500K Foreign Workers Left Iran After Covid Outbreak

Up to 500,000 foreign nationals left Iran’s labor market amid the outbreak of coronavirus due to health concerns and closure of businesses, an official with the Ministry of Cooperatives, Labor and Social Welfare said. 
“At present, 3.5 million foreign-born individuals are working in Iran,” Mohsen Ebrahimi was also quoted as saying by IRNA. 
Noting that specialized workforce of some international companies were shifted to remote working, the official said, “One and a half years into the pandemic and thanks to the development of vaccines, some companies have resumed their activities in Iran.”
Ebrahimi announced that work permits of foreign nationals that expired in Farvardin (the first Iranian month ending April 20) will be extended automatically until June 21. 
“There is no need for applicants to approach directorates for employment of expatriates in Iranian provinces,” he said.