Spain surpasses 10 million foreign-born residents

BarcelonaSpain's population exceeds 49.5 million thanks to the arrival of foreigners, according to data from the INE, the Spanish statistics institute. The data also reveals that today, for the first time, the number of residents born in other countries surpasses 10 million, meaning one in five. Catalonia of the eight millionForeigners represent 19%, according to Idescat.

In fact, it is migrants who are saving Spain from a demographic winter, since natural population growth results in a negative balance, with more deaths than births. In the last year, the population has grown by 442,000 people, a sustained increase that brings it closer to the 50 million mark. At this point, the arrival of more migrants means that, for the first time, those born outside of Spain exceed 10 million (10,004,581 on January 1st), and that there are 7.2 million people born abroad who have become Spanish citizens, a figure that also reaches a record high.

The main nationalities of immigrants arriving during the fourth quarter of 2025 were Colombian (with 36,600 arrivals in Spain), Venezuelan (27,000), and Moroccan (22,000). At the other end of the spectrum, Moroccans (13,000), Colombians (12,500), and Spaniards (7,900) were the citizens who registered the most departures from Spain.

Population growth occurred throughout Spain, except in the Balearic Islands, which lost 0.07% of its population. Conversely, the Valencian Community registered the largest increase during the last quarter of the year, at 0.34%, followed by Castilla-La Mancha (0.27%), Madrid (0.24%), and Catalonia (0.23%)In Catalonia, the number of residents of foreign nationality has grown by more than three percentage points in the last five years and now approaches one-fifth of the population. According to the latest population estimate from the INE (National Institute of Statistics), inhabitants without Spanish nationality reach 19.3%, totaling 1.58 million people. In contrast, five years ago the figure stood at 15.9%, or 1.23 million. The population that, regardless of nationality, was born abroad has grown by six percentage points in the same period, rising to 26.1%, or 2.14 million people. The overall Catalan population has also increased, reaching 8.2 million for the first time, but the growth rate has slowed compared to recent years. 37% of Catalans between 30 and 34 years old

In fact, the growth in the number of residents in Catalonia in recent years is closely linked to the arrival of immigrants. On January 1st of this year, the number of people in Catalonia with foreign nationality reached its highest point to date, with 1,580,598 people. Nearly half of this group is between 25 and 44 years old, with the largest age bracket being those between 30 and 34. In fact, among the entire population of the country born between 1991 and 1995, 37.3% do not hold Spanish nationality. Of the entire country, Catalonia is the third region with the largest foreign nationality population, at 19.3%. The Balearic Islands are first (21.8%) and the Valencian Community second (20.5%), where this group has grown at a much faster rate than in the other regions over the last five years. In Catalonia, the growth has been 3.4 percentage points since January 2021, slightly higher than the Spanish average (3.2 points). 26% were born abroad

Leaving aside nationalities, Catalonia also has one of the highest percentages of people born abroad, at 26.1% (who may have subsequently acquired Spanish nationality). In total, 2,143,315 Catalans were born outside of Spain. Only the Balearic Islands (29.3%) have a higher proportion. In Catalonia, this demographic group has grown at a much faster rate than the national average. While it has increased by 5.8 percentage points since 2021, the national average growth rate is 4.9. As with the number of people of foreign nationality, the age groups with the highest presence are those between 25 and 44 years old. The 30-34 age group is particularly prominent: practically half of the total population, 49.3%, were born abroad.