The transition period of the 1990s in the Republic of Kazakhstan was characterized by large-scale emigration and emergence of new types of migration movements: labor and irregular migration, refugees and flows of internally displaced people. Hundreds of thousands of individuals have been involved in different types of labor migration: commercial ("shuttle" trade), hiring of the white- and blue-collar workers abroad, cross-border and seasonal migration, foreign-licensed labor, and irregular labor emigration/immigration. The paper presents the results of a sociological survey conducted in several cities of Kazakhstan in spring 2000. The data reveals the causes of labor migration, its dynamics, geography, the impact it had on the material standard and social status of migrants, etc. The survey's data represent different types of settlements (former capital, regional center and small city), and they are comparative and valid for the urban regions of Kazakhstan. The data may be generalized and extended for determining the latest trends in changes in the labor market and the labor resources of Kazakhstan, as well as social changes. 2.7 million, or more than 30% of the total 8.4 million labor resources, appeared to be self-employed, and at least one third of the latter are involved in the different types of labor migration. Migrants' labor, especially for those working abroad, is accompanied by a rapid overcoming of the paternalistic ideology and practices inherited from the Soviet period and new professional and carrier opportunities for the migrants and their families, especially children. The development of these new types of migration contributes to the fall of the "old", or "traditional" middle class, and the emergence of "a new middle class". Some institutional and legislative changes have been introduced, which are in turn conducive to the building up of the market economy infrastructure. The negative processes accompanying different types of labor migration, such as development of the "shadow" or "unobserved" economy, are also considered in the paper.