The number of foreigners in Portugal has doubled in 10 years

The number of foreigners in Portugal in 2022 was 800,000, double the number 10 years ago, one in three lives at risk of poverty, and half a million have already been granted citizenship in the last 15 years.

In a portrait of the “foreign population and migration flows in Portugal” on the occasion of the International Day of Migration, which is celebrated this Monday, the statistical database of the Francisco Manuel dos Santos Foundation tried to estimate the number and living conditions of immigrants or the evolution of grants for citizenship and residence permits.

The study concluded that 76% of foreigners come from non-EU countries, where unemployment rates are more than double the national average and earnings in 2021 are estimated to be “€94 per month less than the national average” .

In 2022 alone, “118 thousand immigrants entered Portugal, the highest number since records were recorded,” while 31 thousand left, “23 thousand fewer (-43%) than were registered in the year marked by the largest number of departures.” in 2013. “.

Last year, 798,480 foreign nationals lived in Portugal with legal status or legalized services, representing 7.6% of the total population.

“In the last 15 years, Portuguese citizenship has been granted to approximately half a million foreigners (468,665), residents and non-residents of Portugal,” says Pordata, highlighting that this concession was mainly granted to non-resident citizens in Portugal. the last two years, and in 2022, a third of citizenship was granted to the descendants of Portuguese Sephardic Jews.

The number of immigrants decreased between 2010 and 2015, but since then there has been a very large increase and, as an example, between 2018 and 2019 the increase was more than 110 thousand foreigners.

“Compared with the Portuguese population, foreigners in Portugal are more male and younger,” with an average age of 37 years, seven years younger than the Portuguese population.

“The most representative nationalities in Portugal are Brazilians (29.3%), British (6%), Cape Verdeans (4.9%), Italians (4.4%), Indians (4.3%) and Romanians ( 4.1%)”, can be read in Pordata’s report.

This growth in the foreign population is reflected in the education system: the number of registered immigrants has doubled in five years, reaching 105,955 in the 2021-22 school year.

In the 1st cycle, every tenth child is a foreigner, and a third of doctoral students are immigrants.

In terms of employment, according to Eurostat data cited by Pordata, more than a third have a temporary work contract (an average of 16% among Portuguese workers), and Portugal is the fourth country in the European Union with the greatest job insecurity among foreigners.

In terms of poverty or social exclusion, 31% of foreigners living in Portugal are at this level, 11 points above the average for the Portuguese population, with the problem particularly felt among those coming from outside Europe (34% ).

“Since 2019, the number of immigrants has tripled the number of emigrants, which contributes to a positive migration balance,” but the number of emigrants remains relevant, says Pordata, who also analyzes the topic.

“In 2022, 31,000 emigrants left Portugal, 23,000 fewer than were recorded in the year with the highest number of departures, 2013,” and what stands out among the profile is the fact that two thirds are men, with almost half (47 .6%) with higher education.

Among those who left in the past year, 51% left for another EU member state and, looking at previous years, Pordata concluded that “in 2016, 2018, 2019 and 2021, more emigrants left with a higher education degree than with basic education.”