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Dear Commissioner Magnus Brunner,
Colleagues,
A very warm welcome to this launch of the OECD International Migration Outlook – the OECD’s annual flagship publication on migration flows and policies.
Thank you, Commissioner Brunner for joining this launch and for the European Commission’s longstanding engagement with the OECD on migration and integration policies.
Sound policies on migration and integration are an important tool for governments – to address labour shortages, respond to some of the economic and fiscal impacts of population ageing and to support stronger growth and higher living standards,
All while managing pressures on essential public services, like access to health and education, as well as housing availability and affordability that can be caused by migration flows.
This Outlook, with our latest data and analysis, provides an evidence base for governments to help shape their policies in response to key trends, challenges and emerging opportunities in relation to migration.
Our report highlights three key findings.
First, migration flows to OECD countries declined last year, but remained high by historical standards.
In total in 2024, 6.2 million new permanent immigrants were recorded by countries across the OECD.
This is 15% higher than in 2019, though 4% lower than in 2023.
The United States accounted for around a quarter of last year’s total permanent migration inflows to OECD countries.
In 2024, the number of new permanent immigrants to the United States was 20% higher than in 2023, and 38% higher than in 2019.
This is due in part to a rise in the number of people granted leave to stay for their protection, and a record number of refugee resettlements to the United States from countries where they were first granted asylum.
In contrast, new permanent migration to the United Kingdom declined by 41% in 2024 compared with 2023,
Driven by a drop in labour migration after stricter employer eligibility criteria were introduced for Health and Care Worker visas.
Permanent migration also fell in most EU countries that are OECD Members – with declines of 16% in Italy, 12% in Germany, 3% in France, and 2% in Spain.
In terms of the drivers of immigration flows,
Our data show that across the OECD, 44% of new permanent migrants moved for family-related reasons – that is, to reunite with family already in the host country, or as an accompanying family member of labour migrants.
Work-related migration accounted for 17% of all permanent migration, humanitarian migration for 13%, and an additional 19% were migrants within free movement areas that were not required to specify a reason for their migration, mainly in the European Economic Area.
Turning to non-permanent migration flows,
Last year, 2.3 million foreign workers were granted temporary authorisation or work permits in OECD countries – which was about the same as in 2023.
OECD countries also recorded 1.9 million new international higher-education students – 13% fewer than in 2023, as some of the top receiving countries tightened restrictions, including Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom.
Whereas the number of new asylum applications in OECD countries increased by 13% from its previous record in 2023 – to 3.1 million in 2024.
Second, our findings show we need to do more to enable good job opportunities and successful labour market trajectories for immigrants.
Last year, the labour market situation of migrants was broadly stable across the OECD: 70.9% of immigrants were employed – slightly fewer than the 72.1% for the native-born population.
The differences in labour earnings between immigrants and native-born workers are, however, significant.
We estimate that immigrants entering the labour market earn 34% less than native-born workers of the same age and gender – across the 15 OECD countries with available data.
About two-thirds of this earnings gap is due to immigrants working in lower-paying sectors and firms.
The immigrant earnings gap decreases by about one-third, down from 34 to 21% in the first five years in the host country, and by about half in the first ten years, as immigrants progress to better jobs in their firms, or move to higher-paying, higher-productivity firms.
The large earnings gap for migrant workers – especially when entering the labour market – points to the importance of the recognition of foreign qualifications, language acquisition support and skills development policies for migrants.
Facilitating migrants’ job mobility – through better career counselling services and better information availability on job search tools and local labour market demand – would help improve pay and job quality.
Third, our findings show that immigrants have become increasingly important to help address shortages in the health workforce.
Population ageing raises the need for health workers and countries have been boosting the training and recruitment of health professionals, including from abroad.
Across 30 OECD countries with available data, 22% of doctors, and 17% of nurses, are foreign-born.
More than half of doctors in Australia, Luxembourg and New Zealand were born abroad.
This is the result of a significant increase over the past two decades: between 2000 and 2021, the number of foreign-born doctors in OECD countries rose by 86%, and the number of foreign-born nurses by 136%.
Increases in absolute numbers of migrant health professionals have been most significant in Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Migration policies have been evolving to support international recruitment in the health sector.
Countries use occupation shortage lists, specific bilateral labour agreements, and dedicated migration pathways for facilitating the immigration of health professionals.
In order to further accelerate labour market entry of foreign-trained health professionals, progress is needed to streamline procedures – often still lengthy and complex – for assessing and recognising foreign qualifications.
And close international co-operation is central to address the global health worker shortage, and ensure that emigration of health professionals does not lead to harmful shortages in lower-income countries.
A good example is the European Union’s Talent Partnerships initiative, announced in the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum, which aims to boost international labour mobility in a mutually beneficial way – for host and origin countries.
These Partnerships facilitate the recognition of qualifications, and support training opportunities, the integration of migrant workers in Europe, and the re-integration of return migrants, who bring back new skills to their countries of origin.
In closing,
This International Migration Outlook highlights continued high migration flows into OECD countries, and opportunities for policies to effectively manage them.
The OECD will draw on this evidence and continue to provide new analysis to support policymakers, including through our close co-operation with the European Commission.
For example, next year we will launch our latest indicators of immigrant integration across EU and OECD countries, new insights on governance frameworks for integration policies, and key recommendations on how to best manage labour migration.
We look forward to continuing to work together in optimising migration policies for better opportunities, quality public services, healthy populations and stronger growth.
Thank you.
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