RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Over the past 2 years, driven by a new economic crisis and restrictions due to the pandemic, the number of Argentines looking to move to Uruguay grew again until reaching 40% of the total number of foreigners applying for a job in the country in 2021.
According to Advice, a consulting firm that keeps a record of foreigners’ applications since 2010, Argentina was the only country with an increase in applications during the health emergency.
Despite being often overqualified for the jobs they look for, foreigners face significant obstacles to enter the market. This is despite the fact that their academic level is higher than the Uruguayan average.
Studies conducted by the Universidad de la República, Uruguay’s public university, found that the impact of immigrants on the economy is quite low and they do not compete with Uruguayans for jobs.
There are a total of 46,442 foreigners working in Uruguay, according to the Social Insurance Bank’s latest data. That means that 3% of employees in the country are foreigners.
The main nationalities are Argentines (35%), Venezuelans (18%), Cubans (11%), Brazilians (10%) and Peruvians (4%).
In September 2020, La Diaria reported that there were some 1,000 Argentines on the waiting list at the Buenos Aires Consulate to initiate legal residency formalities. At that time, La Nación newspaper reported that Immigration had registered some 80,000 entries of Argentines between March and late August 2020.
In addition to the economic crisis and the new restrictions on capital movements, many Argentines were also tempted to cross the River Plate because of Uruguay’s much more flexible approach to the pandemic restrictions and its faster and more efficient vaccination plan.
However, Argentines also have a place among foreigners detained in Uruguayan prisons. According to La Diaria, there are almost 14,000 people incarcerated in the country. Of this number, 2.5% are foreigners, 69% of whom Argentines and Brazilians.
VENEZUELA AND BRAZIL
After the death of Hugo Chávez in 2013, the migration of Venezuelans to Uruguay increased exponentially. With Nicolás Maduro at the helm of the Bolivarian regime, the political, economic and social crisis pushed many to emigrate to countries such as Uruguay, known for its stability.
Until 2015, it was the country sending the most citizens to Uruguay. As of 2019, with travel restrictions due to the pandemic, the numbers began to drop. In 2021, 40% of job applications in Uruguay concern Venezuelan nationals, placing it on par with Argentina, according to Advice.
For its part, Brazil maintained stable numbers in terms of applications, with a 12% peak in 2018. After the election of Jair Bolsonaro and the pandemic, Brazil accounts for 10% of job applications in Uruguay.