The European Union issued a record 3.7 million first residence permits to third-country nationals in 2023, marking the highest number since data collection began in 2013.
These permits allow foreign nationals to live and work in EU countries for a set period, based on specific purposes such as employment, study, family reunification, or humanitarian grounds.
According to Eurostat data, Ukrainian nationals received the highest number of permits, totaling 307,313, followed by Belarusians with 281,279 and Indians with 207,966. Russians were also a significant group, with 116,142 permits issued, the majority granted for family reunification.
The breakdown of permits reveals that 33.8% were issued for work, 26.4% for family reasons, 25.6% for humanitarian and other reasons, and 14.3% for education. Education permits saw the largest increase from the previous year, with a rise of 63,674, and were mostly granted to Indian (38,157), Chinese (35,620), and American (26,821) nationals.
Moroccans accounted for over 50% of family-related permits, while the largest groups receiving humanitarian permits included Belarusians (148,957), Syrians (127,043), Afghans (97,339), and Ukrainians (53,186).
