In 2020, there were about 2.52 million immigrants, here classified as people living in a country in which they were not born in, in Singapore out of a total population of about 5.7 million. Immigrants made up a significant share of the population and play a crucial role in Singapore, where the birth rate was among the lowest in the world.

Singapore’s immigrant population The immigrant population of Singapore made up slightly more than 40 percent of the total population of the country in 2018. Throughout its history as a port city, Singapore had been a melting pot of cultures and nationalities. Currently, as one of Asia’s most important economies, it attracts people from all over the world and of different socioeconomic backgrounds to seek better opportunities. The immigrant population is largely of Asian origin, with neighboring Malaysians making up the majority.

Of expats and migrant workers Lacking in natural resources, Singapore’s government has long stressed that its most important resource is its people. However, with declining birth rates and low population growth, the country increasingly relies on immigrants to help shoulder the economic burden. In 2020, Singapore’s foreign workforce stood at just under 1.23 million, out of which about 351 thousand were classified as skilled labor. Most of the foreign workforce were employed in sectors that were deemed unappealing to Singaporeans, such as in construction and the service industry, or as domestic help.

Inspiration

Inspired by another Kaggle user who did a similar project with Indian emigrants (https://www.kaggle.com/rajacsp/indian-migration-history)

Content

Data sourced from World Bank database at https://datacatalog.worldbank.org/dataset/global-bilateral-migration-database. In addition to selecting the decades from 1960-2000, I added a "Total" column and a least squares regression rate column. The original CSV (SG_IMMIGRANTS.csv) is a bit messy and contains a lot of blanks because ... well Singapore is a small country.

For the two limited "melted" versions, I used pandas pd.melt() to restructure the different decades into a new column "Year" with it's corresponding "Total". Only a select few countries with substantial number of total immigrants are included (Bangladesh, China, Indonesia, Pakistan, Thailand, Philippines, India, Malaysia, Vietnam, United Kingdom). Here, the ratio refers to either the ratio of gender to decade's total or the ratio of that decade's total to the country's all-time cumulative total . e.g. Male 1960 CHN Ratio =0.510563203 means males made up 51% of the total Chinese immigrants to SG in 1960 e.g. Total 1960 MYS Ratio = 0.081202409 means 1960 contributed only 8% of the total Malaysian immigrants to SG

Hope this is clear, leave a comment if anything needs clarification!

Thoughts/to-do:

Future version with global database csv, SG emigrants csv For select top origin/destination countries, show a positive-negative bar plot, coloured according to immigration/emigration multiple

Historical dataset showing Singapore immigration statistics by year from 1960 to 2015.

Singapore SG: Net Migration data was reported at 298,448.000 Person in 2017. This records a decrease from the previous number of 337,932.000 Person for 2012. Singapore SG: Net Migration data is updated yearly, averaging 193,369.000 Person from Dec 1962 (Median) to 2017, with 12 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 449,245.000 Person in 2007 and a record low of -363.000 Person in 1967. Singapore SG: Net Migration data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Singapore – Table SG.World Bank.WDI: Population and Urbanization Statistics. Net migration is the net total of migrants during the period, that is, the total number of immigrants less the annual number of emigrants, including both citizens and noncitizens. Data are five-year estimates.; ; United Nations Population Division. World Population Prospects: 2017 Revision.; Sum;

In 2020, Malaysians made up the largest share of Asian immigrants in Singapore, with around 1.13 million people. In that year, close to 43 percent of the Singapore population were immigrants. This includes both the non-resident population as well as permanent residents, students, and work pass holders.

Graph and download economic data for Net migration for Singapore (SMPOPNETMSGP) from 1962 to 2017 about Singapore, migration, Net, 5-year, and population.

Singapore SG: International Migrant Stock: Total data was reported at 2,543,638.000 Person in 2015. This records an increase from the previous number of 2,164,794.000 Person for 2010. Singapore SG: International Migrant Stock: Total data is updated yearly, averaging 673,296.000 Person from Dec 1960 (Median) to 2015, with 12 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 2,543,638.000 Person in 2015 and a record low of 519,246.000 Person in 1960. Singapore SG: International Migrant Stock: Total data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Singapore – Table SG.World Bank.WDI: Population and Urbanization Statistics. 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.; ; United Nations Population Division, Trends in Total Migrant Stock: 2012 Revision.; Sum;

Dataset from Singapore Department of Statistics. For more information, visit https://data.gov.sg/datasets/d_b72fb4b4488fdf2b7ec4171913b37d68/view

Historical dataset showing Singapore net migration by year from 1960 to 2024.

Singapore SG: International Migrant Stock: % of Population data was reported at 45.392 % in 2015. This records an increase from the previous number of 42.623 % for 2010. Singapore SG: International Migrant Stock: % of Population data is updated yearly, averaging 36.274 % from Dec 1990 (Median) to 2015, with 6 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 45.392 % in 2015 and a record low of 24.110 % in 1990. Singapore SG: International Migrant Stock: % of Population data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Singapore – Table SG.World Bank.WDI: Population and Urbanization Statistics. 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.; ; United Nations Population Division, Trends in Total Migrant Stock: 2008 Revision.; Weighted average;

In 2024, around 3.64 million people living in Singapore were citizens, compared to under 1.86 million who were non-residents. In that year, the total population in Singapore was approximately 6.03 million.

Singapore SG: UCB Projection: Migration Rate: per 1000 Inhabitants: Net data was reported at 4.000 NA in 2050. This records a decrease from the previous number of 4.200 NA for 2049. Singapore SG: UCB Projection: Migration Rate: per 1000 Inhabitants: Net data is updated yearly, averaging 11.800 NA from Jun 1990 (Median) to 2050, with 61 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 22.500 NA in 1990 and a record low of 4.000 NA in 2050. Singapore SG: UCB Projection: Migration Rate: per 1000 Inhabitants: Net data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by US Census Bureau. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Singapore – Table SG.US Census Bureau: Demographic Projection.

Norway Immigration: Asia: Singapore data was reported at 229.000 Person in 2017. This records a decrease from the previous number of 240.000 Person for 2016. Norway Immigration: Asia: Singapore data is updated yearly, averaging 114.000 Person from Dec 1967 (Median) to 2017, with 51 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 390.000 Person in 2013 and a record low of 0.000 Person in 1974. Norway Immigration: Asia: Singapore data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Statistics Norway. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Norway – Table NO.G006: Immigration: by Country.

In 2024, the total population of Singapore is estimated at approximately 6.04 million people. Population growth in the country is mainly fueled by immigration, while the fertility rate is one of the lowest in the world. The youth is fading Singapore’s population is getting older, with the age bracket of those aged 65 and older increasing with every year. The median age of Singaporeans is increasing rapidly, from 34.1 years in the year 2000 to an estimated 42.4 by 2020, and it is estimated to peak at around 55 years in the middle of the century. The old are here to stay The majority of Singaporeans are between 25 and 60 years old. In the years to come, improving healthcare and one of the highest life expectancies at birth will see this majority shift to the elderly. Additionally, Singapore’s fertility rate is among the lowest in the world and is well below the replacement rate, which means that Singapore’s population is not only getting older but its rate of natural increase (i.e. population growth not including migration) is now negative. This trend could have economic consequences, such as lower GDP growth and increasing old-age dependency.

Graph and download economic data for International Migrant Stock, Total for Singapore (SMPOPTOTLSGP) from 1960 to 2015 about Singapore, migration, and 5-year.

This dataset is about countries per year in Singapore. It has 1 row and is filtered where the date is 2021. It features 4 columns: country, birth rate, and net migration.

This dataset is about countries per year in Singapore. It has 64 rows. It features 4 columns: country, ISO 3 country code, and net migration.

This scatter chart displays birth rate (per 1,000 people) against net migration (people) in Singapore. The data is filtered where the date is 2021. The data is about countries per year.

As of June 2024, ** percent of the non-resident population in Singapore were employed in the construction, marine shipyard, and process sectors in Singapore. On the other end of the employment spectrum, ** percent of the non-resident population in Singapore were Employment Pass holders. These are foreigners working as professionals, managers, and executives, with a minimum monthly salary of SGD *****.

As of June 2024, the non-resident population in Singapore was at 1.86 million.

Singapore SG: Net Migration: per 1 000 Inhabitants data was reported at 4.660 Person in 2023. This records a decrease from the previous number of 38.030 Person for 2022. Singapore SG: Net Migration: per 1 000 Inhabitants data is updated yearly, averaging 13.985 Person from Dec 1990 (Median) to 2023, with 34 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 41.830 Person in 2007 and a record low of -25.900 Person in 2020. Singapore SG: Net Migration: per 1 000 Inhabitants data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Singapore – Table SG.OECD.GGI: Social: Demography: Non OECD Member: Annual.