Tengrinews.kz – More than 15,000 foreign nationals from various countries are officially working in Kazakhstan, according to the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection of the Population.
How many foreigners work in Kazakhstan?
As of September 1, 15,054 foreign citizens are officially employed in Kazakhstan.
Categories of foreign labor
Among them:
- 561 – Executives and their deputies (Category 1);
- 2,348 – Heads of departments (Category 2);
- 3,980 – Specialists (Category 3);
- 1,054 – Skilled workers (Category 4).
Additionally, 3,099 are employed in seasonal work, 4,015 are involved under intra-corporate transfers.
Which sectors do foreigners work in?
The highest number of foreign workers is employed in the following sectors:
- Construction – 4,929 people;
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing – 3,140 people;
- Mining and quarrying – 1,240 people;
- Manufacturing – 1,122 people.
Countries of origin
According to the ministry, most foreign workers come from:
- China – 5,545 people;
- Uzbekistan – 2,696 people;
- Turkey – 1,076 people;
- India – 1,052 people.
Quotas for hiring foreign workers
To protect the domestic labor market, the Ministry of Labor sets annual quotas for attracting foreign labor.
In 2025, the quota was set at 0.2% of the workforce, equal to 14,800 positions. In March, it was increased to 16,500 based on regional requests.
As of August, after expanding the list of seasonal professions, the quota rose to 0.25%, or 19,400 positions.
There are currently 1,909 employers in Kazakhstan officially working with foreign labor. Importantly, Kazakh citizens make up 96% of the total workforce in these organizations — over 341,000 employees.