Estonia Considers Increasing Foreign Labour Quota to Deal With Staff Shortages

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Estonian Employers Confederation is asking to increase the country’s immigration quota due to the country’s labour shortages.
• Estonia is facing a shortage of workers in several fields, particularly IT, transportation, construction and education.
• Between December 2023 and February 2024, foreigners submitted over 1,000 residence permits under the immigration quota.

According to the Estonian Employers Confederation, Estonia has been facing a shortage of IT specialists for years, and now the labour shortage has exceeded other sectors, including drivers, construction workers, and education personnel.

Considering these shortages, Estonian employers have urged the authorities to increase the foreign labour quota by three or four times.

Estonia’s immigration quota, established in 1990 for third-country nationals, stands at 0.1 per cent of the population, equating to about 1,300 individuals yearly, as reported by the Estonian Public Broadcasting, ERR.

The chairman of the Estonian Employers Confederation, Arto Aas, considers Estonia to have some of the strictest immigration rules in Europe. Henceforth, the confederation suggests increasing the quota several times, if not removing it.

Estonia’s ageing population and low birth rate mean that our labour pool is shrinking by thousands of people every year. It will be impossible to even keep the current level of prosperity without involving foreign labour, not to mention rapid growth.

Arto Aas, Chairman of the Estonian Employers Confederation

As ERR explains, the Estonian Minister of Economic Affairs, Tiit Risalo, expressed openness to discuss the country’s foreign labour quota while noting they are looking for an optimal solution to address the shortage of workers.

Whether it will be liberating the quota or other measures, such as sectoral exemptions or putting together a list of trusted employers for whom more liberal rules could be put in place.

Tiit Riisalo, the Estonian Minister of Economic Affairs

He further mentioned that a working group was formed to address labour-related issues.

On the other hand, the Estonian Minister of Interior, Lauri Läänemets, thinks the quota doesn’t need changing, but exemptions and a review of actual rules could be considered.

Having union representatives present can help avoid Estonia bringing in foreign labour that might jeopardise local jobs and levels of income. On the other hand, employers could tell us exactly where the need for labour is more acute.

Lauri Läänemets, Minister of the Interior

Last December, the European Union Parliament and Council agreed on the revised Single-Permit Directive, establishing a unified application process for a combined EU work and residence permit. This implies that nationals of third countries will soon be able to obtain a single EU work and residence permit.