Why do people immigrate to France? In 2023, in a country where 7.3 million immigrants (10.7% of the population) live, a majority claim that they were driven to leave their country for family reasons. These are the findings of a series of studies published by INSEE, the National Statistics Institute, on Thursday, August 29, based on the declarations of immigrants aged 18 to 59 who arrived in France aged at least 16 years old. However, reasons for immigration are becoming more diverse, favoring economic and study-related reasons.
For example, almost half (46%) of immigrants from the African continent, who represented almost one in two immigrants in 2023 (48%), said that they came to France to accompany or join a family member. This is even more the case for immigrants from the Maghreb (a region of North Africa bordering the Mediterranean), 53% of whom cited family reasons.
This predominance of family reasons is found among 43% of immigrants from Asia, which is the third continent of origin of immigrants to France, representing 14% – behind immigrants from the European continent (32%).
‘Revival’
When it comes to Europeans, 34% say they emigrated for family reasons, but more (37%) left their country to find work or improve their professional situation. “This can be explained by the fact that intra-EU immigrants can work more easily in France,” said Pierre Tanneau, head of INSEE’s immigration statistics and studies unit.
Looking in more detail at immigrants from Portugal, who are the largest group behind Algerians (890,000) with almost 580,000 immigrants, 65% cite economic reasons, while this is the case for only 44% of Italians and Spaniards. “Immigration from Southern Europe experienced a revival in the 2010s against a backdrop of economic crisis,” explained Tanneau.
Between 2009 and 2012, for example, the number of immigrants arriving from Spain and Portugal almost doubled, according to INSEE. If we look at the jobs held by the Portuguese, who are the most numerous, it appears that they are over-represented in certain professions. According to a 2021 study by the Labor Ministry’s Directorate for Animation, Research, Studies and Statistics, 14% of domestic workers were born in Portugal, as is also the case for around 8% of construction workers and 4.9% of security guards.
Escaping insecurity
The economic aspect of migration has increased sharply over time. Between 2007 and 2021, the proportion of first residence permits issued for economic reasons to non-EU nationals rose from 7% to 13%. Conversely, over the same period, the proportion of first permits issued for family reasons fell from 51% to 32%.
You have 32.61% of this article left to read. The rest is for subscribers only.