The Admission of Foreign Workers to Italy: Closing the “Gap” with Northern Europe

Abstract

AbstractA common perspective in migration studies is that of a North-South divide in European labour migration governance, with Southern European countries exhibiting a distinct – and generally less efficient – approach to the admission of migrants. Southern European states are known for their use of quotas, regularisations and the lack of emphasis on attracting highly skilled labour immigrants from outside of the European Union (EU). This chapter explores Italian labour immigration policy to assess whether its admission policy and practice has traditionally diverged from the Northern European approach and, if this has been the case, whether it has remained dissimilar since the disruption of the international financial crisis of 2008. I find similarities and differences between the Italian regime and labour immigration regimes in Northern Europe between the late 1990s and 2008. While the regulatory instruments (apart from general numerical limits on labour immigration) were like those used in Northern Europe, the Italian system was more open to permanent low and medium skilled labour immigration from outside the EU and had a more significant gap between its façade (laws) and practice than its neighbours in the North. The similarities with Northern European regimes have increased since 2008, as the system has become more selective, emphasising seasonal and occupational/sectoral permits, along with a stronger reliance on free movement and non-economic forms of immigration.