BiH can employ 1,570 foreign workers, excluding seasonal workers

(Patria) - The Council of Ministers of BiH approved the annual quota of work permits for the extension and new employment of foreigners in Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2019, and this quota amounts to 1,570 work permits, of which 880 work permits are allocated to the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, 600 work permits to Republika Srpska, and 90 work permits to Brčko District of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Thus, the number of work permits that can be issued for the extension of already issued work permits is 975 work permits, of which 535 work permits are for the Federation of BiH, 400 work permits for Republika Srpska, and 40 work permits for Brčko District.

The number of work permits that can be issued for new employment of foreigners in Bosnia and Herzegovina is 595 work permits, of which 345 work permits are for the Federation of BiH, 200 work permits for Republika Srpska, and 50 work permits for Brčko District.

"This number does not include permits that can be issued for seasonal employment in Bosnia and Herzegovina."

The largest number of new work permits for foreigners in BiH can be issued in the manufacturing industry, with slightly fewer in other sectors, such as education, healthcare, and public administration.

For example, 132 new work permits for foreigners can be issued in the manufacturing industry in BiH, while five can be issued in the field of education and 16 new work permits in the field of healthcare.

The Employment and Immigration Service of BiH points out that work permits are most often sought by citizens of Serbia, Turkey, Croatia, China, Italy, Kuwait, Montenegro, Saudi Arabia..."

According to data from the Employment and Immigration Service of BiH, 9,093 work permits were issued to foreigners in BiH in the last four years, including seasonal permits, while 1,407 permits were issued to foreign nationals for work in BiH in the first six months of 2018.

For comparison, the Croatian government approved quotas for 21,200 seasonal workers from abroad at the beginning of 2018.