Eurostat: EU received 5.1 million immigrants in 2022
In 2022, 5.1 million people immigrated to the EU from non-EU countries, while a million people emigrated from the EU to destinations outside the EU, the bloc’s statistics agency Eurostat said on March 27.
The inflow of immigrants from non-EU countries more than doubled compared to the estimated 2.4 million in 2021, Eurostat said.
Conversely, the number of EU residents emigrating to countries outside the EU remained stable, with a million emigrants in 2021.
In 2022, there was an estimated 11 immigrants from non-EU countries per 1000 residents in the EU.
Relative to the size of the resident population, Malta recorded the highest rate of immigration from EU and non-EU countries in 2022 (66 immigrants per 1000 residents), followed by Luxembourg (48) and Estonia (37).
In contrast, Slovakia registered the lowest rate of immigration, with 1 immigrant per 1000 residents, followed by Bulgaria and France, each with six immigrants per 1 000 residents.
On 1 January 2023, more than half (50.4 per cent) of the population in Luxembourg was foreign-born. Malta (28.3 per cent) and Cyprus (22.7 per cent) completed the top three EU countries with the highest shares of foreign-born population.
In contrast, the lowest shares were recorded in Poland (2.5 per cent), Bulgaria (2.6 per cent) and Romania (2.8 per cent).
In absolute terms, the largest numbers of foreign-born residents (from other EU countries and non-EU countries) were registered in Germany (16.5 million people), France (8.9 million) and Spain (8.2 million).
In relative terms, Luxembourg had by far the biggest share of residents born in another EU country, 33.2 per cent, followed by Cyprus with 10.6 per cent and Austria with 9.5 per cent.
The lowest shares of residents born in other EU countries, below 1 per cent, were recorded in Poland (0.6 per cent), Lithuania (0.7 per cent) and Bulgaria (0.9 per cent).
When it comes to residents born in non-EU countries, the highest shares were recorded in Malta (20.9 per cent), followed by Luxembourg (17.2 per cent). Ireland, Sweden and Estonia recorded a 15.2 per cent share each.
The lowest shares of non-EU-born residents were registered in Slovakia (one per cent), Bulgaria and Romania (1.7 per cent each), Eurostat said.
(Photo: Donna Adenine)
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