In 2022, the largest foreign group of immigrants to the Netherlands came from Ukraine, with 99,700 immigrants. Polish, Dutch, Syrian and Turkish rounded out the top five foreign nationalities for immigrants to the Netherlands in that year.

From 2008 onwards, the migration balance in the Netherlands was positive, meaning that more people settled in the Netherlands than leaving for newer pastures. In 2022, the migration balance was 223,800. In 2022, the number of people in the Netherlands with a migration background (defined as someone who has at least one parent born abroad) was over 4.4 million.

 Regions of origin 

In 2020, the largest group of immigrants in the Netherlands came from other European countries, followed by migrants from Asian countries and the Americas. Over 1.4 million immigrants in the Netherlands were either born in another European country themselves or had a parent coming from here one. The Polish were especially well-represented, with over 25,000 immigrants in 2020.  

Attitudes towards immigration  

In a 2017 survey, respondents were asked how they feel about immigration from other EU countries. 70 percent stated to be fairly or very positive about this. By comparison, only five percent of the respondents answered to feel very negative about EU migration. Respondents were less positive about migration from non-EU countries, but the share of people feeling fairly or very positive about this still reached 45 percent.

Population in The Netherlands on 1 January by sex, age, marital status, generation and migration background.

CBS is in transition towards a new classification of the population by origin. Greater emphasis is now placed on where a person was born, aside from where that person’s parents were born. The term ‘migration background’ is no longer used in this regard. The main categories western/non-western are being replaced by categories based on continents and a few countries that share a specific migration history with the Netherlands. The new classification is being implemented gradually in tables and publications on population by origin.

Data available from 1996 to 2022.

Status of the figures: All figures in the table are final.

Changes per 13 January 2023: None, this table was discontinued.

When will new figures be published? No longer applicable. This table is succeeded by the table Population; sex, age, country of origin, country of birth, 1 January. See section 3.

In 2022, the large majority of the immigrants to the Netherlands came from other European countries, clocking in at almost 280,200 immigrants. There were over 403,100 total immigrants to the Netherlands in 2022.

Netherlands Number of Immigrants: China data was reported at 6,724.000 Person in 2017. This records an increase from the previous number of 5,975.000 Person for 2016. Netherlands Number of Immigrants: China data is updated yearly, averaging 3,948.000 Person from Dec 1995 (Median) to 2017, with 23 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 6,724.000 Person in 2017 and a record low of 1,464.000 Person in 1995. Netherlands Number of Immigrants: China data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Statistics Netherlands. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Netherlands – Table NL.G005: Number of Immigrants: by Country.

Number of Immigrants: Netherlands data was reported at 32,831.000 Person in 2017. This records an increase from the previous number of 31,648.000 Person for 2016. Number of Immigrants: Netherlands data is updated yearly, averaging 24,984.000 Person from Dec 1995 (Median) to 2017, with 23 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 32,831.000 Person in 2017 and a record low of 19,447.000 Person in 2004. Number of Immigrants: Netherlands data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Statistics Netherlands. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Netherlands – Table NL.G005: Number of Immigrants: by Country.

This statistic shows the total number of immigrants in the Netherlands from 1995 to 2022, by age. It shows that the majority of the immigrants to the Netherlands in 2022 was between 20 and 65 years old.

Netherlands Number of Immigrants: Argentina data was reported at 627.000 Person in 2017. This records an increase from the previous number of 488.000 Person for 2016. Netherlands Number of Immigrants: Argentina data is updated yearly, averaging 274.000 Person from Dec 1995 (Median) to 2017, with 23 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 627.000 Person in 2017 and a record low of 117.000 Person in 1995. Netherlands Number of Immigrants: Argentina data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Statistics Netherlands. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Netherlands – Table NL.G005: Number of Immigrants: by Country.

In 2022, the province most inhabited by first generation migrants in the Netherlands is South Holland (which includes cities such as The Hague and Rotterdam) housing over 717,000 first generation migrants. North Holland (which includes the city of Amsterdam), has the second most migrants living in its province with 576,000. The province which houses the least first generation migrants is Drenthe at 26,000 first generation immigrants.

The New Immigrant Survey (NIS2NL) is a longitudinal panel study on early integration processes of recent migrants to the Netherlands. NIS2NL is targeted at Bulgarian, Polish, Spanish and Turkish immigrants who recently moved to the Netherlands and contains questions about demographic characteristics, living situation, education, employment, income, language, identification, contact, and perceived discrimination.
The data collection for the first wave of NIS2NL was carried out in late 2013 and early 2014. Data for the second wave were collected in late 2014 and early 2015. The third wave was conducted in late 2016 and the fourth in early 2018. Answers were collected in written format either online or on paper. All correspondence with the respondents took place in their native (country of origin) language.

In this second version an error related to the Thermometer questions included in wave 4 has been corrected. The fieldwork company had assigned the written questionnaires to the wrong question. The order of these questions were immigrant-group specific which was not accounted for in handling the written questionnaires.
The original variables have been kept in the data and renamed into:

SOCDISNL_4ERROR (although this was the only one correct in this battery)
SOCDIST_4ERROR
SOCDISM_4ERROR
SOCDISP_4ERROR
SOCDISB_4ERROR
SOCDISS_4ERROR

The correct variables have the names in line with the codebook:
SOCDISNL_4
SOCDIST_4
SOCDISM_4
SOCDISP_4
SOCDISB_4
SOCDISS_4

This table includes figures about the migration on the islands of Bonaire, Saba and St Eustatius broken down by sex, age and country of birth.

Since 10 October 2010, the islands of Bonaire, Saba and St Eustatius have been given the status of 'special municipality' of the Netherlands. On the grounds of their new status as 'special municipality', they are officially classified as public bodies of the Netherlands.

Data available from: 2011.

Status of the figures: The figures are final.

Changed on 27 May 2025: The figures of ‘Immigration’ by ‘Country of birth’ for the year 2020 have been corrected for Aruba (-1) and Bonaire (+1). This also changed the figures for ‘Net migration including administrative corrections’ by ‘Country of birth’ for ‘Born outside the Caribbean Netherlands’, ‘Aruba, Curacao, St Maarten’ and ‘Caribbean Netherlands’. Figures for 2024 have been added.

Changed on 5 December 2024: This is a revised table. The following changes have been implemented: - By using place of birth (municipality of birth) it was determined on which of the six islands someone was born in the (former) Netherlands Antilles and Aruba. That method has been applied in this table for all publication years (2011 to present) the same way. - Persons born in countries that have since disintegrated (e.g. the Soviet Union) have been assigned to one of the countries that emerged from these old countries based on birthplace information. See also notes on 'Country of birth'; - The origin countries Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Turkey have been assigned to continent Asia (was Europe).

When will new figures be published? In the second quarter of 2026 figures of 2025 will be added.

Sint Maarten (Dutch part) immigration statistics for 2015 was 27,295, a 4.18% increase from 2010.

<ul style='margin-top:20px;'>

<li>Sint Maarten (Dutch part) immigration statistics for 2010 was <strong>26,200</strong>, a <strong>100% increase</strong> from 2005.</li>
<li>Sint Maarten (Dutch part) immigration statistics for 2005 was <strong>13,100</strong>, a <strong>0% increase</strong> from .</li>
<li>Sint Maarten (Dutch part) immigration statistics for was <strong>0.00</strong>, a <strong>0% increase</strong> from .</li>
</ul>International migrant stock is the number of people born in a country other than that in which they live. It also includes refugees. The data used to estimate the international migrant stock at a particular time are obtained mainly from population censuses. The estimates are derived from the data on foreign-born population--people who have residence in one country but were born in another country. When data on the foreign-born population are not available, data on foreign population--that is, people who are citizens of a country other than the country in which they reside--are used as estimates. After the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991 people living in one of the newly independent countries who were born in another were classified as international migrants. Estimates of migrant stock in the newly independent states from 1990 on are based on the 1989 census of the Soviet Union. For countries with information on the international migrant stock for at least two points in time, interpolation or extrapolation was used to estimate the international migrant stock on July 1 of the reference years. For countries with only one observation, estimates for the reference years were derived using rates of change in the migrant stock in the years preceding or following the single observation available. A model was used to estimate migrants for countries that had no data.

CBS collects data on persons from different registrations in the Netherlands. This table contains information on non-Dutch immigrants between the ages of 16 and 65 and between 1999 and 65 years 2003 was established in the Netherlands. The information consists of data on the migration motive, year of establishment, gender and the main source of income. In the table, the main sources of income per migration motif expressed as a percentage of the total (selected) group with that migration motive.

Data available from: 1999 Frequency: discontinued

Status of the figures All figures in the table are final.

This table contains figures on immigrants with a nationality from a country outside the EU or EFTA who have come to the Netherlands. The data are broken down by gender, age group, migration motive, nationality, socio-economic category and length of stay. The migration motive of immigrants from non-EU/EFTA countries is based on the permit issued to the immigrant by the Immigration and Naturalization Service (IND). This table only includes immigrants who, at the time of immigration, had the nationality of countries that were not members of the European Union (EU) or the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) at that time. Immigrants from outside the EU/EFTA need a residence permit from the IND. Immigrants from countries that joined the EU or EFTA in the period 1999-2022 are included in this table if the year of immigration is before the year of accession. Although the United Kingdom left the European Union on 31 January 2020, a withdrawal agreement allowed free movement of persons until 31 December 2020. This table therefore only includes immigrants from the United Kingdom from 1 January 2021. This table checks for all non-EU/EFTA immigrants each year after their arrival in the Netherlands whether they still live in the Netherlands and to what socio-economic category they belong. This always happens on the same date. So for someone who came to live in the Netherlands on February 12, 1999, it will be checked on February 12, 2000 whether this person is still there and information will be given about his/her socio-economic category. The Length of stay selection shows the original number of immigrants that came to the Netherlands in the year of immigration for all years. The selection Socio-economic category shows whether someone is still present and what his/her main source of income is. The variable Migration motive has been expanded with a category 'Temporary protection'. This includes persons who fled to the Netherlands after the start of the war in Ukraine on 24 February 2022 and applied for protection here. They do not have to go through the official IND asylum procedure, but fall under the European Temporary Protection Directive. See also: IND Process for Refugees from Ukraine (IND) (link available under section 3. LINKS TO RELEVANT TABLES AND ARTICLES) Ukraine Temporary Protection Directive (IND) (link available under section 3. LINKS TO RELEVANT TABLES AND ARTICLES) Within the In terms of migration motives statistics, Statistics Netherlands distinguishes labor migration into two subcategories for the immigration of non-EU/EFTA nationals: knowledge and other labor migration. Up to and including the update in 2021, Statistics Netherlands only labeled the IND highly skilled migrant scheme as highly skilled migration, all other labor migration schemes were classified as other labor migration. From the update in 2022, the other schemes associated with the highly skilled migrant scheme will also be classified as knowledge. This also includes, for example, the schemes for the self-employed, scientific researchers and potential highly skilled migrants. This means that with effect from the update in 2022, the subdivision of labor migrants into knowledge and other labor migrants in this table has been adjusted for all reporting years. As a result, the figures on these two types of labor migrants from the 2022 update are not directly comparable with figures published up to and including the 2021 update. Data available from: 1999 Status of the figures: The figures in this table are provisional. Information that became known later has been incorporated into the figures for the previous periods. As a result, minor deviations from previously published figures are possible. Changes as of 30 June 2023: The provisional figures for 2022 have been added. An additional length of stay has been added to the immigration years 1999 through 2021; The nationalities Armenian, Azerbaijani, Georgian, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Uzbek, Tajik, Turkmen and Turkish are assigned to continent Asia (was Europe); The folder 'Migration motive' has been expanded with the category 'Temporary protection'; When will new numbers come out? The figures for 2023 will be published in June 2024.

Netherlands Number of Immigrants: Former Yugoslavia: Bosnia and Herzegovina data was reported at 59.000 Person in 2017. This records a decrease from the previous number of 79.000 Person for 2016. Netherlands Number of Immigrants: Former Yugoslavia: Bosnia and Herzegovina data is updated yearly, averaging 45.000 Person from Dec 1995 (Median) to 2017, with 23 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 222.000 Person in 1995 and a record low of 17.000 Person in 2008. Netherlands Number of Immigrants: Former Yugoslavia: Bosnia and Herzegovina data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Statistics Netherlands. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Netherlands – Table NL.G005: Number of Immigrants: by Country.

Tables and report on international knowledge workers in the Netherlands and 13 other European countries, 2003/2005 en 2016/2018, based on the EU Labour Force Survey.

Netherlands Number of Immigrants: Austria data was reported at 801.000 Person in 2017. This records an increase from the previous number of 708.000 Person for 2016. Netherlands Number of Immigrants: Austria data is updated yearly, averaging 362.000 Person from Dec 1995 (Median) to 2017, with 23 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 801.000 Person in 2017 and a record low of 244.000 Person in 1995. Netherlands Number of Immigrants: Austria data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Statistics Netherlands. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Netherlands – Table NL.G005: Number of Immigrants: by Country.

This table contains projections (2014-2060) of the immigrant population in the Netherlands, the number of live births of the second generation, the foreign migration of first-generation immigrants and the number of deaths of first- and second-generation immigrants in the Netherlands. All figures are also broken down by origin group (Western and non-Western). Data available: 2014-2060 Status of the figures: The figures in this table are calculated forecast figures. Changes as of June 20, 2018: The terms autochtoon and immigrant have been revised. From now on, Statistics Netherlands will refer to people with a Dutch background or a migration background. Therefore, the names in this table have been changed. The underlying codes of the classifications used in this table have been adjusted. These are now in line with the standard coding established by Statistics Netherlands. The structure and data of the table have not been modified. Changes as of December 19, 2017: This table has been discontinued. See section 3 for the successor to this table. Changes as of December 18, 2014: In this new table, the previous forecast has been adjusted based on the most recent insights, the forecast period now runs from 2014 to 2060. When will new figures be released? In December 2017, the new forecast figures will be published in a new table.

The current panel describes and explains the life-courses of immigrant and native young adults in the Netherlands. The survey covers three central themes: (A) progress in school and in the labour market, (B) the development of norms, values, lifestyle and attitudes, (C) changes in social networks and social participation. This panel is a continuation of the 3-wave panel study CILS4EU, which followed these immigrant and native children at age 14, 15 and 16 in the Netherlands, England, Germany and Sweden. Wave 4 interviews respondents of around 17 years old.

The reduced version includes reduced and aggregated information for some variables.

Documentation in English.
Original questionnaire in Dutch.

The .DTA format of the file 'w4_ym_nl_v4.0.0_rv' was deposited by Utrecht University. DANS added the .SAV and .POR formats of this file to ensure preservation and accessibility.

The current panel describes and explains the life-courses of immigrant and native young adults in the Netherlands. The survey covers three central themes: (A) progress in school and in the labour market, (B) the development of norms, values, lifestyle and attitudes, (C) changes in social networks and social participation. This panel is the third of a 3-wave panel study CILS4EU, which follows these immigrant and native children at age 14, 15 and 16 in the Netherlands, England, Germany and Sweden. Later waves were conducted in the Netherlands under the CILSNL project. Wave 2 interviews respondents of around 16 years old.

The full version includes full information for all variables as well as 4 digit postal code information.

When citing this data, please also cite the international data of which it is a part:
Kalter, Frank, Anthony F. Heath, Miles Hewstone, Jan O. Jonsson, Matthijs Kalmijn, Irena Kogan, and Frank van Tubergen. 2016c. Children of Immigrants Longitudinal Survey in Four European Countries (CILS4EU) – Full version. Data file for on‐site use. GESIS Data Archive, Cologne, ZA5353 Data file Version 3.1.0, doi:10.4232/cils4eu.5353.3.1.0.