Talent Exodus: India’s skilled professionals move overseas for better future

2.5 Million Indians migrating overseas annually

Politics

Society

February 4, 2025

/ By / New Delhi

Talent Exodus: India’s skilled professionals move overseas for better future

Limited job opportunities and a desire for a better life are driving people to seek greener pastures

According to reports citing the Ministry of External Affairs, around 2.5 million Indians, including skilled workers, migrate overseas each year. This has resulted in significant gaps in availability of skilled workers in various industries contributing to the ongoing issue of brain drain.

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On November 8, 2024, the much-awaited United States elections, which the world had been following with bated breath, were held and former President  Donald Trump, the Republican candidate, won with a surprisingly large margin over his Democratic Party rival the then Vice President Kamala Harris.

Soon after his victory, Trump began upping the ante on tackling illegal migration and minutes after his swearing-in ceremony on January 20, Trump signed a decree for termination of birthright citizenship, under the 14th Amendment. Under the executive order titled “Protecting the meaning and value of American citizenship,” the act emphasised, that children born in the country would no longer automatically qualify for citizenship unless at least one parent is a citizen of the United States or a lawful permanent resident, a green card holder.

This decision has sent shockwaves through the Indian diaspora settled in the country, especially among H-1B visa holders and their families. The panic is so intense that many couples in the US are opting for preterm C-sections to beat the birthright citizenship deadline, set for February 20.

However, the US is not the only country implementing tough measures to control migration. Other countries, such as the United Kingdom and Australia are also tightening their migration laws.

The UK has introduced a series of strict measures to curb rising migration. These include raising salary requirements for skilled worker visas, restricting dependent visas for students unless they are enrolled in postgraduate research or government-funded programs, and reducing the list of jobs eligible for lower salary thresholds.

Additionally, Australia has also announced measures similar to those of the UK to control record-level migration, such as increasing financial requirements for student visa applications, making language requirements for graduates and student visa holders more stringent, and implementing other policies to prevent students from extending their stays through various loopholes.

What drives ongoing migration from India?

But despite countries around the world tightening their immigration laws, India continues to witness a massive outflow of people.

According to the 2024 International Migration Report, published by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), India was a leading source of international students who moved to the top three OECD countries, like the United Kingdom, United States, and Canada, as of 2023.

As per the Ministry of External Affairs, around 216,219 Indians renounced their citizenship in 2023, a significant increase from 2019, when 144,017 Indians surrendered their citizenship.

These numbers highlight the growing trend among people, choosing to leave their home country and settle abroad with their families. Hence, effectively rooting out an entire generation!!

According to Aakriti Jalota, a mid-level associate at a tier 1 law firm in Delhi, some individuals go abroad for education and end up settling there, never returning to their home country.

“Many go abroad for education, get a job, and then settle permanently. For example, an IT professional on an F1 visa moves to an H-1B job, applies for a green card, and eventually renounces Indian citizenship,” Jalota tells Media India Group.

The reasons cited by people are countless, including a better quality of life, economic opportunities, and limited job prospects at home.

Pooja Dhupar, an early childhood teacher, who has been settled in Australia for nine years, cites better quality of life and higher-quality education as the main reasons for moving abroad.

“It is for the quality of lifestyle and high-quality education that I decided to move abroad,” Dhupar tells Media India Group.

Manu Chaddha, an architect who has lived in the United Kingdom for 25 years, cites limited job opportunities back home as the main reason she moved abroad, even though she never intended to leave.

“Better job opportunities abroad and the lack of high-paying jobs at home was what led me to leave India,” reveals Chaddha to Media India Group.

Further, Jalota also believes that taxation, social issues, and governance play a prime role in fueling huge emigration from the country.

“Many Indians also leave for better healthcare, education, and work-life balance. Some are frustrated with governance, taxation, or social issues, while investment programmes like Portugal’s Golden Visa make migration even easier,” adds Jalota.

However, some people are disillusioned with the state of the country and its infrastructure.

Pooja Babber, a teacher in the UK who moved there 17 years ago, has expressed her disappointment, noting that the country’s current state can lead some people to give up on it.

“Despite India’s impressive economic growth, we still lack enough resources for our large population, leaving millions in poverty and illiteracy. The growth has come at a heavy cost like the record pollution in Delhi is causing serious lung issues. These problems are so complex that many Indians may have decided to look abroad for better opportunities,” Babber tells Media India Group.

Meanwhile, a designer who completed his degree at a leading Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) and has been a lecturer at National Institute of Design (NID), one of India’s top design schools, shared anonymously that he plans to leave India for the US to satisfy his creative instincts. He emphasised that he was willing to move to another country, even if it means being treated as a second-class citizen, just to lead a better life.

“I went to IIT believing I would be successful, and I was told hard work would get me there. I committed to producing world-class work, no matter where I went. But once I started working, I realised India did not offer much scope for that. The ‘chalta-hain’ attitude, focus on scale over quality and service-led culture didn’t excite me. While I still want to create world-class work, quality of life is more important. I want clean air, stable electricity, clean water, and safety, things I cannot even get in Bengaluru, despite being upper-middle-class. So, I will gladly relocate to the US or Singapore, even as a second-class citizen, just to live a less stressful life,” he says.

High Migration’s Impact on India

This desire for a better quality of life and other factors is driving a significant shift, with more people choosing to migrate. As high migration continues to rise, it has substantial implications for India.

According to various news reports citing the Ministry of External Affairs reports, approximately 2.5 million Indians migrate overseas each year. In total, there are around 13.6 million Non-Resident Indians (NRIs), 18.68 million Persons of Indian Origin (PIOs), and nearly 32.3 million overseas citizens of India (OCIs), making India a key contributor to global migration.

Among them is a large number of skilled professionals, which has led to the depletion of valuable human capital in India. This has created a gap in key industries, particularly in technology, AI, and healthcare, ultimately impacting innovation. Despite receiving huge remittances from skilled Indian workers and benefiting from the positive image of its strong diaspora, the lack of skilled workers has slowed growth in the country.

For instance, according to a researchgate report, India faces a significant shortage of doctors, with a ratio of 1 doctor for every 1,700 patients, far below the WHO standard of 1:1,000. The country loses about 10,000 doctors annually to foreign hospitals, contributing to the ongoing brain drain.

To address this, India imports nurses from Bangladesh and relies on telemedicine services from Israel. This dependence on foreign talent has driven up healthcare costs and strained the quality and self-reliance of the sector. This condition reflects severe impact of brain drain which can have on a sector.

Hence, if country does not address the ongoing brain drain, it risks further undermining critical sectors. To mitigate this, India must focus on improving local opportunities, enhancing infrastructure, and implementing policies that promote self-reliance. By tackling these challenges, country can retain its talent, reduce dependency on external resources, and ensure sustained growth and development across key industries, securing a more prosperous future.

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