Standardise documentation for advancing international mobility of skilled workers: Niti

Niti Aayog recommends institutionalising contract and transparency measures to advance international mobility for skilled Indian workers through streamlined visa application processes.

The government should institutionalise contract and transparency measures, and facilitate group visa submissions through bilateral channels to advance international mobility for skilled Indian workers, Niti Aayog has said.

The think tank also suggested standardising documentation and pre-verification systems.

The Aayog, in a working paper titled 'States Framework: Advancing International Mobility for Skilled Workers', further said that the government should establish liaison arrangements with destination-country embassies to support standardised visa application processing of Indian skilled workers.

The paper also called for providing structured support for form submission, appointment scheduling, biometric requirements, and document compilation.

It also recommended that the government ensure that all employment contracts are reviewed, registered, and verified prior to visa processing.

The government should also provide structured support for form submission, appointment scheduling, biometric requirements, and document compilation, the paper recommended.

Citing data, the paper pointed out that India's demographic advantage will peak in 2030, marking the point at which the demographic dividend is at its maximum potential.

''Beyond this, the curve begins a downward slope, indicating the gradual ageing of the population over the long term, which leaves a time-bound window in which India holds its largest labour force surplus,'' it said.

International migrants now constitute a substantial and indispensable component of the labour supply worldwide. According to the latest ILO estimates, in 2022, the global stock of international migrants was 284.5 million, of whom 255.7 million were of working age (15 +).

Of these, 167.7 million migrants formed part of the global labour force, of which 155.6 million were employed, while 12.1 million were unemployed but available for work. Overall, migrants accounted for 4.7 per cent of the global labour force in 2022.

The paper noted that evidence from the PRAYAS International Migration and Mobility Mapping Report (2026) indicates that access to formal skilling pathways for overseas employment remains uneven across regions and worker categories.

According to the paper, for low- and semi-skilled workers, informal social.

networks such as relatives and friends abroad often serve as the first source of information, while 33 per cent of aspiring workers depend on private recruitment agencies for job placement, visa processing, and pre-departure orientation, highlighting persistent gaps in accessible and formal training ecosystems.

For those aspiring to get skilled to take up work abroad, the paper said comprehensive training, including language proficiency, cultural orientation, and pre-departure preparedness, ensures a smooth transition and alignment with destination country requirements.

''Such an approach ensures that international mobility emerges as an outcome of strong skill ecosystems, rather than a parallel or informal pathway, thereby promoting both worker welfare and national economic gains,'' it said.

The PRAYAS International Migration and Mobility Mapping Report (2026) indicates that migration decisions among India's skilled and semi-skilled workers continue to be strongly wage-driven, with income differentials between India and destination countries acting as the principal pull factor, while poverty, debt, and job scarcity serve as push factors.

The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region remains the traditional destination, sustained by long-standing labour networks and steady demand for low- and semi-skilled labour.

However, the report also observed a gradual diversification of aspirations, with workers increasingly drawn to developed economies, such as Australia, Canada, Germany, and Japan, attracted by safer environments, long-term career prospects, and structured skill-development pathways.

New destinations, including Israel, Italy, the Netherlands, and Poland, are also emerging due to active labour recruitment in construction, care, and manufacturing sectors.