The EU plans to improve skills recognition, while EMPASS highlights the need to validate employability skills across borders.

A New Step Toward Skills Portability

The European Union is moving closer to making skills more portable across borders. On 15 September 2026, the European Commission proposed the Skills Portability Act. It is a regulation designed to make qualifications digital, easier to compare, and simpler to recognize across EU member states.

The proposal forms part of the Fair Labour Mobility Package and must still be approved by the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union before it can become law.

Why Formal Qualifications Aren’t Enough

While the proposed legislation focuses on formal qualifications, many experts believe it overlooks employability skills. That young people develop through education, volunteering, internships, and real-world experiences.

Skills such as communication, teamwork, adaptability, critical thinking, and resilience play a vital role in today’s workforce. Yet these abilities often remain absent from traditional diplomas and CVs. It makes them difficult for employers—particularly those in other countries—to evaluate.

The Numbers Behind the Skills Gap

Recent European data highlights the challenge.

According to the European Commission’s 2023 Flash Eurobarometer, 74% of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) reported labor shortages affecting at least one job role.

Meanwhile, Eurostat reported that in 2024, only 56.4% of Europeans aged 15–34 with medium or high educational attainment believed their education closely matched the requirements of their current or most recent job.

In addition, 11% of Europeans aged 15–29 were classified as NEET (not in employment, education, or training) in 2025. These figures suggest that qualifications alone do not always reflect the practical skills employers are looking for.

EMPASS Brings Employability Skills into Focus

To help bridge this gap, JA Europe is leading EMPASS (Employment Skills Pass), an Erasmus+ Forward-Looking Project co-funded by the European Union.

EMPASS brings together education providers, industry partners, and Junior Achievement organizations to create a recognized employability micro-credential that validates 11 essential workplace skills, including communication, teamwork, resilience, and critical thinking.

The project originally aimed to pilot the program with 1,500 students across Greece, Romania, and Spain. According to the latest monitoring data, more than 2,700 young people have already earned an EmPass certificate.

Growing Beyond the Pilot Programme

The EMPASS methodology is already expanding beyond its initial pilot countries. It has informed employability initiatives in Ukraine and Lithuania and has also been incorporated into the Global Alliance for Youth mentoring program.

This broader adoption demonstrates that employability micro-credentials can support different education systems and workforce development programs while maintaining a common framework for recognizing practical skills.

Supporting, Not Replacing, Degrees

Supporters of EMPASS emphasize that micro-credentials are not intended to replace university degrees or vocational qualifications. Instead, they complement formal education by providing verified evidence of practical workplace skills that employers can understand and trust.

What Comes Next?

As the Skills Portability Act moves through the EU legislative process, policymakers will consider how employability skills can become part of Europe’s broader skills recognition framework.

These discussions will continue during “From Skills to Opportunity,” a JA Europe forum taking place in Brussels on 14 October 2026. The event will bring together policymakers, employers, educators, and youth organizations. That includes the representatives from the European Commission, the World Employment Confederation, and the European Vocational Training Association.

Supporters believe the Skills Portability Act presents an opportunity to recognize not only formal qualifications but also the practical capabilities people gain through education, volunteering, work experience, and lifelong learning.

As Europe continues to build a more mobile workforce, ensuring that employability skills are recognized across the borders. So that it could help more young people access education, jobs, and career opportunities throughout the European Union.

Original Sources

• EUobserver—Europe’s skills passport is missing a page; EMPASS wants to add it (13 October 2026)
• European Commission—Skills Portability Act (Fair Labour Mobility Package)
• European Commission Flash Eurobarometer (2023)—SME labor shortages
• Eurostat (2024) — Education-to-job matching statistics
• JA Europe – EMPASS (Employment Skills Pass) — Erasmus+ Forward-Looking Project (Project No. 101132916)