Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2024, published 113rd ILC session (2025)

Migration for Employment Convention (Revised), 1949 (No. 97) - North Macedonia (Ratification: 1991)

Article 1 of the Convention. Information on national policies, laws and regulations. The Committee notes that the Government, in its report, indicates that it: (1) adopted the Law on Employment and Work of Foreigners of 2015, establishing the conditions for issuing work permits, the types of work permits, including the conditions for seasonal work and cross-border service provided by foreign companies through posted workers; (2) amended the Law on Foreigners in 2015, regulating visa requirements and the conditions for temporary or permanent residence of foreigners; and (3) adopted the Resolution on Migration Policy 2021–2025 (the Migration Policy). The Committee notes, however, that the Government refers in a very general manner to the existing legislation without providing specific information on how current trends in migration flows have affected the contents and implementation of its national immigration and emigration policy and legislation. The Committee therefore recalls that, under Article 1 of the Convention, ratifying States undertake to make available on request information on national policies, laws and regulations relating to emigration and immigration; on special provisions concerning migration for employment and the conditions of work and livelihood of migrants for employment as well as general agreements and special arrangements concluded on these questions. The Committee therefore requests the Government to: (i) indicate for each of the Articles of the Convention and questions set out in the report form, the relevant provisions of the legislation, as well as any other policy measures taken or envisaged, taking into account current trends in international migration; (ii) provide information on the working and living conditions of male and female migrant workers; and (iii) to provide a summary of the relevant legal provisions, in one of the official languages of the ILO.

General agreements and special arrangements. The Committee notes that under section 3 of the Law on Foreigners 2015, the Law shall apply to all foreigners, unless otherwise determined by law or by ratified international agreement. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on: (i) any bilateral agreement concluded on the matters covered by the Convention, and if possible, to provide a summary of their main provisions and objectives (in any of the ILO official languages); (ii) their practical application; and (iii) the estimated number of workers covered by these agreements.

Articles 2 and 4.Adequate and free services and measures to facilitate the migration process. The Committee takes due note of the Government’s indication that the four migration service Centres which operate in the country provide services, free of charge, for citizens seeking to migrate to other countries and for foreigners in the country or seeking to immigrate to the country. The Government further indicates that the Centres provide the following services: (1) information about the possibilities for legal migration, the conditions of legal migration, the positive sides/benefits of it, the dangers and risks of illegal migration; (2) information on the types of migration (work, study, family reunification), the procedures for qualification recognition, the visa regime, the living and working conditions in other countries, the competent institutions for regulating stay, employment, migrant rights and their support, reintegration programmes; and (3) assistance in using websites related to migration procedures and opportunities, information on the possibility of working and studying in Republic of North Macedonia. The Committee also notes that, among the priorities of the Migration Policy 2021–2025, are: (1) the necessity to ensure access to legal migration by, amongst other means, providing secure, flexible and cost-effective access to services for migrants; and (2) the improvement of quality of consular services provided to Macedonian citizens working and residing abroad. The Committee requests the Government to: (i) provide specific and detailed information on the measures taken by the migration service Centres, including within the framework of the Migration Policy, to facilitate the departure, arrival and reintegration of migrant workers; (ii) provide information on the measures taken to improve the quality of consular services provided to Macedonians outside the country; and (iii) indicate the number of nationals and foreign migrant workers benefiting from these services.

Article 3. Misleading propaganda. The Committee notes that one of the basic principles of the Migration Policy 2021–2025 is to ensure access to ‘legal’ migration by, among others, gathering reliable and timely information on migration flows and disseminating relevant information on migration policies and procedures so that migrants can make decisions based on relevant information. Noting the absence of information provided by the Government, the Committee once again asks it to: (i) indicate whether laws or regulations permit steps to be taken against misleading propaganda relating to emigration and immigration and whether any measures has been taken to cooperate with other governments in this regard; and (ii) provide information on any specific programmes aimed at informing the public about migration movements and preventing negative attitudes towards migrants, including within the framework of the Migration Policy 2021–2025.

Article 4. Measures to facilitate the departure, journey and arrival of migrant workers. Bilateral agreements. The Committee notes that supporting temporary circular migration (migration in which people repeatedly move back and forth between two or more countries) and facilitating the return of migrants is a priority of the Migration Policy 2021–2025. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the measures taken, within the framework of the Migration Policy, to facilitate the return of migrant workers.With reference to its previous comment, the Committee also once again requests the Government to provide information on any bilateral agreements on seasonal workers (workers whose work is dependent on seasonal conditions and is performed only during part of the year) or posted workers (employees sent by their employer to carry out a specific task in another country on a temporary basis) which envisage arrangements to facilitate the departure, arrival and reintegration of migrant workers and to indicate the number of workers covered by these bilateral agreements.

Article 6. Equality of treatment. The Committee notes that: (1) section 4(6) of the new Law on Employment and Work of Foreigners prohibits the employer, when employing a foreigner, including a candidate for employment, to apply unequal treatment based on race, gender, religious belief and national origin, as well as on a range of other grounds; and (2) pursuant to section 133 of the Law on Foreigners, as amended, holders of a permanent residence permit shall enjoy the same rights as those of citizens, including, among others, social protection and trade union rights. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the Commission for Prevention and Protection against Discrimination (CPPD) has reported that complaints based on the discrimination of migrant workers exist. However, the Government does not provide further information on the number and nature of the complaints and their outcomes. The Committee once again asks the Government to provide detailed information on: (i) the application in practice of the provisions prohibiting discrimination against migrant workers to both permanent and temporary migrant workers, including posted workers (sections 4 and 14(1) of the Law on the Prevention and Protection against, section 4(6) of the Law on Employment and Work of Foreigners and section 133 of the Law on Foreigners); (ii) any reported cases of discrimination handled by the labour inspection services, the department of labour or the courts, indicating the penalties imposed and remedies granted; and (iii) the measures taken to ensure that, in practice, no less favourable treatment is applied to these workers than that applied to nationals with respect to the matters covered in Article 6(1)(a) of the Convention, including remuneration, conditions of work, accommodation and trade union membership.

Article 6(1)(b). Social security.The Committee once again requests the Government to provide information indicating the relevant legislative and administrative measures that have been taken to ensure that immigrants receive treatment no less favourable than that applied to nationals with respect to social security in accordance with Article 6(1)(b) of the Convention.

Article 7. Public employment service. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the Employment Service Agency (ESA) collaborates with other national and international employment services, through its membership in the World Association of Public Employment Services (WAPES) and the Centre for Public Employment Services of the South-East European Countries (CPESSEC). The Government adds that the ESA has also concluded bilateral agreements with the public employment Services of Hungary, Montenegro and Türkiye. With regard to persons in employment, and more specifically to seasonal workers, the Government states that the ESA provides assistance and information related to the situation on the labour market and vacancies, as well as on issues of registration and deregistration from compulsory social security, and any other information related to its work. The Committee takes note of this information, which addresses its previous requests.

Article 8. Maintenance of residence in case of incapacity for work. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that: (1) during the reporting period, 168 persons have obtained the status of permanent stay on the basis of employment; (2) pursuant to sections 88 and 91 of the Law on Foreigners, there is no legal basis for revoking the right to permanent stay, thereby signifying that injury or illness cannot lead to the loss of permanent residency; and (3) more specifically, with reference to section 88(1)(5), a foreigner who has obtained permanent residence status is entitled to social protection. The Committee welcomes the clarification provided by the Government, which addresses its previous requests.

Article 9. Earnings and savings. The Committee notes, from the Migration Policy 2021–2025, the data regarding the amounts of personal net transfers (remittances from workers) for 2015 to 2020. The Committee notes however that the Government did not reply to its previous requests for information on whether its law or regulations have fixed limits to the transfer of earnings of a migrant worker. Once again, the Committee requests the Government to indicate the limits within which the transfer of the earnings and savings of a migrant for employment is permitted by national laws and regulations and any special arrangements which may exist for the purpose.

Article 11. Frontier workers and short-term entry. The Committee notes the absence of information provided by the Government on this point. It notes that, pursuant to section 2(9) of the Law on Foreigners, the term “short-term stay” means a duration of no more than 90 days in any 180-day period, unless stated otherwise in the Law or in an international agreement. However, this definition relates to all foreigners entering the country and not specifically to the short-term entry of members of the liberal professions and artists for the purpose of work. The Committee therefore requests the Government to indicate if the new Law on Employment and Work of Foreigners defines the longest period which is regarded as constituting “short-term entry” within the meaning of Article 11(2)(b), in a similar manner than section 2(9) of the Law on Foreigners. Recalling that the legislation does not contain any definition of “frontier workers”, the Committee also once again invites the Governmentto specify, by amending its legislation, which categories of migrant workers would be regarded as “frontier workers” and thus excluded from the protection of the Convention.

Labour inspection and application of the Convention in practice. The Committee notes the Government’s reiterated indication that the Labour Inspectorate shall communicate reports on a regular basis concerning instituted proceedings and imposed penalties, and that the ESA is obliged to keep records on infringements committed by and penalties imposed on employers and foreigners. The Committee further notes the Government’s explanation that the ESA is not competent to provide information on court decisions. In that regard, the Committee wishes to stress that the Government should liaise with all relevant governmental agency and authority to compile the requested information. Noting that the Government did not reply to its previous requests, the Committee once again requests it to provide information on: (i) the concrete activities of the Labour Inspectorate to monitor the relevant legislation, including statistical data on the number of infringements found and penalties imposed, and their outcome for both the employer and the worker; and (ii) whether courts or other tribunals have adopted decisions involving questions of principle relating to the application of the Convention.

Statistics. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that: for 2012, 2,569 work permits were issued, out of which 1,498 were new permits; in 2013, 2,824 work permits were issued, out of which 1,756 were new permits; in 2014, 3,504 work permits were issued, out of which 2,195 were new permits; and, in 2015, 3,523 work permits were issued, out of which 2,103 were new permits. The Committee notes that the information provided by the Government specifies the sectors of activity in which foreign workers are mainly engaged (i.e.: cooking, sales, electrical technician, economist, etc.), their level of professional qualification and well as their country of origin. The Committee further notes, from the Migration Policy 2021-2025, that: (1) 2,104 Macedonian citizens went abroad in the period 2015–2019; (2) the most common destinations for Macedonian citizens in European countries of reception are Austria, Germany, Italy, Slovenia and Switzerland; (3) with regards to overseas emigration countries, Australia, Canada and the United States of America are among the preferred host countries, but the number of Macedonian citizens in Qatar and the United Arab Emirates is increasing; (4) the total number of Macedonian citizens residing in countries of reception around the world in the last decade has seen a continuous increase: 527,075 (2010), 562,907 (2015), 658,264 (2019) and 693,900 persons (2020), their share in European Union countries is 35.3 per cent (2010), 38.4 per cent (2015) and 37.5 per cent (2019); (5) the Republic of North Macedonia is in the group of top twenty countries in the world with the largest emigration abroad; and (6) the annual quota for work permits cannot exceed 5 per cent of the population of the Republic of North Macedonia that is legally employed, according to the data of the State Statistical Office. The Committee welcomes the Government’s information and requests it to continue to provide relevant statistics, disaggregated by sex, nationality and sector of activity of the migrants entering the territory for employment under the different work permits and on nationals migrating for employment to other countries. The Committee also once again asks the Government to communicate statistics regarding the implementation of the quota regime for third-country nationals.

Annexes I–III. The Committee once again requests the Government to provide detailed information on the applicable laws and policies applying the provisions in Annexes I–III of the Convention.