Number of Kosovars leaving for EU increases – EURACTIV.com

In December 2021, over 56,000 Kosovo citizens applied for a visa in Germany with more than 60,00 applying in Croatia and thousands in Slovenia and other European countries.

The number of those applying to leave the country appears to be on the increase. The German embassy in Pristina said it runs a computer-generated lottery to select those who get an application deadline within the next month.

“Each month is given proportionally, so that at the end of the year, the total of at most 5500 visas is reached, in terms of those that can be issued for this category,” the embassy said.

Jeton Mehmeti, director of research at the GAP Institute, said Kosovo citizens’ applications to Germany account for 30% of all Western Balkan applications.

“The five sectors with the highest risk of leaving the workforce are IT, gastronomy, engineering and healthcare,” he said.

Reasons for leaving include low wages, poor living conditions and lack of opportunities.