Immigration is the act of people relocating to a new country to live and work, typically with the goal of permanent settlement. The move may take place for a number of reasons, such as pursuing better employment prospects, reconciling with family, or fleeing conflict or persecution in the immigrant’s own country. It’s a complicated and frequently contentious phenomenon that is affected by a wide range of variables, including governmental regulations, economic situations, and personal circumstances.
Let’s find out what the difference is between a migrant, an immigrant, and an emigrant, as well as discovering which states have up to 80% share of immigrants in their own populations.
What is a migrant population?
A group of people who have left their place of birth to reside in another country is referred to as a migrant population. This term encompasses people who have relocated for economic reasons such as better employment, educational, or healthcare possibilities, and those who were compelled to leave their home country because of hostilities or persecution.
Immigrant vs migrant
The terms ‘immigrant’ and ‘migrant’ are frequently used interchangeably in discourse and even by research experts, despite the fact that dictionary interpretations differentiate between the two by stating that immigrants are those who are or aim to settle in a new nation whereas migrants are those who are only transiently resident.
Immigrants vs emigrants
A person who migrates can be both an immigrant and an emigrant at the same time. Thus, based on the perspective of the analysis of status, a person can be considered to be an emigrant in the native country he leaves and the same person will be considered to be an immigrant in the country of destination.
As an example, let’s consider an individual born in Germany who moved to Japan where he now lives permanently. To Japanese people, this person is an immigrant (immigrated to Japan), but to people in Germany, the same individual is an emigrant (emigrated Germany).
Immigrant statistics: 10 nations with the largest share of an immigrant population
* Note that the list includes countries with a population exceeding one million people
Source: Visual Capitalist
UAE immigration rate
Due to the abundant career prospects in the United Arab Emirates, there are more foreigners residing in this country now than ever before. Experts anticipate an increase in foreigners in the forthcoming months, particularly after Expo 2020 opened up a wide range of career opportunities. The country’s population as of December 2022 was 10.19 million with the expat population reaching almost 8.9 million.
Qatar immigration rate
The host of the 2022 World Cup has a population of just under 3 million and 3 out of 4 residents are immigrants. Around 2 million migrant workers in Qatar account for roughly 95% of the workforce. Following the announcement that it would host the World Cup, the country’s population expanded by about 40% as a result of the booming demand in the construction sector. In the next few years, the share of immigrants may decrease as there will no longer be opportunities that the World Cup offered to attract the workforce.
Kuwait immigration rate
With a population of 4.3 million people, around 70% of Kuwait’s inhabitants are immigrants from Arab nations, South and South-East Asia, and African countries. Most are employed in the construction and service sectors. Because Kuwait’s government rarely grants foreigners citizen status, temporary labor mobility has become the most common type of migration.
US immigration statistics
Despite not being among the top 10 states mentioned above, statistics show that as of September 2022, the overall foreign-born or immigrant population in the US reached 47.9 million, up 2.9 million compared to the beginning of 2021. Moreover, 17.2 million children under 18 years of age who were born in the country have an immigrant parent, making up 1 in 5 of the population (65 million).
Germany immigration statistics
According to the most recent figures released by Germany’s statistics office, Destatis, those with migrant origins make up 27.2% of the country’s population. Officials believe that 22.3 million of the 82 million citizens of this EU nation are either foreign-born or have foreign ancestry.
Before the start of the war in Ukraine, Germany housed around 1.32 million immigrants and, although data for 2022 is not currently available, the figures are anticipated to be significantly higher due to the war and the associated refugee immigration.
Top 10 nations with the lowest share of immigrant percentages
On the other side of the TOP 10 countries with the most immigrants are those states where the number of residing foreigners is extremely low.
Source: Visual Capitalist
Cuba has the lowest percentage of residents who were born abroad and foreign nationals find it incredibly challenging to gain resident status on this Caribbean island.
China is ranked second in this list. Over a million immigrants who reside in China may seem to be a large number, but they are insignificant when considering this number in a country with 1.4 billion residents.
While appearing to have many similarities, immigrants very much differ from refugees. To find out more, read our 2022 overview of refugees in the world.
Final word
Global migration will remain a complicated and significant issue as the world grows and becomes more interconnected. Although it might have many advantages, migration also presents difficulties for both the sending and receiving nations. The rights and needs of all migrants must be recognized and protected, and governments, communities, and people must come together to establish lasting solutions that deal with the underlying causes of migration.
