Why some skilled immigrants are leaving Germany | DW News

Germany has a huge problem its population is aging fast they're now around two workers for every pensioner the working population is shrinking as hundreds of thousands of baby boomers go into retirement Germany's federal employment agency says the country needs 400,000 skilled immigrants a year in Germany we need skilled Workforce we need additionally um skilled Workforce from abroad but whether immigrants f welcome is a whole other [Applause] [Music] question H so is Germany attractive enough for skilled immigrants in India when I used to work I was almost busy I had a lot of like say like

work from office so there was not enough time for me I can move to Netherlands and still keep the position I have I will be very close to Germany so uh whenever I'm needed in the headquarters it's just a couple of hours away now before we hear more from panach taiza and ozan here are the three top reasons why skilled workers move to Germany career opportunities they want to gain experience or get ahead number two safety and rounding out the top three The Good Health Care System Believe It or Not salaries are in fourth place

other reasons include its democracy good education system and clean air my name is chaponda and I've been living in Germany for the last 17 years so I'm curious about what other skilled immigrants make of this country I'm bankage from India uh I came here 2 and a half years ago with my family I work in IT industry and I'm planning to stay here longer and apply for the citizenship I'm I came to Germany 3 years ago from Turkey I work as a business developer now I'm planning to leave Germany three people three stories making it

in Germany isn't a walk in the park for one just finding a One-Stop shop to help you navigate the immigration rules is a challenge we struggle to find one right Marta yes it's very confusing German bureaucracy is a lot of paperwork and if you miss out on something uh let's say if you get late to your appointment even for 5 minutes you will miss that appointment it's quite you know Annoying to to get the things done you need to wait for 3 weeks or 4 weeks and you just have to wait you cannot do anything

you cannot simply you cannot do anything in that case so yeah you have to wait wow when I moved to Germany in 2007 I didn't have to wait too long many things seemed easier it was quite difficult to to get an apartment in the very beginning I came with my family so I was looking for an apartment which suits our family [Music] over half the people looking for a new home have been searching for more than a year and most of them say they can't find accommodation because what's an offer is just too expensive so

for panage it was a catch 22 you need to show proof that you have a registed address to be able to access government services and you can only get that from your property owner Airbnb Hotel don't count because they are considered commercial accommodations I was getting a lot of letters from the school because it is mandatory for a children who is more than 6-year-old to go to the school as I was not having a home so where could I send him so I was just trying to find out an apartment and I was not finding

an apartment and I was getting a letter from the school again and again Pan's employer rented an apartment for him but not everyone is so lucky I have my colleague uh she was trying to find an apartment she's a German but she could also not find the apartment so it's not like for Foreigner it's for everyone but for many foreigners the language barrier makes it even harder I don't find it very welcoming when you object or refuse to give service in any other language it's not only a language barrier but it's like an imposition like

they impose this to you and I I'm really having difficulty to understand this actually so much for Germany's so-called welcome culture will Commons go do you speak German to Italian colleagues or French colleagues the first thing I look when I'm buying a service is if they offer a foreign language with their services that's the first thing I look at it's not because I don't want to learn German people are expecting you to be at their level with their language and from day one to two suddenly you switch and you become one of them it's not

that simple [Music] [Music] but Germany desperately needs nurses around one in six healthcare workers isn't German and the need for them is Rising by the year if it weren't for its foreign workers Tia's Hospital would have to reduce its bed capacity by a third yeah when I came here it was quite shocking because in India we used to talk a lot even though in workplaces also we we chitchat a lot we talk a lot but in in Germany I noticed like the when they work they work so there is there is not much let's say

like people do not talk much so it was very difficult to you know to get into the system to get to talk to the people well Germans aren't known for small talk and I wouldn't recommend dropping in on anyone unannounced either [Music] when I first moved here of course my expectation was to make a big leap in my life I thought I would be more in the center but then I felt more outside actually so of course it leaves you a feeling of a dissatisfaction and frustration among 53 countries Germany ranks fifth from the bottom

when it comes to making friends my tip lower your expectations when it comes to making friends fast in Germany with the community here it was a lot easier they would show me things they would give me suggestions even during a small talk they would say yeah have you tried this one have you heard about this not necessarily I would prefer to connect with these people just because they could speak my uh mother tongue but I find it quite relaxing and refreshing actually finding a place in German society looks different for everyone and a lot has

to do with language yeah braan but sometimes TAA is made to feel like an outsider discrimination is a major problem statistics show that three out of five blacks and other people of color living in Germany have already experien racism here I should know and it makes Germany less attractive despite the fact that companies desperately need skilled workers after 1 and a half year I was looking for uh some uh senior kind of role as well so then I started looking for a change and I got an opportunity which is uh like permanent remote now at

the same time my wife needs to know the language first without knowing the language it's very difficult for her to get a role and to learn the language she needs to go in the morning like four or 5 hours classes I wanted to go forward with the language first and then I will pursue my uh it course from The Institute and then I will uh continue with the job in it field I can stay at home and work and can let's say drop the children in the morning to the kinder Garden out of the school

for me it's it's it's good yeah for years Germany has had a hot job market for it experts and panage was able to easily switch jobs because he has a blue card that's a special visa for highly skilled workers Engineers doctors nurses teachers scientists and it experts are among the professions with a severe labor shortage that qualify and it experts can get a blue card even without a University degree once a person has a blue card they can move easily to most EU countries as long as they have a job offer Europe needs workers with

the blue card the mobility is not a problem I will just transfer my blue card to Netherlands and plus they have some advantages too for uh I think they call us expats I'm planning to enjoy those uh additional um addition what additional offerings Germany was a good choice for the time being it is safe you are treated equal as long as you speak the language you have purchasing power you have the sense of security it's quiet it's orderly where I'm coming from it's quite chaotic I really needed this and sometimes when I'm back to Turkey

I find myself oh my God I missed home and by home I mean Haner [Music] TAA is turning a hobby into a side Hustle for end for me as from [Music] from and it's not just about support at the beginning immigrants need to understand how salaries are taxed a nurse will earn 3,433 on average and if they don't have children €17 goes to income tax and € 723 to Social Security the tax burden and Social Security reactions are high so their take-home pay will be € 2,293 and from that they'll need to cover rent groceries

and clothes and other expenses too this could be a reason why two out of five skilled immigrants in Germany are somewhat or very unhappy with their financial situation and yet Healthcare and education are practically free here that's largely thanks to the high taxes and Social Security deductions but other countries like the Netherlands have lower taxes for expat the reason why I'm choosing now Netherlands is that it's open for foreigners and not only rdam but all around Netherlands it really feels like it is more welcoming I just want to also underline that this is not open

to immigrants but when you have a privilege like a blue card or if you are a skilled employee it's easier for you to start a life in this kind of countries I know my privileges and I know these privileges are more beneficial here I'm even planning on buying a new [Music] apartment Germany has the lowest home ownership rate in the EU more than half of the people are renters because it is much harder to finance a home purchase entirely through a bank loan for the time being my plan is to stay in Rotterdam three out

of five single people who want to move to Germany plan to stay permanently for those with families it is three out of four maybe because education is free here my children at least I want them to you know complete the school here and the university [Music] here here Ina the keyword for Rotterdam is accessible the connectedness feeling is my biggest expectation here wait you don't have it so is Germany attractive enough for skilled immigrants well I'm applying for German citizenship but having gone through some of the challenges that oan taiza and panage have mentioned I

have a couple of suggestions for Germany one provide better support to Skilled immigrants during their first few years in the country two reduce bureaucracy simplify the paperwork like tax declarations for instance three reward skilled immigrants who choose to learn German no should feel like they're losing time or money when investing in the one language that would make their lives easier here so how attractive do you think Germany is for skilled immigrants we want to hear from you in the comments [Music]