There were approximately 21 thousand Albanian nationals residing in the United Kingdom in 2021, the same as the 21 thousand Albanian nationals residing in the United Kingdom in 2015. The highest number of Albanian nationals residing in the United Kingdom was 36 thousand in 2019.

Albania, then known as Rumelia, was a province of the Ottoman Empire from the fifteenth century until it declared it's independence in 1912. Following a series of unsuccessful uprisings and brief occupations from nearby Serbia and Greece, Albania finally claimed its independence on November 28, 1912; however the Conference of London in 1913 then set the borders of the former-Ottoman states in Southern Europe, which left many ethnic Albanians living in other neighboring states, particularly Serbia (and what is now Kosovo). The newly-formed Albanian state collapsed in the wake of the First World War, and was controlled in parts by Greece, Italy and Serbia. The Paris Conference then established an independent Albanian state, which led to a period of political and economic turmoil that lasted until Italy's annexation of the region in 1939, during the Second World War. It is estimated that just under 3 percent of Albania's population perished as a direct result of the war, as Albania became the main theater for the Axis Powers' war against Greece. Italy then surrendered control of the area to Germany in 1943, and after the war ended in 1945, Albania became a Yugoslav satellite state and remained behind the Iron Curtain until it's collapse in the 1990s. Steady growth during the communist era From the war's end onwards, Albania's population enjoyed steady growth and almost tripled by 1990. Throughout this time, Albania underwent a series of political allegiances; first as a Yugoslav and then Soviet satellite states, but then became an important actor in the Sino-Soviet split, eventually siding with China in the 1960s. Gradually, Albania transitioned into a more isolationist and independent country in in the 1970s, and slowly adopted some more democratic practices. The total population surpassed two million people in the late 1960s, and three million in the late 1980s, but then a dramatic change in population growth occurred in the 1990s, as communism in Europe came to an end. Immediate decline following communism's end Increased freedom of movement, improved access to contraception and major lifestyle changes caused the population to fall into decline. The population did increase in the late 90s, despite a civil war in the first half of 1997 (in which over 2 thousand people died) sparked by a failure of the financial system in Albania. The Albanian Army was also involved in the war in neighboring Kosovo between 1998 and 1999. The 2000s brought about further decline, and the population is just 2.9 million in 2020, a decline of approximately 400,000 people in thirty years. Albania has been a candidate for accession to the EU since 2014, and membership would bring further change to the country.

Albania Multidimensional Poverty Headcount Ratio: UNDP: % of total population data was reported at 0.700 % in 2017. Albania Multidimensional Poverty Headcount Ratio: UNDP: % of total population data is updated yearly, averaging 0.700 % from Dec 2017 (Median) to 2017, with 1 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 0.700 % in 2017 and a record low of 0.700 % in 2017. Albania Multidimensional Poverty Headcount Ratio: UNDP: % of total population data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Albania – Table AL.World Bank.WDI: Social: Poverty and Inequality. The multidimensional poverty headcount ratio (UNDP) is the percentage of a population living in poverty according to UNDPs multidimensional poverty index. The index includes three dimensions -- health, education, and living standards.;Alkire, S., Kanagaratnam, U., and Suppa, N. (2023). ‘The global Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) 2023 country results and methodological note’, OPHI MPI Methodological Note 55, Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI), University of Oxford. (https://ophi.org.uk/mpi-methodological-note-55-2/);;

In 2024, there were ***** Albanians imprisoned in England and Wales, the highest foreign nationality in that year. Additionally, there were *** Polish nationals in jail, and *** Romanians, the second, and third-highest among foreign nationalities.

Though Albania is a small country with a low population it has very high rates of smoking due to low levels of taxation, low cost, and the ubiquitous nature of cheap non-duty cigarettes. The government is trying to limit and stop smoking amongst citizens by increasing taxes, limiting advertisement, and cracking down on illegal cigarette production and smuggling. However, the market is expected to remain stable despite government intervention. Read More

Over ****** Pakistani nationals applied for asylum in the United Kingdom in 2024, the most of any nationality. Asylum seekers from Afghanistan made up the second-highest nationality, at over *****.