Albania is experiencing a significant increase in emigrants returning to the country, but their integration into the labor market remains a serious challenge. The latest data from the 2024 National Migration Survey, conducted by INSTAT in cooperation with the World Bank, show that the return of emigrants has accelerated especially after 2015, with a peak in recent years.
But when did the Albanian emigrants return?
According to the report, 45% of returning emigrants returned in the period 2020-2024, while returns in the periods before 2010 are significantly lower. This trend is related to economic crises in host countries, the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as legal and employment uncertainties abroad.
The reasons for return are mainly negative from an economic point of view. The most common reason is related to family, followed by the loss of a job or the inability to find work in the host country. Another part are returns after the end of seasonal contracts, while a smaller group mentions that they returned after achieving financial objectives. According to the data, only about 6% of returned emigrants declare that they returned because they had earned and saved enough.
This shows that most returns do not occur due to improved conditions in Albania, but as a result of difficulties outside of it.
Only about half of returnees are employed, and integration into the labor market is particularly difficult during the first year after return. The report highlights that returnees are initially less employed than the non-emigrant population, but this gap narrows over the years.
Men have higher employment rates, while women often remain outside the labor market or gravitate towards informal self-employment. In many cases, skills acquired abroad do not match the demands of the Albanian market.
