Spain’s population rises for first time in five years

In 2016 Spain recorded an increase in immigration for the first time since 2011.

The stunning upturn in Spain’s economic fortunes has begun to make itself felt in the country’s immigration statistics, with 2016 being the first year since 2009 that the population actually grew.

In the post-millennium years up until 2009, the population of Spain increased steadily each year via a mixture of a positive birth rate and inward immigration…

However, the economic crash that befell Europe in 2008 – hitting Spain particularly hard – stemmed this growth. Population remained static in 2010 and had been falling every year since 2011 as youngsters stopped planning and starting families in the face of economic uncertainty, and immigrants upped sticks to try their hand elsewhere.

But in 2016, the tide turned. Data from the National Institute of Statistics (INE) has revealed an increase in the number of immigrants registering in Spain, revealing that last year there were 89,126 more people arriving in the country than those that left.

The largest number of arrivals by nationality were Venezuelans, largely those fleeing economic hardship and possible persecution back home, while perennial immigration-heavy Moroccans and Romanians also upped their numbers as Spain’s economy improved.

The number of Brits arriving increased slightly, the data shows, while German and Swiss numbers shrunk.

The number of Spaniards emigrating away from their home country continued to rise in 2016 despite improving fortunes domestically. The most popular location for Spaniards remains the UK, where the chances of employment and improvement of their English skills are high, and prove a strong draw.