Insee Première · May 2025 · n° 2050

Migration flows The number of people entering France was declining in 2023, but remain high

Between January, 1^st, 2021 and January, 1^st, 2022, the population residing in France increased by 270,000 people, of which 80,000 were due to the natural balance and 190,000 to the migration balance.
In 2021, as the health crisis continues, the number of people born in France or born French abroad entering the country has exceeded the number leaving: unlike in previous years, their migration balance was positive (+30,000). The migration balance of immigrants was +159,000, slightly up on 2020, but below the level of the years preceding the health crisis.
In 2022 and 2023, the migration balance was not known, but the number of new arrivals was. The year 2022 was marked by the end of the health crisis and by a large number of arrivals from European countries outside the European Union, in particular from Ukraine and Russia. The number of immigrants entering France for at least one year peaked in 2022 (490,000).
In 2023, the number of new arrivals fell by 5% compared to 2022, with a particularly sharp decline in the number of immigrants born in Europe.
When new immigrants were in employment, they tended to be high-skilled managers or, conversely, low-skilled workers and employees.