minsk Plans New Taxes and Migrant Imports to Cover the Budget Deficit

lukashenko’s regime faces double pressure – a shortage of personnel and a growing budget deficit, which poses risks to belarus’ pension system.

Authorities of the rb are considering three main scenarios to resolve the problem: raising taxes and fees, mass recruitment of migrant workers, or cutting social spending. If the deficit becomes critical and there are not enough funds even to pay pensions, new tax initiatives will be the first step.

The situation is being exacerbated by demographic trends: the population is aging, the birth rate is declining, and the labor force is not being replenished. The outflow of labor was exacerbated by a wave of emigration after the 2020 repression, when tens of thousands of skilled professionals, from doctors to engineers, left the country. The most acute shortage is in blue-collar and technical professions.

lukashenko is currently trying to compensate for the labor shortage by agreeing to bring in migrants from Asian countries. According to minsk’s plans, hundreds of thousands of foreign workers are to be brought into the country.