Russia attempts to fill the shortage of medical workers by specialists from other countries

Russian media reports say the Minister of Labor of the Russian Federation plans to include medical workers on the list of specialists who can obtain Russia citizenship following simplified procedure. 

Russian medical facilities now need 25,000 physicians and 130,000 nurses, according to amic.ru.  

Medical workers alongside teachers, tractor operators, veterinary surgeons, engineers, mechanics, and many other specialties (totaling 135 specialties) will be put on the list of specialists who can obtain Russian citizenship following simplified procedure.  

The Russian Ministry of Health says the Labor Ministry’s draft order will promote attraction of medical workers from among former compatriots having a proper qualification. 

Many Russia experts consider that at this stage it is almost the only solution to the problem of shortage of medical workers in the country.  

According to them, specialists from the former Soviet republics in terms of their knowledge are not inferior to the Russian medical workers.  

Recall, the new simplified procedure for obtaining Russian citizenship came into force for select categories of foreign nationals on March 29, 2019.  

According to the amendments, the Russian President can determine on humanitarian grounds categories of foreign nationals who can obtain citizenship status through the simplified procedure.

The amendments also provide for a simplified procedure for foreigners who participate in the State program for facilitating the voluntary resettlement in the Russian Federation of ethnic Russians living abroad.