Čadež: It's a Revolution - The Open Balkan Labor Market is Open!

The single labor market of the Open Balkan Initiative, whose members are Serbia, Albania, and North Macedonia, starts tomorrow, March 1st when all citizens will be able to get a job in any of the countries of this initiative following the simplest procedure. One of the first to receive an Open Balkan ID, an electronic Certificate that enables him to work in any Open Balkan country, is the president of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia( CCIS), Marko Čadež.

“As of March 1st, this year, citizens of Serbia, Albania, and North Macedonia will FINALLY be able to live and work in any of the three countries on their own.  In this region of ours where the first rule of public administration is "IT IS IMPOSSIBLE", March 1st marks the start of the revolution. 
Exactly three years and three months ago, the leaders of the countries of the Open Balkan Initiative decided and signed a visionary decision on the establishment of free access to the labor market in the Western Balkans. "For three years and three months, the leaders and a few hard-working people from the administrations convinced their "IT CAN'T BE DONE'' colleagues presenting logical arguments," said Čadež.

He states that until just three years ago, we were not interested in those people in Albania or North Macedonia who were doing the same work as us, trying to make the lives of their citizens better and of higher quality.
"Until just three years ago, we believed that if we wanted it to be better for us, it must be worse for them." We got to know each other for three years and realized that we had the same problems. That our children are happy or sad in the same way. We were taught that the solution to a problem is only one WhatsApp/Viber message away, one 'How are you today and what's new'. And here we are, we finally can-  НАПОКОН МОЖЕМО - MË NË FUND MUNDET - КОНЕЧНО МОЖЕМЕ ", says the president of the CCIS and the first worker of the free market of the Open Balkan.

The advantages of the free movement of workers in the region, without any administrative barriers, are multiple, starting from the possibility of performing seasonal jobs, through the reduction of deficit occupations and the strengthening of investor confidence to the growth of key sectors of the economy.

Free access to the labor market of around 11 million inhabitants is expected to prevent further brain drain and youth from the region by offering employment opportunities, but also to respond to the increasing demands for quality personnel, both of local and international companies operating in the region.

Citizens of Serbia, Albania, and North Macedonia, who want to get a job in one of the Open Balkan countries or have already found an employer, need to have an ID number for which they can register electronically in a few steps. This implies that they fill out a form on the platform (e- Administration) and attach a valid biometric document. Based on the submitted data, the domicile competent authorities generate a unique Open Balkan identification number (IDOB) through the e-E-administration platform.

After that, the interested party can access the eGovernment portal of the destination country and submit a request for free access to the labor market. The destination country makes the final decision after verification. After receiving the approval, the interested party can be employed, under the same conditions as a local citizen of the country, for up to two years, and after the expiration of this period, the period of stay can be extended, i.e. work permits.