The findings of the quantitative and qualitative surveys of the migrant workers from the non-EU countries conducted in May - October 2025 in Lithuania disclose important challenges faced by the migrant workers in their skill formation and employment pathways. The migrant workers coming in Lithuania for the jobs which correspond to their acquired qualifications usually develop their skills on the job, and the work experience acquired in the Lithuanian enterprises contributes to their competence development. This is a typical case of skilled industrial workers, like welders, fitters, and construction workers. Similarly, high skilled professionals from the third countries working in the financial sector and ICT, also mostly develop their skills and competences at their work and enjoy broad opportunities of skills formation provided by employers. Low-skilled and unskilled employees from the third countries working in the food industry, cleaning services, seasonal jobs in the agriculture acquire the necessary skills on the job and do not include skill formation and professional development in the targeted goals of their emigration. Highly educated war refugees and forced migrants from the Ukraine treat skill formation and training as opportunity of smooth and fast employment. They openly and voluntarily accept the situation of over-qualification in the labour market of Lithuania, but struggle in finding training places in the market oriented and work-based training schemes for job seekers. These training pathways and accessibility regimes will be discussed by referring to the context of neoliberal reforms of the skill formation and employment systems and precautious immigration policy of the recently emerged net immigration country (Zwysen, 2019; Wickham, 2017; Lulle et al., 2021).

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