MigrantoMigration trends in Cyprus
Middle East
Cyprus takes in more people than it loses: 199.3K immigrants against 80.8K emigrants. Net balance +118.5K — 9% of the country's population
1.4M
Population
199.3K
Immigrants
80.8K
Emigrants
+118.5K
Inflow
1 in 7 residents of Cyprus was born abroad — and 1 in 18 people born in Cyprus lives abroad
#111 in the world by net migration gain
Top corridors
The largest migration flows in Cyprus
Key moments
How migration has changed since 1990
1990
43.4K immigrants · 87.1K emigrants
1995
- A surge of arrivals — the foreign-born population jumped 41%
- The gap between arrivals and departures was cut in half
2000
- Australia replaced Greece as the main destination for those leaving
- The country became a destination — more people arriving than leaving
2005
- A surge of arrivals — the foreign-born population jumped 53%
- Net migration doubled — the surplus reached 56K
- The foreign-born population passed 100K residents
2010
- Greece replaced Australia as the main destination for those leaving
- Roughly 1 in 7 residents was now foreign-born
2020
- Turkey replaced Greece as the main destination for those leaving
Today
- Since 1990: 155.9K more foreign-born residents and roughly the same number of emigrants
Data source: International Migrant Stock 2024 (UN DESA, Population Division)
Ask Migo
Tap a question — our AI assistant answers it in chat, with real migration data
Where to live?
Score countries, regions and cities by what matters to you
Living in Cyprus
See the full country overview