The topic of attracting foreign labor was discussed on May 26, 2025, during the talk show “Budni” on the SB TV YouTube channel. Alexey Avdonin, an analyst with the Belarusian Institute for Strategic Research, explained how Belarus’s approach to foreign workers differs from that of Europe.
“When we talk about migrants, we don’t have the kind of rigid separation you see in the European Union, where they bring in refugees and migrants and mostly push them into low-skilled jobs. On the contrary, we’re interested in bringing in as many specialists, engineers, and designers as possible. We’re a country with a strong scientific, technological, and industrial base, and we want to attract scientific and highly skilled migrants. We have everything in place to make that possible,” Avdonin said.
The official list of jobs for which Belarus allows simplified employment of foreign workers—bypassing the usual restrictions meant to protect the local labor market—includes about 40 blue-collar occupations and 18 for skilled professionals. The first group covers roles like seamstresses, tractor drivers, dairy workers, orderlies, and turners—none of which require a college degree. The second group includes doctors, engineers, agronomists, and other positions that require a diploma.
According to Interior Ministry reports for 2024, 19,000 foreigners worked in these jobs, with 98% holding blue-collar positions. Most foreign workers were employed as drivers, cooks, and plasterers. Only about 450 foreigners—around 2%—held positions meant for skilled professionals.
So, while Belarus claims it wants to attract educated and highly qualified migrants, in reality, most are doing less skilled work.
For comparison, about a third of migrants living in the European Union have a college degree, according to Eurostat. Medical professionals are especially in demand. For example, in Norway, Ireland, and Switzerland, up to 40% of doctors have foreign medical degrees; in the United Kingdom and Sweden, it’s one in three.
The EU offers the Blue Card—a residence permit designed specifically to attract skilled workers. The number of Blue Cards issued has been rising in recent years. The majority of Blue Card recipients are from India, Russia, Turkey, and Belarus. In 2023, Belarusians received 5,000 of the 90,000 Blue Cards issued. Most people with these permits head to Germany, France, or Poland for work.