Record level of residence permits issued in EU to third nationals: Who receives the most and why?

Most permits are granted for work and family reasons, with also a significant share issued on humanitarian grounds.

Transcript

00:00EU countries are issuing a record number of first-residence permits to third-country nationals.

00:12In 2023, EU nations granted over 3.7 million first-residence permits, the highest number on record.

00:23These permits allow foreign nationals to live in an EU country for a specified period and purpose,

00:30such as employment, education, family or humanitarian reasons.

00:36Most permits, 33.8%, were issued for employment, while family reasons accounted for 26.4%.

00:47Permits granted for asylum and other humanitarian reasons made up just over a quarter, followed by education at 14.3%.

00:58In 2023, the highest number of first-residence permits was issued to Ukrainians, followed by Belarusians and Indians.

01:08Indians, Indians, Chinese and Americans were issued the most education-related permits.

01:16Moroccans overwhelmingly topped the chart of permits issued on family grounds,

01:21while Belarusians, Syrians, Afghans and Ukrainians received the most humanitarian-related permits.