The Union Cabinet, which consists of senior ministers chosen by the Prime Minister, has given retrospective (ex-post facto) approval for India to officially sign and ratify the Migration and Mobility Agreement with Italy.
This agreement, initially signed on November 2 by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, will allow Indian students to be granted temporary residence in Italy for up to one year after completing their studies, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.
This agreement aims to strengthen people-to-people connections and promote mobility between India and Italy among students, skilled workers, business professionals, and young talents.
The move will further reinforce the existing Italian visa framework, introducing mechanisms for post-study opportunities, internships, and professional training. This positions India at an advantage within the current labour mobility pathways under Italy’s Flows Decree.
For Indian students seeking to gain professional experience after their academic or vocational training in Italy, the agreement grants them temporary residence in the country for up to 12 months.
Italy, reciprocally, has outlined specific provisions for professional training and internships, providing a platform for Indian students and trainees to meet the Italian skill and training standards.
Additionally, the agreement distributes quotas for non-seasonal and seasonal Indian workers, for the years 2023, 2024 and 2025, allocating around 5,000, 6,000, and 7,000, as well as 3,000, 4,000, and 5,000 workers, respectively, as the current Flows Decree regulates. This provision creates new opportunities for Indian workers to contribute to the Italian workforce as well as gain valuable international experience.
Beyond student and worker mobility, the agreement regulates joint efforts to advance mobility pathways through agreements on Youth Mobility. It also addresses the facilitation of recruitment of Indian skilled workers in the healthcare and medical services sectors. The agreement also includes the joint efforts of the two nations in combating irregular migration.
To ensure effective implementation, the agreement establishes a joint working group which further aims to monitor and oversee the execution of the agreement, increasing transparency and accountability to this initiative between India and Italy.
According to the Ministry of External Affairs’ data on the Indian population in Italy, there are 157,695 non-resident Indians (NRIs) and 45,357 persons of Indian origin (PIO) in the country. In general, it is estimated that the Indian population in Italy was ten times smaller two decades ago. Improved conditions and new opportunities have caused the Indian population to pick Italy as their destination.