Migration trends in Kuwait
Middle East
3.2M people from around the world have made Kuwait their home. That's 65.1% of the country population, arriving from 33 different countries
4.9M
Population
3.2M
Immigrants
167.9K
Emigrants
+3M
Inflow
Every 2nd person in Kuwait was born abroad
The #20 largest immigrant destination worldwide
Top corridors
The largest migration routes in Kuwait
Where people move to
Key moments
How migration has changed since 1990
1990
1M immigrants · 64.2K emigrants
1995
- United Arab Emirates replaced Palestine as the main destination for those leaving
2000
- Migration accounted for 62% of the country's population growth
- The foreign-born population passed 1M residents
2010
- Migration accounted for 68% of the country's population growth
- The diaspora abroad passed 100K people
2015
- A surge of arrivals — the foreign-born population jumped 42%
- Surge of immigrants from Egypt — 185.1K new arrivals
2020
- Entered the world's 20 biggest immigrant destinations
Today
- Migration accounted for 56% of the country's population growth
- Since 1990: 2.2M more foreign-born residents and 103.6K more citizens living abroad