Immigration to Ireland has reached a 17-year high, while emigration from the country also hit its highest level since 2015, according to new figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO).
The data revealed that Ireland’s population rose by 98,700 in the year leading up to April 2024, bringing the total population to 5.38 million. This marks the largest 12-month population increase since 2008, when the population jumped by 109,200.
In the year to April 2024, a total of 149,200 immigrants arrived in Ireland, marking a third successive 12-month period where over 100,000 people immigrated to Ireland.
Of these immigrants, 30,000 were returning Irish citizens, 27,000 were other EU citizens, and 5,400 were UK citizens. According to CSO data, the remaining 86,800 immigrants were citizens of other countries, including Ukrainians.
On the other hand, over 69,000 people departed the country during the same period as opposed to 64,000 in 2023. This represents the highest emigration figure since 2015, CSO data revealed.
Commenting on the data, CSO statistician, Eva Leahy, said: “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 69,000. 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.”
