Germany is ready to lower barriers to skilled workers from abroad to fill a gaping labor shortage in Europe's largest economy.

According to a strategy document reviewed by Bloomberg, Chancellor Olaf Scholz's office is to approve measures to allow non-European Union citizens who have signed a contract with a local employer to start work immediately. Their professional qualifications will be recognized later.

The government also wants to make it easier for young immigrants to get vocational training or education in Germany. The plan calls for a transparent, non-bureaucratic scoring system for candidates interested in finding work in Germany, similar to long-standing programs in countries such as Canada.

Economy Minister Robert Habeck will present the new strategy after a cabinet meeting Wednesday along with the interior, labor and education ministers.

It will be the most liberal immigration law in Europe, Habeck said. He warned that Germany faces a shortage not just of skilled labor but of workers in general, adding that the nation has overlooked the problem in recent years.