MigrantoMigration trends in Colombia
Latin America
Colombia loses more people than it takes in: 3.7M emigrants against 3M immigrants. Net balance −612.5K — 1% of the country's population
52.9M
Population
3M
Immigrants
3.7M
Emigrants
−612.5K
Outflow
1 in 17 residents of Colombia was born abroad — and 1 in 15 people born in Colombia lives abroad
#22 in the world by net migration loss
Top corridors
The largest migration flows in Colombia
Key moments
How migration has changed since 1990
1990
96K immigrants · 1M emigrants
1995
- The foreign-born population passed 100K residents
2005
- Surge of departures to Spain — 150.2K people left
2010
- An accelerating exodus — the diaspora grew by 40%
- Surge of departures to Ecuador — 174.3K people left
2020
- Became the biggest destination for immigrants in Latin America
- Surge of immigrants from Venezuela — 1.8M new arrivals
- The foreign-born population passed 1M residents
Today
- USA replaced Venezuela as the main destination for those leaving
- A surge of arrivals — the foreign-born population jumped 59%
- Roughly 1 in 20 residents was now foreign-born
- The gap between arrivals and departures was cut in half
- Since 1990: 2.9M more foreign-born residents and 2.7M more emigrants
Data source: International Migrant Stock 2024 (UN DESA, Population Division)
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