Almost 1 out of 5 workers are foreigners: What's the impact?

Oforeign workers represent 18.6% of the workforce and generate direct monthly impact of eur 363 million, according to an analysis released this Wednesday by Randstad Research, based on data from Social Security, the National Institute of Statistics (INE) and the Institute for Employment and Vocational Training (IEFP). It means that almost one in five workers in Portugal are foreigners. 

It means that there were “906.019 foreign workers to be discounted in June 2026”, according to a statement to which the News to Minutes he had access. 

“ This reality has generated a direct positive financial balance for the State coffers, amounting to a net injection of EUR 363.13 million in a single month“you can read it.

According to the same note, “the data analyzed in depth demonstrate that this integration resulted in the collection of EUR 427,82 million, which translates into a homologous increase of 12.5% in the value of contributions, being a mostly young population (with 64% of taxpayers aged 20 to 39 years)”.

“ On the other hand, 186,823 foreign beneficiaries of social benefits (11.3% of the total), representing a charge of EUR 64.69 million, a figure reflecting an annual decrease of 9.7% of beneficiaries (-19.947 people)”, can be read. 

Global labour market maintains resilience and stability in unemployment

The same analysis shows that “provisional estimates show that, in July 2026, the overall unemployment rate remained unchanged from June to 5.7%.”.

“The total number of unemployed people fell by 2,700, settling at 320,300 in the country. The demographic analysis shows that this monthly fall in unemployment has become particularly prominent among adults aged 25 to 74 (-3,700 people) and among men (-2,100 people)”, one can read. 

More: “As far as occupation is concerned, employment fell slightly monthly by 7,100 people (-0.1%). Despite this retreat, the total number of professionals continues to exceed the 5.3 million (5,347,000). From a homologous perspective, the labor market shows growth, accounting for 82,900 people employed (+1.6%) compared to July of the previous year. The active population followed the monthly decline, losing 9,900 individuals to a total of 5,667,300 active people.”.

For income, “the average remuneration for declared dependent work (referring to june) has been set at €2,058,34, a value reflecting a growth of 24.1% compared to may and 5.8% compared to the annual annual annual period”.

“The salary map continues to be strongly led by Lisbon (2.415,34 €) and Setúbal (2.193,30 €), contrasting with the lowest wages recorded in the south in Faro (1.706,58 €) and Beja (1.750,17 €)”, read. 

Cited in the same statement, Isabel Roseiro, Marketing Director at Randstad Portugal, states that “this month’s analysis shows a stabilization in the Portuguese labor market”.

“ More than the slight monthly variations in job creation, the highlight goes to the structural consolidation we observe through the integration of foreign talent. These professionals are actively contributing to the mitigation of labor shortages in various sectors, while playing an increasingly relevant role in the financial and demographic balance of our social protection system ", concludes the responsible.