Social Monitor: Romania records positive net migration for fourth consecutive year

Romania recorded positive net migration for the fourth consecutive year in 2025, according to an analysis by Social Monitor, a project of the Friedrich Ebert Foundation, based on official data. The figures point to a shift from Romania’s traditional role as a major source of emigrants toward becoming primarily a destination for immigration.

The country’s net migration balance stood at 97,114 people in 2022, 66,065 in 2023, 48,716 in 2024, and 66,920 in 2025.

Immigrants are not exclusively foreign nationals, the Social Monitor found. Eurostat’s latest available breakdown showed that around two-thirds, or 184,700, of the 287,000 long-term immigrants registered in Romania in 2024 were Romanian citizens returning home.

According to the same analysis, Ukrainian citizens who arrived following the outbreak of war accounted for 13% of immigrants. Romania also recorded significant arrivals from Nepal, at around 15,000, and Sri Lanka, at approximately 7,000, although both totals were lower than in the previous year.

Long-term migration statistics cover people who remain in another country for more than 12 months, even if they retain their main residence in their country of origin.

Permanent migration generally occurs several years after arrival, often following the acquisition of citizenship. According to data from Romania’s National Institute of Statistics, as quoted in the Social Monitor, most permanent immigrants in 2025 came from the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine.

Significant numbers also arrived from Germany, Canada, Italy and Spain - countries that have been major destinations for Romanian emigrants in recent decades.