Immigrant numbers hits 17-year high as new population of Ireland estimate revealed
Almost 150,000 people immigrated to Ireland in the 12 months leading up to April
Almost 150,000 people immigrated to Ireland in the 12 months leading up to April, making it the highest figure in 17 years, according to new figures.
This was the third successive 12-month period where more than 100,000 people immigrated to Ireland. The latest data from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) shows that of these, 30,000 were Irish citizens returning home, 27,000 were other EU citizens, and 5,400 were UK citizens.
The remaining 86,800 immigrants were citizens of other countries, including Ukraine. The new figures show that the population in Ireland rose by 98,700 - the largest 12-month increase since 2008. The number of immigrants in the 12 months up to April 2024 was the highest since 2007.
READ MORE:99% of refused asylum seekers are still in Ireland, new figures show
READ MORE: Department spent €22,000 replacing tents it destroyed during clean-up of asylum seekers' encampment
The population of the country is now estimated to be around 5.38 million. The figures show that 69,000 people left the country in the 12 months to April 2024, compared with 64,000 in the same period of 2023. This is the highest emigration figure since 2015.
There was a natural increase of 19,400 people in the country, comprised of 54,200 births and 34,800 deaths. There was also a sharp rise in the number of people leaving Ireland to move to Australia, with an estimated 10,600 people moving there, up 4,700 from the previous year, representing a 126% increase.
The Population and Migration Estimates shows that this is the highest level of emigration to Australia since 2013.
Additionally, 6,400 people moved to Ireland from Australia, down from 7,700 in 2023.
The UK also saw strong migration flows in the year to April 2024. Estimates have shown that 15,200 people left Ireland to live in the UK, up from 14,600 in 2023 and 20,500 people moved to Ireland from the UK, up from 18,400 in 2023.Eva Leahy, statistician in Population Estimates and Projections at the CSO, said: "Ireland's population was estimated to be 5.38 million, rising by 98,700 people in the year to April 2024.
"This was the largest 12-month population increase in 16 years since 2008 when the population rose by 109,200. The number of immigrants, or those entering the State, in the year to April 2024 was estimated to be 149,200, while the number of emigrants, or those leaving the State, over the same period was estimated at 69,900.
"These combined flows gave positive net migration (more people having arrived than left), of 79,300 in the year to April 2024, compared with 77,600 in the previous year."
There were 833,300 people living in Ireland aged 65 and over in April 2024. Those aged 65 and over showed an increase in population share between 2018 and 2024,increasing from 13.8% to 15.5% of the total, a volume increase of 156,800 people.
There were more than a million people living in Ireland aged 0-14 in April 2024.
This age group had a fall in population share between 2018 and 2024, falling from 20.8% to 18.8% of the total population, a volume decrease of 4,100. Looking at where people reside, the proportion of the population living in Dublin has risen from 28.1% of the total in 2018 to 28.5% of the total in 2024 and now stands at 1,534,900 people.
Sign up to the Irish Mirror's daily newsletter here and get breaking news and top stories direct to your inbox.
Related
Share this page
Guest Posts by Easy Branches
