Argentina has the largest Italian population outside of Italy, with around 1.1 million Italians residing in the South American country as of 2022. This community represented almost one fifth of all citizens residing outside the Republic, 6.7 million. Germany hosted the second-largest community, with about 880,000 Italians, while in Brazil lived around 730,000 people with Italian citizenship. In total, 2.9 million Italians resided in the Americas, whereas 3.4 million in other European countries. In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, Argentina was one of the main destinations for Italian emigrants, in particular in the early 1900s. Increasing tendency to emigrate   Between 2006 and 2020, the number of Italians living abroad constantly increased. As of 2020, over five million Italians lived outside their homeland. Data related to the educational level of the emigrated population show that one third of the academics decided to leave the country. In 2017, 32.5 percent of Italians holding a university degree did not reside in Italy. Better jobs and lower taxes   When asked about the reasons why leaving their country, the opportunity to pay lower taxes and have better jobs played an important role. Indeed, about 43 percent of Italians declared to be ready to leave Italy for a place where taxes were lower. In addition, roughly 37 percent could leave Italy for better working chances.

As of 2023, more than 6.1 million Italians lived abroad. In particular, the largest community of migrants was in Argentina, as this country was hosting around 953,000 Italian citizens. Two European states followed in the ranking, Germany and Switzerland, while Brazil had the fourth-largest Italian emigrated population. In total, about 3.32 million emigrants lived in other European countries, while 2.5 million resided in the Americas.

In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, the United States was one of the main destinations for Italian emigrants. The largest number of people leaving Italy for the U.S. was registered in the first two decades of the twentieth century, particularly in 1906, before a sharp decline occurred in 1914 due to the First World War. Nowadays, the U.S. is still one of the main destinations for Italians. More specifically, as of January 2020, four percent of all Italians moving abroad over the last year went to the United States.

In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, Argentina was one of the main destinations for Italian emigrants. The highest rate of migration from Italy to Argentina occurred in the early 1900s, particularly in 1913, where 111.5 thousand people moved to the South American country. Subsequently, emigration to Argentina declined during the First World War, although it did increase again after 1918.

As of 2018, Argentina hosted the largest Italian population outside of Italy with almost one million Italians residing in the South American country.

As of January 2021, about 2.3 million Italians lived in the American continent. The largest part of them had been living there for more than ten years (1.4 million individuals). Furthermore, over 400 thousand people were recorded living in America for five to ten years.

Argentina was the main destination country of Italian migrants. This South American state also hosted the largest population of Italian residents abroad.

Argentina is the country with the second largest Italian population in the world. As of January 2019, around 842.6 thousand Italian citizens who were residents abroad were living in Argentina. This represents almost 16 percent of all Italians living abroad worldwide, according to the Registry of Italian Residents Abroad. Brazil was the second favorite Latin American destination for Italians who lived abroad, with over 447 thousand Italian citizens registered there.

In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, Brazil was one of the most common destinations for Italian emigrants. At the end of the nineteenth century, the number of Italians who emigrated to Brazil peaked, particularly in 1891, where 108.4 thousand people moved to the South American country. During the First World War, emigration to Brazil declined, reaching its lowest value in 1918 with just 361 migrants, however it did subsequently increase again after the war, although not to its pre-war levels.

As of 2018, Brazil hosted the fourth largest Italian population outside of Italy with over half million Italians residing in the South American country.

As of January 2023,15.5 percent of Italians abroad were living in Argentina, the main immigration country among Italian people. Moreover, the second-largest share was recorded in Germany, where 13.6 percent of Italians abroad lived.

In 2021, some 32 percent of Italians who left Italy lived in Central or South America.

Argentina was the main destination country of Italian migrants. This South American state also hosted the largest Italian population residents abroad.

As of 2024, Romanians were Italy's largest foreign population, with over one million Romanians living in Italy during the period considered. Albania and Morocco followed with 416,000 and 412,000 people, respectively. From a regional perspective, the Northern regions had the largest foreign population. Lombardy had some 1.1 million foreign residents, the largest in the country.

In 2024, 13,779 immigrants who reached Italy came from Bangladesh. Moreover, around 12,500 migrants were from Syria, whereas 7,700 people originated from Tunisia. These three nationalities constituted more than half of the total individuals arrived. Mediterranean routes to Europe The Mediterranean Sea recorded the largest number of deaths and missing cases of migrants worldwide. The Mediterranean Route leading to Italy is known as the Central Mediterranean Route, which counts the highest number of fatalities among the different Mediterranean routes. This route includes the crossing from North Africa to Italy, as well as to Malta. The main departing country is Libya, while Tunisia, Egypt, and East Algeria are minor departing shores. After the Central Mediterranean Sea, the Eastern Mediterranean Sea registered the second-highest number of deaths and missing people. The Eastern Mediterranean route includes migration flows from Türkiye to Greece and Cyprus. Main countries of arrival Between January and October 2024, Italy was the European country registering the largest number of migrants' arrivals. All the 55,000 immigrants reached the country by sea. Spain was the second country of first arrival in Europe, followed by Greece. The overall number of migrants who set foot on Italian shores expanded in the last years. However, the death and missing cases did not drop proportionally to the number of people who reached the coast.

The number of Italians who emigrated abroad increased steadily in the last years. The main emigration countries were Germany, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, and France. In 2017, the United Kingdom was the country where the largest number of Italians moved to (20.6 thousand people). However, the amount of Italians emigrating to the United Kingdom decreased in 2017 compared to the previous year. The first two destination countries outside Europe were the United States and Brazil. In these nations, the number of Italian people moving there grew between 2008 and 2017.

Following the Second World War and Italian Civil War, European countries became the most popular destination for Italian emigrants. Although France was the most popular destination in the late 1950s, it was replaced by Germany and Switzerland in the 1960s and early 1970s, and the year with the highest level of migration to these three countries was 1961, with more than 300,000 migrants in total.

Between 2008 and 2017, the main destination countries were Germany, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, and France. In 2017, 20.6 thousand Italians emigrated to the United Kingdom.

As of January 2021, 30 percent of all Italians who moved abroad in the last year moved to the United Kingdom. Germany was the second most common destination, whereas France and Switzerland followed as third and fourth most popular emigration countries, respectively.

Italians living in Argentina make up the largest group of Italian people living abroad. Data from the Registry of Italians Resident Abroad show that 15.6 percent of all Italians abroad in 2021 lived in this South American state.

From January to December 2024, around 66,000 migrants arrived in Italy by sea. Between 2014 and 2024, the number of migrants setting foot in the country peaked in 2016 at 181,000 individuals, whereas in 2019 only 11,400 people were rescued from the sea. In fact, stricter immigration policies were enacted between 2018 and 2019 by the right-wing and populist government supported by the League and the Five-Star Movement. Among the most frequent countries of origin declared upon arrivals in 2024, Bangladesh and Syria ranked in the first places. About 13,800 were Bangladeshi citizens, while around 12,500 immigrants came from Syria. Asylum seekers and minors among the migrants In 2023, the largest number of asylum applicants in Italy were from Bangladesh. In fact, 23,450 requests were recorded as of December 2023, while 18,300 applicants were from Egypt, the second most common nationality among asylum seekers. In recent years, many unaccompanied minors reached the Italian coasts. In 2024, 8,043 children migrated without their parents into the country. Contrasting opinions and distorted perceptions  According to the data published by Ipsos, a part of Italians tend to overestimate the size of the immigrated population. The results of this survey uncovered the presence of distorted perceptions in 2018: people thought that about 28 percent of the Italian population was not born in Italy, whereas the actual percentage was around ten. Furthermore, the public opinion on migration was controversial. In the same year, roughly half of the population perceived migrants as a risk for the Italian economy. On the other hand, 18 percent of Italians believed that migration could be a resource for the country.

As of December 2024, Lombardy was the region in Italy hosting the largest share of immigrants, followed by Emilia-Romagna, Lazio, and Piedmont. Lombardy is the region with the highest number of inhabitants in the country. The north Italian region has ten million residents, around one sixth of the total national population, and was housing 18,200 immigrants. The Mediterranean route to Europe  In 2020, 955 migrants died or went missing in the Italian Central Mediterranean Sea in the attempt to reach Europe. In 2024, 66,317 people arrived at the Italian shores, 91,300 individuals less compared to 2023. Death and missing cases still represent a serious hazard for the people who want to reach Italy from North Africa. Racism on the rise in Italy Race-related violence is strictly correlated with immigration. According to 2020 data, the cases of racial physical violence increased, in particular between 2016 and 2018. Over these three years, the cases of body violence ranged from 24 to 127 attacks. Similarly, insults, threats, and harassment became more widespread. Between 2017 and 2019, the cases grew from 88 to 206, while only in the first three months of 2020 there were 53 episodes of racist insults, threats, and harassment.

As of 2021, 17.7 percent of all Italians who emigrated abroad were originally from the Northern region of Lombardy. People from the Veneto, also in the North, made up 11.3 percent of the total.

Data about the single regions of Italy show that the largest number of Italians living abroad came from Sicily, Lombardy, and Campania.

Data refer to the Italians reported in the Registry of Italians Resident Abroad (A.I.R.E.).

In 2023, the biggest communities of foreign nationals in Italy were in Milan, Bologna, Florence, Turin, Rome, and Genoa, where more than ten percent of the inhabitants were not of Italian origin. These cities are mostly located in the north of the country. On the contrary, in the southern municipalities of Bari, Catania, and Palermo the incidence of the immigrant population is minimal, well below five percent. Italian demographics In 2024, beyond five million foreign residents lived in Italy, compared to the total population of 59 million inhabitants. Projections assert that in the upcoming years, the number of Italian citizens will progressively decrease, mostly given to the aging population and low birth rates. In fact, it has been predicted that the median age could reach 53.6 years by 2050, whereas the country experienced a constant decline in the number of births. In 2010, almost 550,000 babies came into life, but ten years later only 400,000 births were recorded. The divide between north and south From the distribution of immigrant residents, there is an evident separation between the northern Italian regions and the southern part of the country, making those territories less attractive for foreigners in terms of work opportunities. Analysis on the index of the gross domestic product (GDP) per capita in 2005, in 2015 and 2025 reveal that the total wealth produced by the southern region represents only half of the one recorded in the north. Moreover, in 2023 the unemployment rate in northern regions was around four percent, whereas in the south it reached 14 percent.

As of January 2021, Germany was the first destination of Italian emigrants within the European Union, followed by France and Belgium.

Data refer to the number of people reported in the Registry of Italians Resident Abroad (A.I.R.E.).

The largest share of Italian citizens living abroad was aged between 35 and 49 years, while the second-largest group of Italian emigrants was between 18 and 34 years. Therefore, the Italian population residing abroad was younger compared to those living in the motherland, which is facing a dramatic demographic and fertility crisis.