Migrants from Central Asia have become interested in the West

  May 14, 2025   Posted in Uzbekistan

The number of labor migrants from Central Asian countries to Russia has decreased significantly. The main reason is the tightening of the migration policy of the Russian Federation, which may lead to a decrease in the flow of migrant workers. This worries Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, where the volume of remittances from migrants is a significant share of GDP. More and more citizens of these countries are looking for work in the UK, South Korea, the Gulf states and the EU.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM), based on data from the World Bank, reports that, despite the reduction in the migration flow, the inflow of remittances to Central Asian countries remains stable and even shows an increasing trend. 

For example, in Tajikistan, the volume of money transfers in 2024 amounted to $5.8 billion, which is 27% more than in 2023 and accounts for 45% of the republic’s GDP. Russia remains the main destination country for Tajik migrants, but transfers also come from Kazakhstan, South Korea, the United States and several other countries, according to the IOM report.

According to the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs, as of August 2024, more than 1.2 million Tajik migrants lived in the country. For comparison, 6,339 Tajik citizens found jobs in South Korea in 2024, which is almost 40% higher than in 2023.

At the same time, control over illegal migration is increasing in other countries. In particular, 77 Tajik citizens were deported from the United States, and the EU ordered 725 citizens to leave their territory.

A similar situation is observed with Uzbek citizens working abroad. The Uzbek authorities have already warned their citizens that all costs of deporting migrants who have violated laws abroad will now be reimbursed at the expense of the citizens themselves. In addition, violators will be banned from leaving Uzbekistan for a period of one year. They will be blacklisted and will not be able to participate in international employment programs, especially in developed countries, said Alisher Sadikov, an immigration lawyer and expert at the Center for the Study of Regional Threats (Tashkent). Earlier, the United States deported 131 people to Tashkent – citizens of Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan who violated the visa regime. The flight was fully funded by the Uzbek side, and it was precisely such cases that, according to experts, prompted the authorities to reconsider their approach to migration costs. The resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Uzbekistan also notes that from September 1, Uzbek citizens who were deported due to violations of migration rules will not be able to issue a passport for two years. Despite the new rules, income to the state budget from migrant workers is significant: in 2024, the volume of remittances to the country reached a record $ 14.8 billion, which is 13% of GDP. Russia remains the main source of remittances with 11.5 billion dollars, followed by Kazakhstan, the United States, South Korea and Turkey.

However, the attempts of the Uzbek authorities to diversify the directions of external labor migration have not brought much success so far. Apart from Russia, the only significant foreign labor market is South Korea, where the employment quota for Uzbek citizens was increased to 100,000 last year, and their number reached 89.7 thousand. Another 59.7 thousand Uzbek citizens received residence permits in Turkey last year. In 2023, 4.1 thousand entry permits were issued by Britain and 31.8 thousand by the EU, with only 9.4 thousand of them intended for work.

In Kyrgyzstan, by the end of 2024, the total volume of money transfers from individuals reached $2.9 billion, which is an increase from $2.7 billion in 2023. The main receipts came from Russia, where 379,000 Kyrgyz citizens were registered for migration. For comparison, in 2020, the number of Kyrgyz migrants was 680 thousand people.

Bakyt Darmankul uulu, Deputy Minister of Labor, Social Security and Migration, reported on the employment opportunities of migrants who returned from Russia. According to him, it is possible to travel to 29 countries through the Center for the Employment of Citizens Abroad, and the most popular destination is the United Kingdom. “They mostly go there for seasonal work. The receiving party requires employees to perform their duties for a certain period of time, and then return to their homeland. England has provided 40,000 quotas for foreigners, of which 10,000 are intended for Kyrgyz citizens,” said Darmankul uulu. He also added that 2.5 thousand Kyrgyz have already left for the UK this year, and another 3 thousand citizens are expected to leave at the second stage. “In addition, Kyrgyzstanis have the opportunity to work on cruise ships through the Employment Center,” the official concluded.

Igor Shestakov, head of the Oi Ordo Center for Expert Initiatives, member of the Migration Council under the Speaker of the Parliament of the Kyrgyz Republic (KR), states that Central Asian countries have not yet been able to diversify labor migration, so it is important to find a solution to high unemployment within the region. “Russia remains a key labor market, and it is necessary to use this advantage effectively,” Shestakov told NG. However, according to the expert, after the adoption of the new migration legislation in Russia, the set of preferences for the countries of the Eurasian Economic Union, which was adopted back in 2015, is not taken into account. “It is necessary to discuss this situation at the level of the heads of the EAEU states, since Russia’s soft power is not loans and grants, but labor migration,” Shestakov believes. According to him, it is necessary to separate citizens of the EAEU and other Central Asian countries, as is done, for example, in the European Union. “The migration issue is an irritating factor for the perception of the EAEU as an integration union,” the expert believes. He clarified that, for example, one law declares the freedom of movement of labor within the EAEU, while the other negates this. It is necessary to put in order the legislation of the EAEU countries and the legal provisions of the Union. “Russia’s national legislation dominates the legal provisions of the EAEU. As a result, it seems that Russia does not need labor migrants from Central Asian countries,” concluded Shestakov.

Migration expert Asilbek Egemberdiev told NG that Russia’s fight against illegal migration from Central Asian countries is ineffective, destroys relations between partners and weakens Russian influence in the region. “The current migration policy harms all parties. The lack of clear rules for legalizing foreign workers drives migrants to a dead end,” the expert believes.

Egemberdiev believes that the introduction of a “work visa”, despite the complexity, is the only civilized way to solve the problem. This will ensure transparency and respect for the rights of migrants, including setting the length of stay, the legal responsibility of the receiving party and compliance with social norms. A “work visa” for a period of six months to two years with the possibility of extension will help to resolve many pressing issues. Although this may cause discontent in Central Asian countries, it is a necessary step to establish civilized migration relations, the expert stressed.

“The decree of the President of Russia on the regime of expulsion of foreign citizens, which entered into force on May 1, 2025 (for Kyrgyzstan – from September 10, 2025), threatens the deportation of tens of thousands of migrants from Central Asia. There are about 70,000 illegal migrants from Kyrgyzstan, 200,000 from Tajikistan and more than 500,000 from Uzbekistan in Russia. The situation is aggravated by the fact that more than 100,000 citizens in Kyrgyzstan are already unable to travel abroad. Together with 70,000 illegal immigrants in Russia, this creates a serious problem for Bishkek,” Egemberdiev believes.