The Dutch population grew by an estimated 132,000 people to more than 17.4 million inhabitants last year. The growth was stronger than in the past three years, according to an estimate by the Central Bureau of Statistics. 31,000 more people were added than the year before.
The growth is mainly due to immigration. Not all figures have yet been processed, but Statistics Netherlands expects 272,000 people to settle in the Netherlands in 2019, 28,000 more than the year before. The number of people who left remains virtually the same: 158,000. On balance, the population grew as a result of migration by 114,000 people.
In addition, more children were born than people died. That balance is 18,000. The ‘natural increase’ was 3,000 people higher than in 2018.
Half of immigrants from Europe
Almost half of all people from abroad who settled in the Netherlands came from Europe, 85 percent of whom came from an EU country. 18 percent of immigrants came from Asia, mainly from India and China.
The number of migrants who have been granted asylum here was 16,000, almost 6 percent of total immigration.
On balance, more people from all parts of the world came to the Netherlands last year than in 2018. This also includes people born in the Netherlands: 34,000 of them returned to our country, while 39,000 people left.
The migration balance has been at a record level since 2015, while the birth surplus has since been at the lowest level since the turn of the century.
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