More immigrants or emigrants in Hungary? The unexpected 30-year trend

Each year since 1995, more immigrants have arrived in Hungary than the number of people who left the country, a commissioner of the prime minister told public television on Monday, citing Eurostat figures.

Piroska Szalai said that fully 1.3 million people have arrived, and some 700,000 people have left Hungary. She added that people staying in Hungary for over a year count as immigrants, while an emigrant has not returned from abroad for more than a year.

She also added that foreign students in Hungary are considered immigrants, but if they leave Hungary after graduation, they will be included in emigrant statistics. Likewise, Hungarians working on longer foreign projects will be labelled emigrants, and seen as immigrants when they return after a year or two.

Szalai said the government’s family support measures greatly contributed to attracting young people with small children to return to Hungary, adding that “family assistance measures at such scale and in such diversity” were unique to Hungary.

Péter Magyar and Ráhel Orbán

For some reason, she thought it was important to emphasise that the president of the Tisza Party, Péter Magyar, was also an emigrant with his wife, former Minister Judit Varga, in the 2010s, working for the ruling party in Brussels. When they returned with their three children, all five became immigrants that year. A similar example could have been Viktor Orbán’s daughter, Ráhel Orbán, who moved to Spain with her husband and now lives a double life until her family moves to the US. We wrote about this in detail here:

• What’s behind the buzz? PM Orbán’s eldest daughter, Ráhel Orbán, may move abroad with her family – UPDATED

Before 1995

Before 1995, migration intensified during certain decisive events, particularly the 1956 Hungarian Revolution and the fall of the Berlin Wall. It is also true that after the collapse of the Soviet Union, some of the Hungarian population living in neighbouring socialist countries (Romania, Ukraine) migrated to Hungary so as not to live as a minority in the future.

Since joining the EU, hundreds of thousands have left Hungary

The most active period of emigration occurred after Hungary’s EU accession, with a marked increase between 2010 and 2016. This wave was largely driven by economic migration, particularly among younger and highly educated individuals seeking better wages and career opportunities.

The top destinations for Hungarian emigrants have been Germany, the United Kingdom (before Brexit), and Austria. Other popular countries include Switzerland, as well as Canada and the United States, though in smaller numbers. While many left for jobs, others pursued education, joined family members, or simply sought a different quality of life abroad.

After all this, the population

The situation of the Hungarian population remains worrying, with demographic indicators showing a significant deterioration in 2025. Based on data from the Central Statistical Office (KSH), population decline has been at record levels in recent years, with the number of births falling to an all-time low, while the number of deaths remains high.

In 2024, the Hungarian population will decrease to approximately 9.54 million, representing a 0.47 percent decline compared to the previous year, the second-worst rate since 2001, with only 2012 seeing a greater decline (0.54%).

The population has decreased from over 10.4 million in 1989 to below 9.6 million by 2025, reflecting a long-term decline.

Read here for more news about the population in Hungary

As we wrote yesterday, Hungary sees all-time high in foreign residents, with a growing Asian presence – read details HERE