New EU Blue Card Rules Adopted

At a Glance

Cyprus has recently adopted the EU Blue Card Directive. This offers the following benefits for non-EU nationals seeking to work within the European Union, among other benefits:

professional experience eligibility pathways;
a simplified pathway to long-term residence and citizenship; and
an increased validity period.

These reforms are part of Cyprus adhering to the requirements of the EU Blue Card Directive.

The situation

Cyprus has passed more relaxed EU Blue Card rules to align with the 2021 EU Blue Card Directive.

A closer look

Key changes include the below:

CHANGE	IMPACT
Relaxed eligibility pathways: Job offer. Applicants must have a valid job offer or an employment contract for a highly skilled position the minimum duration of which must be six months. Educational qualifications. Applicants must hold a university degree obtained after at least three years of study, or with at least three years of relevant professional experience within the last seven years in the information and communication technology sector. Previously, professional experience was not accepted in this field to qualify for an EU Blue Card.	Employers can now hire highly skilled talent from a wider pool of applicants. This is particularly pertinent given labor shortages in Cyprus.
Simplified pathway to residence and citizenship. Holders of the EU Blue Card benefit from a streamlined process for obtaining long-term residence and citizenship. Proficiency in the local language and contributions to a pension fund enable applicants to seek permanent residence after 33 months under an EU Blue Card, with eligibility for citizenship after five years (as compared to seven previously).	Residence and citizenship offer benefits such as relaxed immigration requirements within Cyprus and across the European Union.
Validity period. EU Blue Cards will be valid for at least 24 months, up from one year.	This change, which will ensure EU Blue Card holders can remain in Cyprus for a longer period of time, will reduce talent management challenges for employers.

CHANGE

IMPACT

Relaxed eligibility pathways:

Job offer. Applicants must have a valid job offer or an employment contract for a highly skilled position the minimum duration of which must be six months.
Educational qualifications. Applicants must hold a university degree obtained after at least three years of study, or with at least three years of relevant professional experience within the last seven years in the information and communication technology sector. Previously, professional experience was not accepted in this field to qualify for an EU Blue Card.

Employers can now hire highly skilled talent from a wider pool of applicants. This is particularly pertinent given labor shortages in Cyprus.

Simplified pathway to residence and citizenship. Holders of the EU Blue Card benefit from a streamlined process for obtaining long-term residence and citizenship.

Proficiency in the local language and contributions to a pension fund enable applicants to seek permanent residence after 33 months under an EU Blue Card, with eligibility for citizenship after five years (as compared to seven previously).

Residence and citizenship offer benefits such as relaxed immigration requirements within Cyprus and across the European Union.

Validity period. EU Blue Cards will be valid for at least 24 months, up from one year.

This change, which will ensure EU Blue Card holders can remain in Cyprus for a longer period of time, will reduce talent management challenges for employers.

Background

Benefits of the EU Blue Card. The EU Blue Card is a work and residence permit for highly-skilled professionals from non-EU countries that simplifies the immigration process and allows travel within the European Union as tourists. It allows holders to move to another EU Member State for work after 12 months of residence in one EU Member State. EU Blue Card holders enjoy the same working conditions, educational and training opportunities, social security benefits, and access to services as citizens of the host country.

History of adoption of EU Blue Card Directive. In 2021, the European Union issued a directive seeking to update the existing EU Blue Card scheme (which dated back to 2009). The EU Blue Card scheme has sought to establish an attractive EU-wide immigration option for highly skilled professionals. However, the 2009 iteration has suffered from fragmented and inconsistent transposition at the national levels, with many EU Member States offering more attractive skilled-labor immigration pathways under their own national, non-EU Blue Card systems.

Looking ahead

Domestic implementation schedule. Though the related legislation was approved on July 11, 2024, authorities are in a transition phase in terms of issuance of the cards and practical application of the rules. It may take some time for authorities to start issuing EU Blue Cards.
Implementation in other EU countries. The deadline for national transposition of the revised EU Blue Card Directive was November 18, 2023, with many EU Member States domestically implementing the Directive after this deadline. Additionally, several EU Member States have not yet domestically implemented the Directive. It is expected that further instances of domestic implementation will occur across 2024. We will report on related developments.

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