Official survey: 1 in 4 people in Germany have migration background

Berlin, May 22 (dpa/OurVoice): About 21.2 million people with a migration background lived in Germany last year, a rise of 4% compared to the year before, according to official figures released on Thursday.

German news service dpa quoted the reports of the Federal Statistical Office, which confirmed that this figure amounted to 25.6% of the total population.

The data is broken down into first-generation migrants who themselves moved to Germany since 1950, and second-generation migrations whose parents moved to Germany.

The number of first-generation immigrants rose to just under 16.1 million, accounting for 19.6% of the population. In addition, just under 5.2 million of their direct descendants were also living in Germany.

According to the data, a further 4.1 million people born in Germany had only one immigrant parent. By the official definition, they are not counted as having a migration background - or to translate the German term "Einwanderungsgeschichte" literally, a "history of immigration."

In the 20-39 age group, about one in three people (34%) have a migration background. In the over-65 age group, the figure was only 14%.

The last decade has seen a substantial rise in migrants living in Germany. Almost 6.5 million people from abroad immigrated to Germany between 2015-2024.

The main countries of origin were Ukraine and Syria. According to the respondents, the main reasons were flight, asylum, and international protection (31%), employment (23%), and family reunification (21%).

The Federal Statistical Office published the data based on the results of the 2022 census and the initial results of a 2024 microcensus.