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Immigrants and their descendants

How many immigrants live in Denmark? From which countries do immigrants come? The statistics on immigrants and their descendants cover persons with an officially listed address in Denmark. Data on immigrants and their descendants can be disaggregated by municipality, sex, age and country of origin.

Explainer on…

An immigrant is defined as a person born abroad whose parents are both (or one of them if there is no available information on the other parent) foreign citizens or were both born abroad.

A descendant is defined as a person born in Denmark whose parents (or one of them if there is no available information on the other parent) are either immigrants or descendants with foreign citizenship. If there is no available information on either of the parents and the person in question is a foreign citizen, the person is also defined as a descendant.

A grouping of the population into three categories: Immigrants, descendants, and persons of Danish origin

A person's status as justified and committed in relation to a state. Citizenship means that a person has full and equal rights in a particular state

Selected statistics on Immigrants and their descendants

This page shows selected popular statistics on the subject of Immigrants and their descendants. In Statbank Denmark, you can find more data and compile your own statistics.

Development in the share of immigrants and their descendants

Here you can see how big a share of the population immigrants and their descendants constitute and how it has developed.
More about the figure
Last update
12.2.2024
Next update
12.2.2025
Source data

The primary source of the statistics is the Civil Registration System (CPR). The continuous updating of the Civil Registration System is thus the basis of the population statistics. The updating takes place in the individual municipalities as the municipal population changes because of births and deaths, migrations in and out of the municipality and changes in marital status for the citizens of the municipality. The Civil Registration System is a central system with a common database where all registrations are updated. The state makes the system available to the individual municipalities. The Danish Health Data Authority’s Birth Register and Cause of Death Register are the secondary sources providing data on births and deaths respectively.

Immigrants disaggregated by basis of right of residence

Here you can see on what basis immigrants in Denmark have a right of residence.
More about the figure
Last update
22.3.2024
Next update
26.3.2025
Source data

The primary source of the statistics is the Civil Registration System (CPR). The continuous updating of the Civil Registration System is thus the basis of the population statistics. The updating takes place in the individual municipalities as the municipal population changes because of births and deaths, migrations in and out of the municipality and changes in marital status for the citizens of the municipality. The Civil Registration System is a central system with a common database where all registrations are updated. The state makes the system available to the individual municipalities. The Danish Health Data Authority’s Birth Register and Cause of Death Register are the secondary sources providing data on births and deaths respectively.

Immigrants and their descendants disaggregated by country of origin

Here you can see from where immigrants and their descendants in Denmark come.
More about the figure
Last update
12.2.2024
Next update
10.5.2024
Source data

The primary source of the statistics is the Civil Registration System (CPR). The continuous updating of the Civil Registration System is thus the basis of the population statistics. The updating takes place in the individual municipalities as the municipal population changes because of births and deaths, migrations in and out of the municipality and changes in marital status for the citizens of the municipality. The Civil Registration System is a central system with a common database where all registrations are updated. The state makes the system available to the individual municipalities. The Danish Health Data Authority’s Birth Register and Cause of Death Register are the secondary sources providing data on births and deaths respectively.

On the statistics – documentation, sources and method

Gain an overview of the purpose, contents and quality of the statistics. Learn about the data sources of the statistics, the contents of the statistics and how often they are published.

See the documentation of statistics to learn more:

Asylum Applications and Residence Permits

The statistics show the number of asylum seekers and the number of residence permits granted.

The statistics were first published in 1989. The information on asylum seekers and refugees goes back to 1984, but there is only information on residence permits (other than refugees) from 1988.

From 1997 there is information about residence permits on individual level for each immigrated person with citizenship outside Denmark and the Nordic countries.

Church Statistics

The statistics cover the people’s relation to the national church. Furthermore it accounts for the number of different religious ceremonies, among other baptisms, confirmations and funerals.

The production of statistics on the national church was introduced in 1974. There have not been produced statistics on the national church for the years 2003-2006. For the years 1984-2002 statistics on recognized religious communities, their members and religious ceremonies corresponding to the religious ceremonies of the national church was also produced.

The Population

The purpose of the population statistics is to focus on the size, composition and development of the population living in Denmark. The statistics create a basis for a number of analyses on demography and society and are used as a basis for planning tasks on a national, regional and municipal level. In their basic form, the statistics have been compiled since 1769 but have undergone a series of changes as society developed and legislation followed. Most of the present table series in Statbank Denmark comprise data from 2007 and forward, while a few of these go back further.

Need more data on Immigrants and their descendants?

Find more detailed data in Statbank Denmark on immigrants and their descendants broken down by country of origin and age.

Contact

Jørn Korsbø Petersen
Phone: +45 39 17 32 77
Dorthe Larsen
Phone: +45 39 17 33 07