In the first seven months of 2026, the Migration Agency facilitated the return to their homeland of 2,888 citizens of Uzbekistan who found themselves in difficult situations outside the country.
In the first seven months of 2026, the Migration Agency facilitated the return to their homeland of 2,888 citizens of Uzbekistan who found themselves in difficult situations outside the country.
9.936 billion soums from the Migration Fund were spent to ensure their return, including transportation, medical support, and covering other necessary expenses. Among those returned, the largest group consisted of 1,306 people facing serious financial difficulties. Notably, almost half of this group were women with children.
Additionally, fifteen individuals requiring constant medical supervision were accompanied by doctors and specialists from the Ministry of Health during their journey home.
The agency also presented a recent case: an Uzbek citizen who left the country for work in St. Petersburg in 2024 stopped contacting his family in March. An investigation revealed that this man developed mental health problems and was unsupervised. The compatriot was brought back by air from St. Petersburg to Tashkent.
Previously, there was information that two citizens of Uzbekistan, who had been living without documents in a Novosibirsk house of mercy for eight years, managed to restore their passports.
From January to July 2026, 7,749,307 foreign guests arrived in Uzbekistan. According to the Tourism Committee, this exceeds the figures for the same period last year by 22.6 percent. Additionally, the export of tourism services increased by 56 percent.
For comparison, 6.6 million tourists arrived in the country in 2023, while in 2024 there were over 10 million, and in 2025—11.7 million.
Growth is also observed in other tourism-related indicators. The geography of direct international destinations is also expanding. Passenger traffic at regional airports has increased: in Termiz—by 52 percent, in Urgench—by 24 percent, and in Nukus—by 23 percent.
In January-July, 705 new accommodation facilities were created with a total capacity of 22,296 places. The total number of such facilities reached 7,440, and the total number of places—202.6 thousand.
The export of tourism services grew by 56 percent, reaching a volume of $3,895.7 million. Thus, against the backdrop of a 22.6 percent increase in the number of tourists, revenue from tourism services demonstrated significant and rapid growth.
The tourist flow to Uzbekistan has significantly increased since the beginning of the year: during the period from January to July, the country welcomed over 7.749 million foreign citizens. This figure exceeds the numbers for the same period in 2025 by 1.4 million people, which represents a growth of 22.6%.
According to information from the National Committee on Statistics, the majority of visitors arrived from neighboring countries. Kyrgyzstan topped the list of donor countries, gathering 2.18 million guests over seven months. Kazakhstan took second place with 1.86 million tourists, and Tajikistan was third, registering 1.73 million visits.
Russia also became one of the key destinations for foreign tourists, with 710.8 thousand Russians arriving in the country. Among other visiting countries, there were arrivals of 281.2 thousand tourists from Afghanistan, 269.7 thousand from China, 192.8 thousand from Turkmenistan, and 111.9 thousand from Turkey. The top ten leaders are rounded out by India with 32.5 thousand and the Republic of Korea with 26.5 thousand tourists.
Furthermore, Uzbekistan decided to update the concept of national souvenirs to make them more modern, convenient, and attractive to visitors. To achieve this goal, the Uzbek Gift Contest started, which is designed to encourage designers and artisans to create new products that combine traditional crafts with current ideas.
An Uzbek citizen who became the subject of a scandal in the Nizhny Novgorod region of Russia due to a rug depicting the Russian flag will soon be returned to her home country. An airline ticket has already been issued for her, paid for by the Migration Fund.
The situation arose during an inspection conducted by Russian law enforcement agencies. A rug featuring the Russian tricolor was found in the woman's residence. Following this, the Russian side began an investigation, within which the potential issue of initiating a criminal case under the article concerning desecration of the state flag was considered.
The Migration Agency of Uzbekistan reported that it has taken control of the situation. The agency's representative office in Russia and the Consulate General of Uzbekistan in Kazan are working together with relevant Russian structures to establish all the circumstances of the incident. The woman, with whom contact has already been established, is receiving necessary consular and legal support.
It was also announced that the airline ticket for the Uzbek citizen was purchased from the Migration Fund. The citizen's return to Uzbekistan is scheduled for August 6.
Previously, the Uzbek citizen was fined 5 thousand rubles and received an expulsion order from Russia. This occurred because she was working without the required patent in Moscow. However, the fact that she owns property in the country and has no prior violations of migration legislation could not prevent the deportation.
