Quota for Hiring Foreign Labour in 2021 Has Been Established

By Order of the Minister of Labour and Social Protection of the Population of the Republic of Kazakhstan, a quota has been established for the attraction of foreign labour for employment in the territory of Kazakhstan for the year 2021.

Below is a brief overview of the purpose, rules and size of the quotas set for the current year.

A quota for attracting foreign labour is the maximum allowable number of foreign workers that an employer may hire for employment in Kazakhstan, introduced to protect the domestic labour market.

Rules exist governing the establishment of quotas for foreign labour and their distribution among regions (the “Rules”).

The Rules were developed in accordance with the Laws of the Republic of Kazakhstan dated 6 April 2016 “On Employment of the Population” and 22 July 2011 “On Population Migration.” They define the procedure for establishing the quota for foreign labour in Kazakhstan and distributing it among regions, cities of national significance and the capital.

The quota for attracting foreign labour is determined as a percentage of the total labour force and includes:

1. A quota for foreign labour based on work permits issued by the local executive authorities to employers;

2. A quota for foreign labour from countries of origin where Kazakhstan has ratified international treaties on cooperation in labour migration and social protection of migrant workers;

3. A quota for labour immigrants.

The quota is formulated and set by the authorised body for employment issues, taking into account forecasts of supply and demand in the labour market for the upcoming year, as well as proposals from authorised state bodies responsible for relevant areas of public administration, local executive authorities and employers.

In accordance with Paragraph 1 of Article 32 of the Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan dated 6 April 2016 “On Employment of the Population” and Subparagraph 4) of Article 11 of the Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan dated 22 July 2011 “On Population Migration,” the quota for attracting foreign labour for employment in Kazakhstan for 2021 has been established as a percentage of the labour force as follows:

1. *0.31% – under work permits issued to employers by local executive authorities;

2. *2.7%* – for attracting labour immigrants.

For comparison, the quota for foreign labour in the previous year was:

1. *0.32%* – by types of economic activity in total;

2. *3.9%* – for attracting labour immigrants.

The Order was registered in the State Register of Normative Legal Acts of Kazakhstan on 5 January 2021 under No. 22030 and entered into force.

References:

1. Order of the Minister of Labour and Social Protection of the Population of the Republic of Kazakhstan “On Establishing the Quota for Attracting Foreign Labour for Employment in the Territory of the Republic of Kazakhstan for 2021” dated 31 December 2020 No. 560.

2. Resolution of the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan “On Approval of the Rules for Establishing the Quota for Attracting Foreign Labour to the Republic of Kazakhstan and Its Distribution Among the Regions of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Determining Persons Who Do Not Require a Permit from Local Executive Authorities to Attract Foreign Labour, and Invalidating Certain Decisions of the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan” dated 15 December 2016 No. 802.

3. Paragraph 4 of Article 32 of the Law “On Employment of the Population” of the Republic of Kazakhstan dated 6 April 2016 No. 482-V ZRK.