According to information from “Serbian Economist”, as of July 31, 2026, nearly 100,000 foreign citizens were legally residing in Montenegro, with Ukrainians remaining one of the country’s largest foreign communities, according to data from the Montenegrin Ministry of the Interior and previously published detailed statistics from the ministry.
According to data from the Montenegrin Ministry of Internal Affairs, 67,344 foreigners hold temporary residence permits, while another 29,783 hold permanent residence permits. Thus, the total number of foreigners with regulated status exceeds 97,000. Of those with temporary residence permits, 40,907 hold permits for temporary residence and work.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs identifies citizens of Serbia, the Russian Federation, and Turkey as the three largest groups of foreign residents. The ministry did not provide a complete breakdown by citizenship as of July 31, 2026, in its published response; therefore, it is currently impossible to determine Ukraine’s exact current ranking based on this data.
However, the latest available comprehensive table from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, which allows for a comparison of the main national groups, shows that as of October 31, 2023, Ukrainian citizens ranked fifth among foreigners with temporary or permanent residence in Montenegro.
At that time, the Ministry of Internal Affairs’ records listed:
Russia — 27,032 people;
Serbia—22,661;
Turkey—9,467;
Bosnia and Herzegovina—7,733;
Ukraine—5,208;
Kosovo—3,821;
Albania—3,027;
Belarus—1,288.
At the same time, the size of the Ukrainian community has been growing since 2023. An article in the Montenegrin publication Dan, cited by Niksic Radio and Television in March 2026, reported that in December there were over 9,000 Ukrainian citizens in the country with residence permits. By comparison, the number of Turkish citizens was approximately 13,000.
Ukrainians residing in Montenegro under temporary protection should be considered separately. This status is legally distinct from a standard temporary residence permit; therefore, data on individuals granted temporary protection and those with standard residence permits cannot be mechanically combined when compiling a ranking of foreign residents.
In March 2026, the Montenegrin government extended temporary protection for individuals from Ukraine until March 4, 2027.
The scale of the Ukrainian presence is also clearly evident in migration statistics. From January through early August 2025 alone, 69,826 Ukrainian citizens entered Montenegro, while 67,561 departed.
Thus, based on the available data, it can be confidently stated that Ukrainians are among the largest foreign communities in Montenegro.
The growth in the number of foreign residents is of significant economic importance to Montenegro.
With a population of approximately 624,000, the nearly 97,100 foreigners with legal residency account for about 15–16% of the country’s population. Foreign residents are particularly noticeable along the coast and in Podgorica, and they influence the real estate market, the rental market, services, employment, and consumer demand.
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