India’s nursing workforce has become an indispensable asset to healthcare systems around the world, with skilled professionals from the subcontinent increasingly staffing hospitals, elder care facilities, and primary care centers across the United States, Europe, and Asia. As vacancies soar and countries scramble to fill them, India is emerging not just as a source of talent—but as the engine of a rebalanced global care economy.

Domestically, Kerala continues to dominate India’s nurse migration story, contributing over 57 percent of internationally migrating nurses, according to WHO’s India Country Office review. Its advanced training institutions and Gulf-oriented recruitment ties have made it a legacy leader. Following Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Punjab together account for around 30 percent of outbound nurses, as per ICN’s Recover to Rebuild report.

“While countries like Germany are witnessing growing demand for nurses and caregivers due to ageing populations and policy-driven task-sharing in primary care, it is the United States that is fast emerging as the epicentre of global healthcare workforce demand. With tens of thousands of vacancies across hospitals and long-term care facilities, the U.S. is actively seeking skilled international talent to stabilise and strengthen its healthcare systems. At Global Nurse Force, we are proud to hold exclusive partnerships with leading hospital networks across the U.S., enabling us to ethically connect highly trained Indian nurses with some of the most advanced clinical environments in the world,” said Lalit Pattanaik, CEO of Global Nurse Force.

He also said that meanwhile, in Germany, a combination of ageing demographics, expanded roles for advanced practice nurses, and bilateral, ethically structured recruitment agreements that invest in training within source countries is driving a projected 50 percent increase in nurse deployments by 2030. “Together, these trends reflect a global rebalancing—where countries in need of care and countries rich in talent are coming together to build sustainable healthcare futures,” he said.

The urgency behind this global scramble is underscored by sobering data: the WHO’s State of the World’s Nursing 2025 projects a global shortfall of 5.8 million nurses in 2023, declining only slightly to 4.1 million by 2030. But high-income countries—where ageing populations and burnout outstrip domestic training capacity—will remain the hardest hit. According to Korn Ferry’s Workforce 2025 survey, 46 percent of managers globally already report critical staffing strains, while 20 percent of nurses in the EU-15 will be over age 55 this year.

India, in contrast, is scaling its nursing infrastructure with unmatched speed and scope. Training over 300,000 nurses annually, the country has expanded diploma-level seats ninefold in the past decade. These numbers are reinforced by reforms in regulation, curriculum, and professional development. According to the FICCI–KPMG 2047 Agenda, India could supply 30–35 percent of the global nursing workforce by 2030.

“Korn Ferry’s 2030 outlook presents an extraordinary opportunity for India. While the world is projected to face an 18 million shortfall in healthcare professionals—including doctors, nurses, caregivers, and allied specialists—India is uniquely positioned as the only country forecast to have a surplus of talent. This advantage is not coincidental; it is the result of a robust training ecosystem and the strategic harnessing of our demographic dividend, which is already being channelled into global healthcare through structured skilling and international mobility pathways. India is no longer just preparing to lead—we are already enabling the world’s care economy, fully aligned with our Prime Minister’s vision of making India the skill capital of the world,” said Paramananda Santra, International Healthcare Mobility Expert and Chief Business Officer at Global Nurse Force.

Destination countries are expanding rapidly and diversifying. The United Kingdom and Ireland remain top choices, buoyed by inclusive environments and fast-track licensing. The U.S. is climbing quickly, luring talent with advanced clinical roles and lucrative pay packages. GCC nations offer tax-free earnings and rapid hospital growth, while Japan and Germany—both facing demographic decline—are emerging as long-term destinations. OECD forecasts estimate a 50 percent growth in Indian nurse deployments to Canada and Germany by 2030.

“Regional migration patterns in India’s nursing community are becoming ever more distinct. Nurses from the Northeast increasingly look to Singapore and Japan for their advanced training frameworks and structured career pathways. Those from Kerala continue to serve predominantly in the UK, the GCC and the United States, drawn by long-established recruitment channels. Maharashtra’s workforce shows a strong preference for the US market, while Canada remains the favoured destination for Punjab’s nursing professionals, thanks to its transparent licensure processes and inclusive practice environments,” added Santra.

As global systems strain under demographic and economic pressures, India’s nursing workforce is reshaping the healthcare equation—not merely plugging gaps, but leading a transnational transformation in how care is delivered, regulated, and sustained. The world is learning: when it comes to nurses, India doesn’t just export talent—it exports resilience.