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The seasonal migration of Albanians to Greece is expected to increase because in some cases the money earned abroad allows families to start small businesses at home and repare their houses, and when this is done legally, the benefit to the Albanian and Greek State is mutual, became clear during a seminar on circular migration in Europe under the program "Metikos".

The premise for the circular migration to exist is that migrants can move freely between the two countries, but sometimes their work is moving on the edge of legality," said the teacher Anna Triandafilidou who is the coordinator for the "Metikos" project. Circular migration is a kind of family strategy to cope with difficult financial situation and to create more opportunities. According to data of the Ministry of Interior the largest number of immigrants who have seasonal jobs are in the areas Imathia and Pella, added Thanos Marukis from ELIAMEP, who together with Edda Gemi from the European Institute in Florence have made a research and have found that there are four types of circular emigration from Albania to Greece. These are the legally emigrating Albanians working in the field of agriculture, the Albanians entering illegally, the legal migrants with two-year residence permits who are trying to fix their lives in their homeland by working in Greece for low-skilled jobs and the last type are the highly skilled employees with a ten-year residence permit, who usually have their own business or a prestigious job.

Emigrants who come to work legally in the field of agriculture are usually aged between 21 and 58 years and they are from villages in Albania. Most often their relatives live in Greece and they come for a few months earning a wage between 23 to 30 euros. Those people who come to hold seasonal jobs stay in Central Macedonia and work for several employers.

The second group are the illegal immigrants, among who there are young people between 15 and 23 years of age. They come in Greece for the summer to earn pocket money or come with their parents. People aged between 35 and 45 years and are illegal in most cases have failed to earn a visa, stay six months and work in construction. They come mostly from the Albanian province, and when they get back home they work in their farms, and fix their houses. This kind of migration for migrants themselves is a matter of survival, while employers see them as cheap labor. The forecasts are that that this type of emigration has no future as investment in Albania is limited at home, while in Greece the employment on the black market increases and the insurance funds lose money.

The third type of circular migration is practiced mostly by families who have residence permits and the time of their stay in Greece depends on the sector of employment. When they return to Albnia they sometimes build houses or start small businesses and they most often open cafes or give rooms for rent. This kind of migration allows immigrants to live with their families, and sometimes it allows to fund the creation of a company in Albania. The positive side for Greece is that they contribute to insurance funds because they pay health insurance, but due to the increase of the employment on the black market in the country these people are threatened of losing their right to stay and work. Scientists say this type of migration will increase due to the liberation of the visa regime with Albania and better integration of Albanians in the Greek and Albanian society. The last type of circular migration between Albania and Greece is done by people with high social status who are professionals and have their own business.

The challenge for policy makers who have to regulate circular migration from both countries is to to be able to create a legal framework and to pass more specific measures for the reintegration of Albanians, when returning to their homeland. One of these good practices are the labor offices which have already been found there, and aim to facilitate the investment and business creation.

In Albania is also developed the program Brain Gain, which aims to keep potential emigrants in their home country and attract immigrants to return to Albania from abroad, by creating conditions for their business realization. Governments must begin to think ahead and create policies, because so far they only react to the laws once they are established in Europe, says political scientist Bernard Zeneli, who is coordinator of the program Brain Gain. Usually people who return back to Albania are highly educated and find work at universities or public administration or are willing to invest. Albanians who come back to their country come mostly from the U.S., however many young people who have completed master's programs or PhD in Italy are also going to seek their fortune back in Albania.

From Greece to Albania usually return those people who have already secured a ten-year residence permit in Greece. Those Albanians who only have a certificate that they are waiting for the issue of a residence permit, or only have a two-year residence permit do not dare to return home and are trying to settle there.