The EU countries jointly issued 2.95 million first residence permits to citizens from outside the EU last year. That is an increase of 693,700, or 31 percent, compared to 2020. The number of residence permits due to work reached a record high of 1.3 million, or almost half (45 percent) of all residence permits granted.
The number of first residence permits issued to non-EU citizens is now back at about the same level as before the corona crisis. This also applies to the Netherlands. Last year, 103,580 foreign nationals were allowed to settle in our country, after only 73,511 people in 2020 due to the corona travel restrictions. In 2021, the Netherlands gave 12,740 Syrian refugees a residence permit, but 11,799 people from India, 8336 Turks, 6637 people from China including Hong Kong and 5595 American citizens were also pleased with a residence document to come and live, work, study or stay with family. add.
Most of the first residence permits in the European Union were granted last year to Ukrainians (875,800), who settled in the EU mainly for work. They mainly went to Poland, Spain and France. This was followed by half of people from Morocco (150,100), who mainly received a residence permit for family reunification, in Spain.