How many Chinese citizens moved to Europe in 2025?
125,290 Chinese citizens received a first residence permit in one of the 27 EU countries in 2025, according to Eurostat (data updated on 22 October 2026). That is 10,717 more than in 2024 (114,573), a change of +9.4%. The most went to Spain (18,103), Germany (16,748) and France (15,899). Another 4,445 received one in Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway or Switzerland. Outside the EU and EFTA, in 2025, 21,105 Chinese citizens became permanent residents of Canada (IRCC), and the UK granted Chinese citizens 96,342 work, study and family visas (Home Office).
27 EU countries · Chinese citizens · 2025: 125,290 first residence permits
By reason: education 39,776 (31.7%), work 32,819 (26.2%), other reasons 26,571 (21.2%), family 26,124 (20.9%).
Source: Eurostat, First permits by reason, length of validity and citizenship (migr_resfirst), data updated on 22 October 2026, downloaded on 28 October 2026 (definitions). First residence permits, persons. Re-use: Eurostat copyright notice (free re-use with acknowledgement, CC BY 4.0).
What this number is, and what it is not
- It is the number of Chinese citizens who received a residence permit in an EU country for the first time in 2025: a permit valid for at least 3 months, for family, education, work or other reasons. A permit also counts as "first" when the person had none for the same reason in the 6 months before.
- It is not a count of moves: some people who receive a permit never move, or leave soon after, and someone who received permits in two countries is counted in both.
- It leaves out Chinese citizens who also hold an EU passport (the statistics cover non-EU citizens only), stays shorter than 3 months and renewed permits.
- It is not the number of Chinese citizens living in an EU country, which is much larger.
Ireland: PPS numbers by month
Ireland also publishes a monthly count by nationality: 2,434 PPS numbers allocated to Chinese citizens from January to September 2026, 4,229 in 2025 (Department of Social Protection, data to September 2026). A PPS number is not a count of arrivals.
How many Chinese citizens moved to Ireland: PPS numbers month by month
Source: Department of Social Protection (Ireland), Annual Allocations: PPS Numbers (gov.ie, page updated on 21 October 2026): PPSN registrations by year, month and country and by year and country (CSV, downloaded on 30 October 2026), data to September 2026. Licence: CC BY 4.0 (data.gov.ie).
How many Chinese citizens moved to each EU country in 2025
First residence permits issued to Chinese citizens, by EU country, from the most. Tap a column heading to sort. Countries with at least 500 permits in 2025 have their own page.
| Spain | 18,103 | 19,008 | −4.8% | 4,962 | 4,320 | 2,174 | 6,647 |
| Germany | 16,748 | 12,469 | +34.3% | 3,251 | 7,750 | 5,041 | 706 |
| France | 15,899 | 14,890 | +6.8% | 1,259 | 7,592 | 2,547 | 4,501 |
| Italy | 14,263 | 9,286 | +53.6% | 5,216 | 4,574 | 887 | 3,586 |
| Hungary | 11,348 | 8,093 | +40.2% | 728 | 1,882 | 7,962 | 776 |
| Netherlands | 6,400 | 8,524 | −24.9% | 1,606 | 2,423 | 1,968 | 403 |
| Greece | 6,081 | 4,737 | +28.4% | 4,209 | 9 | 124 | 1,739 |
| Ireland | 5,491u | 6,287 | −12.7% | 68u | 2,917u | 1,369u | 1,137u |
| Sweden | 4,524 | 5,324 | −15.0% | 801 | 2,236 | 826 | 661 |
| Poland | 4,210 | 4,159 | +1.2% | 200 | 1,673 | 1,515 | 822 |
| Malta | 3,926 | 3,365 | +16.7% | 28 | 116 | 47 | 3,735 |
| Denmark | 2,685 | 3,100 | −13.4% | 627 | 989 | 1,026 | 43 |
| Portugal | 2,557b | 1,597 | +60.1% | 792 | 212 | 695b | 858 |
| Finland | 2,507 | 2,736 | −8.4% | 628 | 872 | 890 | 117 |
| Austria | 2,391 | 2,730 | −12.4% | 424 | 281 | 1,299 | 387 |
| Belgium | 2,052 | 2,137 | −4.0% | 279 | 1,185 | 421 | 167 |
| Czechia | 1,869 | 2,161 | −13.5% | 213 | 221 | 1,395 | 40 |
| Romania | 1,248 | 1,169 | +6.8% | 234 | 57 | 911 | 46 |
| Slovenia | 541 | 490 | +10.4% | 72 | 67 | 398 | 4 |
| Croatia | 508 | 463 | +9.7% | 28 | 19 | 451 | 10 |
| Luxembourg | 497 | 480 | +3.5% | 236 | 57 | 197 | 7 |
| Bulgaria | 402 | 363 | +10.7% | 53 | 182 | 162 | 5 |
| Slovakia | 392 | 370 | +5.9% | 104 | 23 | 263 | 2 |
| Cyprus | 333 | 260 | +28.1% | 40 | 54 | 79 | 160 |
| Latvia | 161 | 152 | +5.9% | 30 | 12 | 108 | 11 |
| Lithuania | 81 | 135 | −40.0% | 17 | 25 | 39 | 0 |
| Estonia | 73 | 88 | −17.0% | 19 | 28 | 25 | 1 |
| EU-27 total | 125,290 | 114,573 | +9.4% | 26,124 | 39,776 | 32,819 | 26,571 |
Source: Eurostat, First permits by reason, length of validity and citizenship (migr_resfirst), data updated on 22 October 2026, downloaded on 28 October 2026 (definitions). First residence permits, persons. Re-use: Eurostat copyright notice (free re-use with acknowledgement, CC BY 4.0).
b = Eurostat marks a break in the time series in 2025 for Portugal: the change from 2024 may partly reflect a change in how permits are counted. u = Eurostat marks the 2025 figures for Ireland as having low reliability.
Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland
| Country | 2025 | 2024 | Change | Family | Education | Work | Other |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Switzerland | 3,545 | 4,019 | −11.8% | 491 | 2,201 | 788 | 65 |
| Norway | 825 | 760 | +8.6% | 177 | 404 | 233 | 11 |
| Iceland | 67 | 75 | −10.7% | 15 | 43 | 9 | 0 |
| Liechtenstein | 8 | 13 | −38.5% | 2 | 1 | 4 | 1 |
Source: Eurostat, First permits by reason, length of validity and citizenship (migr_resfirst), data updated on 22 October 2026, downloaded on 28 October 2026 (definitions). First residence permits, persons. These four countries are not in the EU total. Re-use: Eurostat copyright notice (free re-use with acknowledgement, CC BY 4.0).
Chinese citizens moving to the EU, year by year (2019–2025)
| Year | All reasons | Family | Education | Work | Other | Valid 12+ months |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 112,250 | 30,151 | 44,800 | 21,101 | 16,198 | – |
| 2020 | 66,329 | 15,397 | 26,139 | 13,116 | 11,677 | – |
| 2021 | 73,473 | 15,275 | 33,368 | 17,698 | 7,132 | 56,503 |
| 2022 | 82,799 | 16,055 | 35,553 | 20,577 | 10,614 | 62,285 |
| 2023 | 109,671 | 25,085 | 41,522 | 24,784 | 18,280 | 80,905 |
| 2024 | 114,573 | 23,804 | 39,025 | 29,277 | 22,467 | 84,596 |
| 2025 | 125,290 | 26,124 | 39,776 | 32,819 | 26,571 | 91,616 |
Source: Eurostat, First permits by reason, length of validity and citizenship (migr_resfirst), data updated on 22 October 2026, downloaded on 28 October 2026 (definitions). First residence permits, persons. EU-27 = the 27 current EU countries in every year. Eurostat revises past years when countries correct their data. Re-use: Eurostat copyright notice (free re-use with acknowledgement, CC BY 4.0).
Canada and United Kingdom
Canada and the UK publish different figures, so they are not added to the European total: Canada counts new permanent residents by citizenship; the UK counts work, study and family visas granted.
−29.6% on 2024 · IRCCUnited Kingdom96,342 work, study and family visas granted in 2025
−14.4% on 2024 · Home Office
Questions people ask
How many Chinese people moved to Europe in 2025?
125,290 Chinese citizens received a first residence permit in an EU country in 2025 (Eurostat). That is 10,717 more than in 2024 (114,573), a change of +9.4%. Another 4,445 received one in Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway or Switzerland.
Which European country do most Chinese people move to?
In 2025 the EU countries that issued the most first permits to Chinese citizens were Spain (18,103), Germany (16,748) and France (15,899).
How many Chinese people moved to Spain in 2025?
18,103 Chinese citizens received a first residence permit in Spain in 2025. Details by reason and year.
How many Chinese people moved to Germany in 2025?
16,748 Chinese citizens received a first residence permit in Germany in 2025. Details by reason and year.
How many Chinese people moved to Canada in 2025?
21,105 Chinese citizens became permanent residents of Canada in 2025 (IRCC). Year by year.
How many Chinese people moved to the UK in 2025?
The UK granted 96,342 work, study and family visas to Chinese citizens in 2025 (Home Office). By type and year.
How many Chinese people moved to Ireland in 2026?
Ireland allocated 2,434 PPS numbers to Chinese citizens from January to September 2026 (Department of Social Protection); PPS numbers allocated are not the same as people who moved. Month by month.
Is this the number of Chinese citizens living in Europe?
No. These are new permits issued in 2025. Chinese citizens who have lived in Europe for years, renewed their permits or hold an EU passport are not counted.
Visa statistics for China
Other nationalities
Who moved where: all nationalities · Visa refusal rates · Visa income calculator