Population growth slowing down as fewer Ukrainians flee to Netherlands

The population of the Netherlands grew by 54,800 inhabitants in the first half of 2023, significantly less than the 119,200 growth in the same period last year. The lower growth is mainly due to fewer people fleeing to the Netherlands from the war in Ukraine, Statistics Netherlands (CBS) reported on Friday. There were also more deaths than births.

On balance, population growth due to foreign migration - immigration minus emigration - amounted to 61,000 people in the first half of this year, a halving compared to the same period last year. Fewer people moved to the Netherlands, while slightly more people left the country to live elsewhere.

“The fall in migration is largely due to the declining number of Ukrainian refugees,” CBS said. In the first half of last year, over 73,000 people from Ukraine came to the Netherlands, compared to 7,500 in the first half of this year.

Excluding Ukraine, the population growth due to foreign migration in the first half of 2023 was comparable to last year for most groups. Both immigration and emigration grew slightly in 2023. “Most immigrants came from Europe, but because the emigration of Europeans is relatively high, on balance, most migrants came from Asia.”

The natural population growth - the number of babies born minus the number of deaths - was negative in the first half of 2023. About 80,000 children were born, and 86,200 people died.

Natural population growth in the Netherlands has been negative for some time. Still, at -6,200 in the first half of 2023, it was lower than the same period last year and also lower than in 2020, when mortality was relatively high due to the coronavirus pandemic (-4,600). The number of deaths in the first half of this year was comparable to 2020, but the number of births was lower.