continuing a decade-long trend.

Italy is already the country with the highest share of old people in Europe. At the same time, the very low number of new births means that, despite an always-increasing life expectancy, the Italian population is declining.

The birth rate in Italy has constantly dropped in the last years. In 2023, 6.4 children were born per 1,000 inhabitants, three babies less than in 2002. Consequently, the population in Italy has aged over the last decade. Between 2002 and 2024, the age distribution of the Italian population showed a growing share of people aged 65 years and older. As a result, the share of young people decreased.

Statista's projections suggest that by 2050, Italy could have five million fewer inhabitants.

Similarly, the population in Europe is estimated to decrease in the coming years. In 2024, there were 740 million people living in Europe. In 2100, the figure is expected to drop to 586 million inhabitants. 

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