Rising Migration to Australia Poses Challenges for Bhutan’s Workforce and Services

The World Bank, in partnership with the Centre for Bhutan Studies, GNH Research, and the National Statistics Bureau of Bhutan, has unveiled a compelling study that places Bhutan at the center of a migration surge reshaping its society and economy. Once known for its cautious development model, the country is now witnessing an exodus of its brightest and most ambitious citizens. Australia has become the favored destination, drawing Bhutanese students, workers, and even civil servants in record numbers. The data is stark: while monthly departures from Paro International Airport averaged fewer than 500 before the pandemic, they exceeded 5,000 in early 2023. By 2024, the Bhutanese population in Australia had more than doubled compared to 2020, rising above 25,000, with universities there enrolling more than 13,400 Bhutanese students in the first nine months of the year alone.

Who Is Leaving and Why It Matters

The migrants are not a cross-section of society but rather a highly concentrated group of young, skilled, and educated citizens. More than half hold university degrees, compared to just 7 percent of Bhutan’s overall working-age population. Strikingly, nearly half were formerly employed in the civil service, with teachers and health workers especially prominent among them. In 2024, almost 70 percent of voluntary resignations in the public sector came from these two fields, raising fears of a brain drain that could weaken core social services. Migrants are typically slightly older and better educated than aspiring migrants still at home, who tend to be younger, male, unmarried, and more likely to be unemployed or underemployed. Their departure signals not only the lure of opportunities abroad but also the frustrations and limitations of Bhutan’s domestic labor market.

Australia’s Magnetic Pull

Education has become the gateway to migration, and Australia’s universities stand as the primary magnet. Nearly two-thirds of aspiring migrants cite study opportunities as their top motivation. The appeal rests not only in the quality and diversity of academic programs but also in visa policies that allow dependents to work unlimited hours, making migration financially sustainable for families. Tuition costs, while significant, are still considered manageable, especially when paired with the possibility of part-time work. Adding to this is the growing Bhutanese diaspora in Australian cities, particularly Perth, which provides community networks and emotional support for newcomers. Historical ties have further strengthened the pull: generations of Bhutanese civil servants and professionals have trained in Australia, creating institutional bonds that continue to influence decisions today.

Economics, however, is the decisive factor. Income differences between Bhutan and Australia are staggering. Whereas most migrants earned less than Nu 40,000 a month before leaving, in Australia, many now surpass Nu 200,000. Women also benefit from narrower gender pay gaps compared to Bhutan. Yet the report notes an uncomfortable paradox: while migrants leave skilled positions at home, six in ten find themselves in low-skilled roles such as caregiving and cleaning abroad. This occupational downgrading, though often a temporary stepping stone while pursuing degrees, raises questions about the long-term benefits to Bhutan of losing skilled professionals to jobs that do not fully utilize their expertise.

Push Factors at Home

If Australia offers the pull, Bhutan’s challenges supply the push. Job creation has not kept pace with rising expectations, wages remain modest, and career paths are limited. The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated these structural weaknesses, pushing unemployment to 6 percent by 2022, with urban women and educated youth hardest hit. Dissatisfaction within the civil service is particularly severe, with complaints of stagnant pay, high workloads, bureaucratic hurdles, and inadequate working conditions driving resignations. Teachers and health professionals, already overstretched, are leaving in alarming numbers. Among aspiring migrants, frustrations are visible even earlier in life: half report that Bhutan lacks opportunities to study in their chosen fields, while many feel their qualifications are mismatched with available jobs.

The Uncertain Road Ahead

The key question haunting policymakers is whether migrants will ever return. While 64 percent of migrants and nearly 80 percent of aspiring migrants say they would consider coming back if conditions improved, the wage thresholds they expect, so-called reservation wages, are far higher than Bhutan can realistically provide. Many want at least triple their current Bhutanese incomes, while a quarter of those abroad insist they would only return if salaries matched Australian levels. Nonetheless, ties to home remain strong. Most migrants leave families behind and regularly send remittances, which have become a vital lifeline for Bhutan’s economy. Transfers from Australia surged from under USD 2 million in August 2023 to nearly USD 20 million just four months later, stabilizing at around USD 12 million a month by late 2024. These inflows help reduce poverty, particularly in rural communities, and cushion the impact of migration on those left behind.

The report’s authors stress that migration is not an anomaly but part of a broader global trend in developing countries. The challenge is not to stop it but to manage it wisely. They urge reforms to diversify Bhutan’s economy beyond hydropower, foster high-quality jobs, and revamp civil service careers to retain skilled workers. At the same time, Bhutan should reduce the costs of migration by expanding training and certification programs, negotiating labor agreements, and pursuing Global Skills Partnerships to prepare workers for both domestic and overseas markets. Finally, policymakers must find ways to harness migration’s benefits by lowering remittance costs, engaging the diaspora more strategically, and ensuring that returnees can reintegrate smoothly, with foreign qualifications properly recognized.

In the end, Bhutan’s migration surge reflects both the aspirations of its youth and the limitations of its economy. The question is not whether people will continue to leave, they will, but whether Bhutan can transform this exodus into an engine of growth rather than a source of decline. If it can, the country may yet turn brain drain into brain circulation, making migration not a threat but a vital force in its journey toward sustainable development.