Over 1.1 million labor migrants have returned to Uzbekistan
Since the beginning of 2026, 1.116 million citizens have returned to the country. By the end of the year, it is planned to provide jobs for 250 thousand of them.
More than 1.1 million labor migrants have returned to Uzbekistan
Since the beginning of 2026, 1.116 million citizens who were previously in labor migration have returned to Uzbekistan from abroad. By the end of the year, the authorities plan to match 250 thousand of them with jobs. These issues were discussed on November 2 at a meeting chaired by President Shavkat Mirziyoyev. This was reported by Sherzod Asadov, the press secretary for the head of state.
Among those who returned are specialists who gained professional experience in Germany, the United Kingdom, South Korea, Japan, and Russia. They were employed in industry, construction, logistics, the service sector, and agriculture.
The head of state emphasized that citizens who worked at major foreign enterprises have mastered modern technologies and new methods of production organization. Their knowledge and skills could be in demand at enterprises in Uzbekistan.
In this regard, khokims and heads of sectoral agencies were instructed to select suitable vacancies for the returned migrants and to assist in applying their professional experience to the country's economy.
For more effective employment, it is planned to launch a special information platform. It will gather information about citizens' previous workplaces abroad, acquired professions, qualifications, and length of work experience.
The platform is expected to be integrated with the information system used by khokims and sector leaders. This will allow the professional profile of each citizen to be taken into account when selecting suitable vacancies at local enterprises.
A separate instruction concerns citizens interested in starting their own business. Advisory support and the creation of conditions for the development of entrepreneurial activity are provided for them.
At the same time, the report by the president's press secretary does not provide information on how many of the 1.116 million returned migrants have already found work and how many still remain in search of employment.
Earlier, in late September, Minister of Employment and Poverty Reduction Botir Zakhidov reported to the Legislative Chamber of the Oliy Majlis that 661 thousand labor migrants had returned to the country in the first half of 2026. According to his data, 557 thousand of them were engaged in income-generating activities.
The minister also spoke about plans to ensure the employment of another 70 thousand returned citizens, taking their wishes into account. However, the figure of 557 thousand covers various types of income-generating activities and does not mean that all of these citizens obtained permanent jobs under employment contracts.