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Migration remains one of Europe’s most politically contested issues, yet EU countries issued more first residence permits to non-EU citizens last year than in any year since records began in 2008.
According to Eurostat, around 3.9 million first residence permits were issued across the EU in 2025, a 10.1% increase, or 355,350 more permits, compared with 2024.
Among new permits issued in 2025, employment led the way, at 33.6% of the total, up 16.1% on the year. Family reunification followed, up 14.1% to 28.1%, and education grew 9% to reach 15.5%.
Only one category shrank: permits for other reasons, including international protection, fell 0.9%.
Spain, where family reunification leads the way
Spain led the EU for first residence permits in 2025, issuing 635,438 — some 16.5% of the bloc’s total. Its numbers were driven overwhelmingly by family reunification, not new labour migration.
The country issued 275,869 family-related permits, more than any other EU country. These made up 43.4% of all Spanish permits.
Moroccans were the largest group to receive family-related permits EU-wide, and more than half of those, 51.7%, were issued in Spain.
Spain was also the most popular destination for Moroccan citizens overall (43.8%), reflecting long-established migrant communities, as well as historical and linguistic links that also draw large numbers of Venezuelans, Colombians and Peruvians to the country.
Employment was Spain’s second-largest category, with around 115,040 work-related permits, the third-highest in the EU behind Poland and Portugal.
Education followed, with 105,419 permits issued to international students, again the third-highest in the bloc, behind France and Germany.
Germany, Poland and the rest of the top five
A small group of EU countries issued the vast majority of new permits. Behind Spain, the next largest issuers were Germany (605,292, 15.7%), Poland (467,314, 12.1%), Italy (433,099, 11.2%), and France (377,462, 9.8%).
Together, these five countries accounted for almost two-thirds of all first permits issued in the EU last year.
Malta issued by far the highest number of permits relative to its population, at 57 for every 1,000 people, followed by Cyprus (47) and Portugal (27), against an EU average of just 9.
At the other end, Slovakia, Czechia, Romania, Estonia and Bulgaria each issued only 4 permits per 1,000 residents, the lowest ratios in the bloc.
Not every country saw numbers rise. Croatia recorded the sharpest drop, down 43.3% compared with 2024, followed by Greece, down 20.6%, and Austria, down 15.5%.
At the other end, Portugal saw the steepest increase of any EU country, with permits more than doubling, up 154.9%, though its total of 310,639 remained well below Spain’s.
Elsewhere in the EU, the leading reason for a permit varied sharply. Poland and Portugal issued the most employment-based permits overall, 318,186 and 240,523 respectively, driven mainly by Ukrainian, Belarusian and Brazilian workers.
Germany issued the most permits to Indian citizens, largely for work and study, while France and Germany led the EU for education-related permits, with 118,404 and 112,500 respectively.
Ukrainians top the nationality list, concentrated in Poland
By nationality, Ukrainians received more first residence permits than any other group in the EU, 335,096 in total, 8.7% of all permits issued.
The vast majority were granted in a single country. Poland issued 72% of all permits given to Ukrainian citizens, and 87% of those given to Belarusians, most of them for employment.
Ukrainians and Brazilians were in fact the two nationalities granted the most employment-related permits in the EU.
Both were also similarly concentrated in one destination. Some 86.3% of all employment permits for Ukrainians were issued by Poland, while 90.3% of those for Brazilians were issued by Portugal.
Citizens of India (227,577) and Morocco (202,054) rounded out the top three nationalities EU-wide.
Among the EU’s other top nationalities, Syria and Belarus were the only two to see numbers fall compared with 2024, down 42.1% and 15.5% respectively, while permits for Colombians rose 43.4%, the sharpest increase of any major nationality.
By the end of 2025, the EU held 27.8 million valid residence permits overall, the highest total on record. Unlike the pattern for new permits, family reunification, not employment, is the leading reason people hold a valid permit overall.
Moroccan citizens held the highest number of valid permits (2.2 million), followed by Turkish citizens (2.0 million) and Ukrainian citizens (1.7 million).
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