The number of foreign nationals living in Laos has nearly doubled over the past decade, led by a sharp increase in Chinese residents, even as hundreds of thousands of Lao citizens live abroad.
Laos recorded 79,827 foreign residents in its 2025 census, up from 45,538 in 2015. The census also counted 313,766 Lao citizens living abroad, as the country faces slowing population growth and labour shortages.
Chinese nationals accounted for much of the increase in the foreign population. Their numbers rose from 1,825 in 2005 to 13,400 in 2015 and 25,492 in 2025. Vietnamese nationals remained the largest foreign group, with 28,269 residents in 2025.
Thousands of Lao Citizens Seek Work Abroad
The census counted Lao citizens living overseas using a new method that asked households in Laos about former family members who had moved abroad. Officials cautioned that the figure was a minimum estimate, as it may not include people who left with their entire families or had no relatives remaining in the country.
Savannakhet Province recorded the highest number of Lao citizens abroad, at 127,694, accounting for more than 40 percent of the national total. Champasack and Salavan followed.
The figures come as Laos faces a growing challenge in keeping workers at home. Low wages and rising living costs have encouraged many Lao job seekers to look for better-paid work abroad, particularly in Thailand.
Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare data show that 93 percent of registered job seekers in the first nine months of 2026 sought jobs overseas, while businesses in Laos struggled to fill vacancies.
Remittances Support Families at Home
Migration also provides an important source of income for households in Laos. Lao workers abroad sent home an estimated USD 500.7 million in remittances in the first seven months of 2026.
The government is expanding formal overseas employment programs, including plans to send 17,000 workers to South Korea for seasonal agricultural jobs this year.
During talks in October, Lao labor officials asked South Korea’s Seongju County to increase its seasonal melon-farm worker quotas and raise the programme’s age limits to 45 for men and 40 for women. The changes would allow more married couples and experienced rural workers to take part.
At home, authorities are reviewing a proposed minimum wage increase to LAK 4.1 million (USD 190) as they seek to help households cope with rising costs and encourage workers to remain in Laos.
