20% drop in Italians working abroad in 2025, says Minister Calderone

The number of Italians who went abroad to work fell by 20% in 2025.

"A reversal of trend", says Labor Minister Marina Calderone who recalls the latest employment figures in Cernobbio and responds to the data presented by research by the Teha Group with Philip Morris Italia. The study indicates that 141 thousand Italian citizens have transferred their residence abroad in 2024, often with a degree (45%), for a cost in terms of lower growth worth around 11 billion.

"The numbers released today must be read in light of the latest ISTAT data, which show a picture that is already in motion: in 2025 the number of Italians moving abroad will be reduced by over 20%, a reversal of direction that is taking place as the country reaches the historic milestone of 24.3 million employed people, over 1,300,000 more workers since the beginning of the mandate", specifies the minister who underlines the ministry's commitment "with concrete and already operational tools, on every lever that you want to recall in terms of the attractiveness of human capital". The most relevant data - he adds - "however, remains the composition of employment growth: for every less fixed-term contract we have almost 3 more permanent ones. We are talking about over 16 million workers who had stable contracts in July, the true guarantee of certainty for families and trust in the Italian system".

The research presented in Cernobbio calculated that in the last ten years the country has lost over 300 thousand qualified citizens. A hemorrhage that also has a price: dispersed public training is worth 7.2 billion a year, a figure that rises to 10.7-11.4 billion if we consider the potential added value not generated. Among the main causes, indicated by the companies involved in the survey, low salaries compared to the cost of living (82.1%), mistrust in institutions (46.4%) and poor professional opportunities (35.7%) stand out. 93.9% of companies judge the phenomenon to be problematic or very problematic, and for one in two the impact on the business is already significant.

Without structural interventions, the study warns, the inertial scenario to 2035 would lead to a cumulative loss of around 760 thousand graduates, with a failure to recover over 120 billion in training investment and up to 307 billion in potential GDP. To reverse the trend, the research proposes a national roadmap along five lines: business incentives for more competitive wages and stable employment; an Italy Talent Visa to simplify the entry of international professionals; a closer link between universities, research and businesses; measures for the territorial settlement of talents, including families; a more favorable ecosystem for startups and deep tech. By applying these policies, according to simulations, Italy could recover up to 119 thousand graduates by 2035, with a positive impact of up to 11.1 billion additional annual GDP.