How the state has implemented immigration policy in recent years will soon be reviewed by the State Audit Institution (DRI), Vijesti was told.
The audit should show whether migration management measures have yielded the expected results - from the employment of foreigners to their integration into society.
There are currently around 100.000 foreign citizens residing in Montenegro, while according to the latest census, the total population is 623.633.
There are 71.250 foreigners with temporary residence, while 29.617 have permanent residence, according to data from the Ministry of Interior.
DRI Senate member Branislav Radulović told Vijesti that next year, auditors will propose conducting an audit of the effectiveness of the national immigration policy.
"Appreciating the importance of the topic in question, and the economic, social and demographic consequences it has on the further development of Montenegro, the competent Performance Audit Sector plans to propose in the SAI's Annual Audit Plan for 2026 an audit that would assess the success of the implementation of the national immigration policy. The audit team is currently in the phase of preparing a pre-study research that will serve as the basis for planning and conducting the audit. The issue of the implementation of the Law on Foreigners and the success of the implementation of the Strategy on Migration and Reintegration of Returnees in Montenegro for the period 2021-2025 will be treated in particular," explained Radulović.
The audit, he says, will include the work of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other competent authorities.
This SAI plan, he claims, is aligned with the SAI Long-Term Audit Plan adopted for the period from 2025 to 2029 and the strategy to audit at least one of the Millennium Development Goals of the UN Agenda 2030 each year.
"In this case, it is a global goal of the UN Agenda 10, which aims to establish a favorable social and socioeconomic environment at the national level in order to prevent further negative demographic trends. Thus, point 10.7. UN AGENDA 2030 stipulates the obligation of national governments to ensure 'orderly, safe, regular and responsible migration and mobility of people, including through the implementation of planned and well-managed migration policies,'" he explained.
The 2030 Agenda, with 17 sustainable development goals, was adopted globally by the United Nations in September 2015.
Since that year, the Sustainable Development Report (SDR) has provided the latest available data to monitor and rank the performance of all UN member states on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
According to the UN Sustainable Development Report (SDR) 2025, Montenegro, like other UN member states, has an obligation to monitor and implement the Sustainable Development Goals.
The report highlights that many countries, especially developing ones, have difficulty achieving the SDGs due to limited fiscal space and challenges in policy implementation, which further highlights the importance of reviewing national immigration policy in Montenegro.
Montenegro ranks 55th in the latest report, this year.
Countries are ranked according to an overall score that measures overall progress towards all 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The score can be interpreted as a percentage of SDG achievement.
Montenegro has adapted its Sustainable Development Strategy to be in line with the 2030 Agenda. The strategy was adopted by the National Council for Sustainable Development in June 2016, and thus the country formally assumed obligations related to the SDGs when it adopted a national strategic document aligned with the 2030 Agenda.
Bonus video:
