Immigrants contributed 1,861 million euros to Social Security in 2022, while they only benefited from around 257 thousand euros in social benefits. In this way, there was a positive balance of immigrants' contributions of 1,600 million euros last year. Immigrants account for 7.5% of the total population, which was “the highest figure ever”.
The majority of foreigners living in Portugal come from countries outside the European Union (EU). Brazilians are the most numerous, followed by the British, Cape Verdeans, Italians and Indians, Pakistanis and Bangladesh.
The foreign population residing in Portugal increased in 2022 for the seventh consecutive year. According to Pordata, 798,480 foreign citizens resided in the country at the end of last year, 12.4% more than in 2021, when 710,469 lived in the national territory .
The increase in the foreign population is a phenomenon that has been occurring since 2016, when the numbers were below 400 thousand people. In the space of a decade, the foreign population in Portugal almost doubled, highlighting the growth of more than 110 thousand foreigners between 2018 and 2019.
Among foreigners in Portugal, there are more men and young people: 6 out of 10 are between 15 and 44 years old. Compared to the median age of the Portuguese, which is 48 years old, the median age of the foreign population is 11 years younger, standing at 37 years old.
In relation to the remaining Member States, Portugal is the 10th country in the Union with the lowest proportion of foreigners.