Over the past 10 years, the number of EU immigrants in the Netherlands has doubled, according to Statistics Netherlands. This concerns approximately 750,000 people. Most immigrants from the European Union are Poles.
Statistics Netherlands announced these numbers yesterday, ahead of the European Parliament elections that will be held tomorrow. CBS stated in its press release that about 650,000 EU immigrants over the age of eighteen are allowed to vote in the European Parliament elections in the Netherlands, on the condition that they declare that they will not participate in the elections in another EU country. The main reason for coming to the Netherlands is work, followed by study and family immigration.
Other European countries have also investigated the number of EU migrants living in their countries. Luxembourg has the largest number of immigrants from the European Union. This is because the country is home to many European institutions and many banks. Cyprus comes in second place, Austria in third place, and Belgium (because of Brussels) in fourth place. The Netherlands comes in only ninth place.
The largest group of EU migrants in the Netherlands have Polish citizenship. Nearly 200,000 Poles now live in the country, more than 25% of the total number of immigrants from the European Union. They are followed by Germans, Bulgarians and Italians. Unlike migrants from the Middle East and Africa, many migrants from the European Union leave over time. On average, EU migrants live in the Netherlands for 7.5 years.
