The number of non-EU citizens residing in the EU increased by 2.3 million in 2023, with Ukrainian, Turkish, and Moroccan nationals making up the three largest foreign-born groups.
By early 2024, approximately 44.7 million people born outside the EU were living across the member states, representing 9.9% of the EU’s total population.
This marks a significant increase from the previous year, according to the latest Eurostat data. The highest concentrations of foreign-born individuals are found in Germany (16.9 million), France (9.3 million), Spain (8.8 million), and Italy (6.7 million). Luxembourg stands out with the highest share of immigrants, where 51% of its population was born abroad. Malta follows with 30.8%, Cyprus at 26.9%, and Ireland at 22.6%. In contrast, Poland has the lowest foreign-born population at just 2.6% of its total population, with Romania at 3.1%, Bulgaria at 3.3%, and Slovakia at 3.9%.
From 2014 to 2024, the proportion of foreign-born residents increased in most EU countries, although Latvia and Greece were exceptions, seeing a decline in their immigrant populations. The largest non-EU groups living in the EU by 2024 are Ukrainians, Turks, and Moroccans.
Migration to the EU is influenced by various factors, including economic, political, environmental, and social issues. The foreign-born population is typically younger than the native-born, with the median age of foreign-born individuals at 43.1 years compared to 45.1 years for EU-born citizens. However, in some countries such as Estonia, France, Croatia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and Slovakia, the proportion of foreign-born individuals over 65 years old is higher than that of the native-born population.
