Andric: 50,000 work permits issued to foreigners; Serbia suitable for IT nomads

Cedanka Andric, the president of the United Branch Trade Unions "Independence" (UGS Nezavisnost), told Kosovo Online that the number of foreign workers in Serbia is increasing year by year and that, in addition to manual laborers, there are also many highly qualified workers who bring their families with them.

"According to data from the Ministry of Labor, 50,000 work permits were issued last year, compared to 25,000 the previous year. So, that number has doubled. From what we have seen, the largest number of foreign workers who received permits were from Russia, around 20,000. Following them are Chinese workers – about 10,000, Turkish workers – around 5,000, and then workers from Bangladesh and India, which are smaller numbers, around 1,500 people each," she says.

The reasons why they chose Serbia vary.

"A number of them, for example from Russia, came because of the war in Ukraine – either to bypass Western sanctions for doing business or because they opposed the regime in Russia and decided to come here. Some are 'IT nomads' who can work from anywhere and evidently find Serbia suitable. On the other hand, Chinese workers exclusively work in Chinese companies, which have now expanded their businesses here. Turkish workers are engaged in some short-term projects. Among them are both highly qualified and manual laborers," she emphasizes.

When it comes to workers with lower qualifications, they are mainly people from India, Bangladesh, and Pakistan.

"They are mostly engaged in construction projects here, but there are more and more of them in services, in hospitality, so it is quite diverse," she explains.

When asked if Belgrade is expensive for foreign workers, she explains that it depends on the type of work they do.

"That Belgrade has become more expensive can be confirmed by domestic workers and all of us who live in Belgrade. It all depends on how you came. Are you an engineer in a factory with a good salary who can afford an expensive apartment in Belgrade or are you a construction worker and then housed in some collective center, often in inadequate conditions. So, it all depends on how qualified you are and how serious the company you came with is," Andric says.

The duration of foreign workers' stay in Serbia also depends on their qualifications and earnings.

"Foreigners who work in better-paid, more qualified jobs often bring their families, their children attend school here, and they can afford Belgrade, which is getting more expensive not year by year but month by month," explains the president of UGS Nezavisnost.

On the other hand, workers with low wages cannot afford an apartment in Belgrade and live in collective accommodation and stay for much shorter periods.

"They work for three or six months, then the next shift comes and they rotate, unlike those in factories that are opening or engineers who come. They stay for four or five years and bring family members. So it all depends on their financial status and their position here," Andric says.