Rise in relocation requests in Israel's IT sector: a signal for the Ukrainian market and investors
More than half of the branches of international tech companies in Israel have reported an increase in relocation requests. We analyze why this matters for Ukraine — from competition for talent to signals for investment.
By Tetiana Suchkova-Ladik
December 29, 2025 · 2 min read
What happened
The report of the Israel Advanced Technology Industries (IATI), cited by Reuters, records: over the past year 53% of branches of international tech companies in the country have seen an increase in employee requests to relocate abroad. This concerns employees of major players — Microsoft, Intel, Nvidia, Amazon, Meta, Apple — and real internal discussions within companies about moving offices or parts of operations.
What the report says
Key figures from the report:
- 53% of branches reported an increase in relocation requests.
- 22% of companies recorded increased losses after the start of hostilities on October 7, 2023.
- 57% maintained stable business activity during the conflict, and 21% even expanded their business in the country.
“53% of branches of international tech companies in Israel recorded an increase in requests to relocate abroad over the past year”
— IATI (report), Reuters
Why this matters for Ukraine
This is not only a local story about Israel: it's about the global talent market. The Ukrainian IT industry already felt a wave of displacement after the start of the full-scale war — in the first months about 57,000 IT specialists left the country, roughly one fifth of the market. Export volumes also felt the impact: in May 2022 IT exports were about $601 million, in May 2025 — $545 million.
When competitors (Israel, the EU, the US) step up relocation programs, Ukraine has to compete for the same specialists. This affects salaries, workforce mobility, and the ability to keep projects inside the country.
Consequences and outlook
Briefly — two scenarios. First: increased competition for staff will lead to a temporary outflow, but at the same time will stimulate improvements in working conditions, investments in security, and flexible work formats. Second: without adequate support policies — financial and infrastructural — the risk of long-term loss of part of the talent pool will grow.
For Ukraine this means practical steps: stimulate investment in R&D, secure contracts with international partners, support return programs and hybrid work formats that reduce the motivation for full relocation. Investors and governments must turn declarations into concrete mechanisms — tax incentives, guarantees for office security, and retraining programs.
Sources: IATI report (cited by Reuters); industry estimates for Ukraine (data for 2022–2025).
