Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2025, published 114th ILC session (2026)

Migration for Employment Convention (Revised), 1949 (No. 97) - Uruguay (Ratification: 1954)

Article 1(a) and (c) of the Convention. Information on national policies, laws and regulations, general agreements and special arrangements. The Committee notes the legislative reforms implemented by the Government, in particular: Decree No. 118/2018 of 24 April 2018, which facilitates the regularization of migrants in situations of vulnerability; Decree No. 356/2018 of 29 October 2018, which diversifies the types of visas for the regular entry of migrants; and Decree No. 138/2024 of 15 May 2024, which creates the “Residence programme for established residents” for the regularization of migrants based on criteria of settled employment, family ties and training. The Government also indicates in its report that Migration Act No. 18250 was amended by Act No. 20075 (2022) and Act No. 20212 (2023), which centralize residence procedures in the National Directorate for Migration (DNM) and add a three-year period for migrants who have been administratively expelled to be able to re-enter the country. The Committee also notes various measures adopted to address the challenges of implementing the Migration Act, through the strengthening of institutions and the enactment of the “National integration plan 2023–24”, aimed at the comprehensive improvement of coordination of national public policies. The Committee further notes that the Government has reported on the signing of new visa-waiver migration agreements with Montenegro, Mongolia and Qatar, in addition to “work and vacation” programmes with the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Japan and the United Kingdom. The Committee requests the Government to continue providing information on the implementation and impact of the measures adopted, including the challenges encountered and the responses provided to overcome them. Duly noting the information on the agreements concluded, the Committee encourages the Government to continue communicating new information on any additional agreements that have been concluded.

Articles 2–4 and 7. Services and assistance for migrant workers. The Government provides information on the creation of: (1) the Department for Migrants at the Ministry of Social Development, whose mission is to provide direct assistance to the migrant population on matters such as the regularization of documentation and available services; (2) the Migrant Reference Centre, which provides information and referrals in relation to all government procedures and services; and (3) a web portal which centralizes information on procedures and services for migrants in areas such as documentation, employment and health. Furthermore, although the Committee notes that the Migration Unit does not have official information on the employment performance of migrant workers, it welcomes the various activities carried out, such as job orientation workshops and informative talks on labour rights aimed at migrants. The Committee also notes that the “National integration plan 2023–24” includes a specific focus on employment, which establishes mechanisms for job guidance and assistance for migrants and promotes social awareness through information activities on labour rights. Nevertheless, the Committee observes that the United Nations (UN) Committee on the Rights of Migrant Workers (CMW), in its concluding observations of 4 January 2024, noted with concern the limited information available about access to support services for women migrant workers, particularly domestic workers, and recommended that the Government step up campaigns to raise public awareness of their rights and improve access to information on complaints mechanisms (CMW/C/URY/CO/2, paras 44 and 45). The Committee requests the Government to continue providing information on specific services for migrant workers and their families, and encourages it to establish an official mechanism to keep track of the beneficiaries of employment services and social and economic integration programmes.

Article 6. Equality of treatment. The Committee notes with regret the lack of specific information on the application in practice of Article 6 of the Convention. It also notes that the CMW reiterates its recommendation to the Government to enact specific legislation prohibiting discrimination and strengthen complaints mechanisms (CMW/C/URY/CO/2, para. 31, 3 January 2024). The Committee once again requests the Government to provide information on: (i) any relevant decisions handed down by the ordinary or other courts of justice and the number and nature of violations observed by labour inspection services; and (ii) any studies or proposals drawn up with a view to ensuring equal treatment of migrant workers in terms of social security, particularly in the domestic work, rural and construction sectors. The Committee also requests the Government to continue providing information on any new awareness-raising measures or other actions taken to promote the application of the principles of the Convention.

Statistical information. The Committee notes the Government’s indications that: (1) between 2012 and 2023, persons born abroad residing in the national territory increased from 2.4 to 3 per cent of the total population; and (2) between 2017 and May 2024, a total of 49,503 applications for residence were processed, of which 37,647 were approved (including from persons originating from Argentina, Brazil, Cuba, India, the United States and the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela), without specifying whether temporary or permanent residence is involved. The Committeerequests the Government to continue providing statistical information on labour migration from and to the country, disaggregated by sex, also indicating the country of origin and sector of activity of immigrants.