Friday, Dec 9, 2022
At Bali: UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi
New Delhi: India’s External Affairs Minister and Germany’s Annalena Baerbock signed an agreement on Comprehensive Migration and Mobility Partnership (CMMP).
This Partnership will help, every year, Indian students get 3,000 job-seeker Visas and 18 Months Extended Residence Permits.
Indians will also be able to get liberalized short stay multiple entry visas and streamlined readmission procedures.
BACKGROUND: The German Skilled Immigration Act 2020 has enhanced the opportunities for workers from non-European-Union countries.
Through a new law set to be adopted in early 2023, the German government proposes to facilitate the immigration of qualified workers from abroad.
The Ministry of External Affairs said that the Indo-German CMMP is a part of its overall efforts to create a ‘network of agreements’ with prospective ‘labour market destination Countries’ with the objectives of creation of favourable visa regime for Indians so that they may be able to access the labour market of these countries.
As a part of this policy of having a ‘network of agreements’, on Wednesday, 16th November 2022, at Bali, Indonesia, at a BILATERAL MEETING between the Prime Ministers of India and UK, the British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak offered a new Youth Mobility Partnership (YMP)scheme for 18-30-year-old degree-educated Indians every year to live and work in the UK for up to two years. This YMP offers 3,000 visas to India’s young persons. It is a reciprocal program between the two countries.
While offering this Scheme, Rishi Sunak said,” “I am pleased that even more of India’s brightest young people will now have the opportunity to experience all that life in the UK has to offer and vice-versa – making our economies and societies richer.”
Some observers have said that the offer of the YMP scheme is a part of UK’s efforts to finalize a Free Trade Agreement with India at an early date.
On Saturday, 17th September 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin presented the facility of a visa-free entry to Indians as a birth-day gift to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Earlier on 16th September, President Putin had sought a visa-free travel deal between India and Russia, during a Bilateral meeting between President Putin and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on the sidelines of the annual summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO)
Earlier on Tuesday, 13th September 2022, Alina Arutyunova, deputy chairman of Moscow metropolis tourism committee, in Mumbai said Russia might possibly introduce a visa-free regime for Indian tourist groups.
Later, on 20th September 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed to develop visa-free travel for short-term visits and transit by foreign tourists from BRICS countries, reported the Kremlin website.