EU population increases again after two years decrease

After a decline in population in 2020 and 2021 due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the EU’s population increased in 2022, from 446.7 million on 1 January 2022 to 448.4 persons on 1 January 2023. The negative natural change (more deaths than births) was outnumbered by the positive net migration. The observed population growth can be largely attributed to the increased migratory movements post-COVID-19 and to the mass influx of displaced persons from Ukraine who received temporary protection status in EU countries, as a consequence of the Russian invasion in February 2022.