Of all European countries, Switzerland remains the most popular destination for German emigrants: at the beginning of 2022, approximately 311,300 German citizens resided in the Alpine republic. Their number has been rising for years: Compared to 2021, the increase amounted < 1% (approx. 1,800 people). The number of Germans acquiring Swiss citizenship is also steadily rising. In 2021, a new record was reached with around 7,940 naturalizations.
The second most common emigration destination for Germans is Austria, with around 216,700 Germans living there in 2022. The year-on-year increase was considerably higher than for Switzerland, at 4% (8,000 people). Moving to these two countries is facilitated not only by geographical proximity but also given the common language.
Spain was the third most popular destination country, with around 142,600 Germans living there in 2022.
For the United Kingdom, data is only available up to 2019 and was therefore not included in the present comparison. In 2019, 142,400 German citizens lived in the United Kingdom.
Last update 05.09.2023.