Inspired by the famous American "green card" scheme, the European Commission is considering introducing its own "blue card" system to attract more qualified immigrants.
An impact assessment is currently being drawn up and will be ready "in the next two months or so" after which the Commission will draft detailed proposals, EU justice spokesman Friso Ascam Abbing said.
He admitted that EU member states hold differing opinions over legal migration but added that "everyone understands immigration will be part of the solution to the ageing population.
"We had better manage immigration properly as it is going to happen anyway," he said.
The "blue card" - taking its name from the EU flag, blue with gold stars - "would allow holders to move around the EU," EU Immigration Commissioner Franco Frattini said recently.
"Today if a multinational wants to move an engineer from a non-EU country from Rome to Brussels, they have to go through visa procedures, get a residency permit, a work permit," said Frattini, who plans to present a formal proposal on the matter in September.
The Commission, the EU's executive arm, hopes the scheme will aid member states as they seek to remain economically competitive as well as tackle the problems they face from aging populations.
The 27-nation European Union trails both the US and Canada, which have a "very active recruitment policy," an EU official said.
