Fourth Coordination Meeting on Labour Migration Management in BiH

The fourth Coordination Meeting on Labour Migration Management in Bosnia and Herzegovina was held on 18 September 2026 in Sarajevo.

The meeting was jointly organised by the Ministry of Security of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Ministry of Civil Affairs of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Employers' Association of the Federation of BiH, the Union of Employers of Republika Srpska and the Labour and Employment Agency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with the support of the International Organization for Migration (IOM).

The meeting was focused on further developing a functional and efficient inter-institutional coordination mechanism aimed at enhancing procedures for the employment of foreign workers and more efficient labour migration management in BiH.

In this context, discussions addressed labour market needs and the efficiency of existing measures related to the issuance of work permits, as well as further strengthening of institutional coordination.  A draft decision on establishing a working group for coordination of labour migration management was also presented as a step towards formalising the cooperation among relevant institutions.

Special focus was on improving information exchange and digital processes.

The results of the project “Facilitating Labour Mobility in Bosnia and Herzegovina through Improved Information Sharing “, as well as the methodologies for the assessment of institutional digitalisation and interoperability in the field of labour migration were presented. Participants were also introduced to the methodology for developing the Study on Practices in the Employment of Foreign Workers in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

A part of the meeting was dedicated to activities undertaken following the third coordination meeting, the progress achieved and next steps in the process of improving the labour migration management framework in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Continued dialogue and cooperation among institutions, employers and international partners remain critical to developing more efficient procedures and responses to labour market needs in BiH.