One country has taken home the top spot for the largest change in its international migrants, seeing almost a 4000 percent increase in the last 30 years – and it’s not in Europe.
The experts at William Russell analysed data from the last 30 years, to reveal the countries with the biggest change in immigration.
Coming in first place is South Korea. This east Asian country has seen the highest change in immigration from an international migrant population of 43,247 in 1990 to 1,728,182 in 2024.
Although it may not have the most international migrants in the world, by comparing its recent figures, it becomes clear South Korea has seen the largest change to its migrant population in the last 30 years.
Coming in second place is Colombia with a 1727.24 percent increase from 104,277 in 1990 to 1,905,393.
With a 1,430.23 percent increase in international migrants, Chile completes the top three.
As the second South American country to feature in this ranking, it appears that this area of the world has become a haven for people looking for a new adventure.
The combination of a low cost of living and high quality of life has made Chile a popular destination for retirees.
Bulgaria comes in fourth with a 757.10 percent change and Spain closes out the top five with a change of 732.78 percent.
Countries with the biggest change in expats since 1990:
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Rank |
Country |
1990 |
2020 |
% change in migrant populations |
|
1 |
Republic of Korea |
43,247 |
1,728,182 |
3896.07% |
|
2 |
Colombia |
104,277 |
1,905,393 |
1727.24% |
|
3 |
Chile |
107,501 |
1,645,015 |
1430.23% |
|
4 |
Bulgaria |
21,510 |
184,363 |
757.10% |
|
5 |
Spain |
821,605 |
6,842,202 |
732.78% |
|
6 |
Serbia |
99,269 |
823,011 |
729.07% |
|
7 |
Malta |
15,077 |
114,760 |
661.16% |
|
8 |
Iceland |
9,584 |
65,424 |
582.64% |
|
9 |
Finland |
63,255 |
386,052 |
510.31% |
|
10 |
Turkey |
1,163,686 |
6,052,652 |
420.13% |