Foreign residents in Portugal in 2023, by nationality and gender

In 2023, Portugal had 1.044 million foreign residents. Men numbered 553,965, while women were 490,641. The nationality that is most present within the Portuguese foreign population is the Brazilian with 368,449 residents currently living in the country.

The rise in foreign residents in Portugal

In 2023, there was an increase of 33.6 percent in registered foreign residents in Portugal compared to the previous year. The annual growth in foreign residents was interrupted in 2020, when it went from 22.9 percent, registered in 2019, to 12.2 percent. Despite this temporary decline in registered foreigners, the foreign-born population in Portugal has not declined since 2014. In 2023, there were 1.68 million foreigners residing in the country.

Refugees and asylum-seekers in Portugal

Since 2013, the number of refugees in Portugal has continuously increased, going from 598 to over 2,650 in 2021. However, the amount of asylum-seekers dropped in 2017, when it went from 858 to just 45, due to multiple socio-political circumstances in the countries of origin, but also in other nations of destination. By 2021, there were more than 2,160 persons seeking asylum in Portugal. Afghanistan was the main country of nationality of these individuals, which amounted to 285 in 2022, followed by India and, at a large distance, Ukraine.