The Netherlands' biggest immigrant group are workers from the EU

News item | 27-01-2012

Since the EU labour market was opened for residents of the Central and East European member states, work has become the main reason for immigrating to the Netherlands. This is one of the conclusions contained in a research report entitled ‘The Dutch Migration Map’, which Minister for Immigration, Integration and Asylum Policy Gerd Leers presented today to the House of Representatives. The study, conducted by the Research and Documentation Centre (WODC) and Statistics Netherlands (CBS), identities trends in immigration to the Netherlands.

The Minister’s response

In light of the report, Mr Leers expects that a more selective approach to admitting immigrants will reduce the disadvantages of immigration to society. He also endorses the study's conclusion that the stricter requirements for family migrants are affecting the inflow of immigrants without prospects. He refers to a number of proposed measures with which the Government intends to achieve this goal.

The study’s findings

Since 2007, work has been the main motive for migrants coming to the Netherlands. Almost 80% of labour migrants come from the EU, and 10% come from Asia.

The number of foreign students in Dutch higher education rose from 28,000 in academic year 2004-2005 to 47,000 in 2009-2010. This was largely due to higher numbers of students from Germany, China, Belgium, Indonesia, and – since its accession to the EU – Bulgaria.

From 2004 to 2006, the number of family migrants fell sharply, possibly as a result of the policy measures adopted in November 2004 aimed at restricting family migration. Since 2007, however, the number of family migrants has risen again owing to an increase in family migration from Eastern Europe and countries from which the Netherlands has received relatively large numbers of asylum seekers and knowledge migrants.

The number of initial asylum applications in the Netherlands fell during the early 2000s. In 2000, almost 39,000 initial applications were submitted; by 2004, this number had fallen to just over 6,000. From 2004 to 2009, initial asylum applications gradually increased again to 15,000. This number fell to 13,000 in 2010 and 11,500 in 2011.

Immigration from the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba decreased from 2000 to 2004, but has increased slightly again since 2005. At the same time, emigration to the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba has decreased, so that in recent years the Netherlands has had an immigration surplus with these parts of the Kingdom. The migration flow between the Netherlands and its former colonies Indonesia and Suriname has been at a low level for many years. Immigration from and emigration to both countries balance each other out.

By definition, it is practically impossible to keep official statistics on illegal immigrants. The figure of almost 100,000 quoted in this report is an estimate for 2009. Earlier estimates were higher. The enlargements of the EU in 2004 and 2007 largely explain the decline in these estimates.