The State Migration Service of Ukraine refutes information about an uncontrolled influx of foreign migrants into the country, emphasizing that interest in employment in Ukraine is primarily growing among citizens of Asian and Caucasian countries.
This is reported by Finway
Geography of labor migrants: leaders and trends
The head of the SMS, Natalia Naumenko, explained that the demand for work in Ukraine among citizens of Russia and Belarus is noticeably decreasing. At the same time, there is a significant increase in the number of labor migrants from South and Southeast Asia, the Caucasus, as well as Latin American countries, including Colombia and Brazil.
In 2025, the most temporary residence permits for employment were issued to citizens of three countries:
- Turkey — 1,408 permits;
- India — 946 permits;
- Uzbekistan — 936 permits.
The top ten also included Azerbaijan (605), Bangladesh (600), China (516), Pakistan (374), Colombia (335), the United Kingdom (311), and the USA (248).
According to the SMS, in 2025, a total of 6,279 work permits were issued to citizens of these ten countries, accounting for 64% of all documents processed in the year. Thus, the total number of permits issued to foreigners did not exceed 10,000.
Employment sectors and reasons for entry denials
Migrants from different regions occupy various segments of the labor market. Europeans and Americans typically work in business, while citizens of Asian countries are employed in construction, manufacturing, and services.
“The state conducts a thorough filtering of candidates, and the overall denial rate averages 5-7%”.
The main reasons for entry denials remain violations of legislation, particularly the submission of forged documents (most often concerning citizens of India and Bangladesh), unverified purpose of travel, lack of qualifications, or having criminal records. All these factors are carefully checked before issuing a permit.
The responsibility for ensuring labor and social guarantees for foreign workers lies with employers. They are required to provide hired workers with housing and a social package, and violations of these requirements may be regarded as human trafficking, which carries criminal liability.
Previously, the government reported that it does not intend to attract labor migrants to Ukraine on a large scale.